Seven of the elite Russell Group universities have posted losses totalling nearly £200m, but many still bumped up pay for their top staff, analysis by The i Paper reveals.
More than a third of UK universities (64) posted budget deficits in the 2024-25 financial year, data from the Office for Students (OfS) and Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) shows.
Of these, 24 have now had losses for three years running – which a former government university policy adviser said can be an indicator of “significant financial difficulties”.
These include three Russell Group members: Durham University, the University of Nottingham and Cardiff University.
Many universities are axing jobs and cutting courses amid a financial crisis fuelled by a drop in international students, who pay up to seven times more for a degree.
The elite unis losing millions
The OfS, the university regulator, last year said 50 higher education providers were at risk of closing within the next two to three years – admitting that students would not be adequately protected if a large provider went bust.
But universities said they were making significant improvements to their finances and denied that yearly deficits were a sign of wider financial problems.
Queen’s University Belfast was the Russell Group member with the biggest deficit – running to nearly 10 per cent of its income in 2024-25, official data shows. Its operating deficit was £22.8m, separate analysis of its annual report shows.
This was followed by Cardiff, which had a shortfall of 9.7 per cent of income (£45.9m) and Durham (1.6 per cent, or £8.3m).
The University of Cambridge, Newcastle University and the University of Leeds were the other Russell Group members that reported deficits, meaning their spending exceeded their income that year.
Nottingham missed its deadline for submitting its data to the regulator, but analysis of its annual report shows it had an operating deficit of £85.3m.
£300k ‘golden parachute’ and £40k joining bonus
Despite posting losses, five of the seven Russell Group universities increased spending on executive pay the same year – while the number of staff with £100,000 salaries rose at six of them.
Leeds had the biggest rise in executive pay at 7.6 per cent, paying senior leaders a total of £3.4m.
Cambridge, which reported an operating deficit of £23.3m, increased its vice-chancellor’s base salary from £409,000 to £414,000 in 2024-25.
The year before it reported a budget shortfall, Professor Deborah Prentice received an extra relocation fee of £42,000 to cover her moving costs.
In 2023-24, Leeds handed its departing vice-chancellor a golden parachute of £288,000 – on top of her salary. This means that despite working only five months that year, Professor Simone Buitendijk was paid a total of £434,000.
Dr Mark Pendleton, vice-president at the University and College Union, said while lower-paid staff face stagnant pay and insecure contract work, this is “not what is being experienced at the top of the sector”.
Although a lack of government funding had been “fundamental” to finance woes, Pendleton said “management haven’t exactly covered themselves in glory”.
“A lot of them have been chasing speculative development projects – new campuses, shiny buildings,” he added
Nottingham spent nearly £80m on a new campus that it put up for sale in July after finding it was no longer financially viable. But it is only expected to fetch up to £18m on the market now, the university said.
Queen’s University Belfast opened a new £5m campus in India this year, and Cardiff opened one in Kazakhstan last year.
Jobs and degrees cut to save money
Nottingham put 2,700 staff at risk of redundancy in May as it looks to cut 600 jobs over the next three years. Some 281 staff took voluntary redundancy in 2024-25.
Last year, it suspended 48 degrees in subjects such as music and modern languages, saying it would consider permanently scrapping them.
There were 480 job losses at Cambridge last year, 424 at Durham, 200 at Newcastle, 295 at Queen’s University Belfast and 150 at Cardiff, annual accounts and union reports show.
Leeds is reducing the number of its departments from seven to five and offering incentives for staff to retire early.
Cambridge is shrinking the size of its estate, such as by demolishing its Cavendish II building, and propping up its income with money from Cambridge University Press & Assessment, which delivers exams in schools.
‘Unis under significant pressure – but on front foot’
The University of Durham said it had a planned deficit which was agreed with its governing council, and denied facing financial difficulties.
A spokesperson said it took measures, including a voluntary severance scheme to save £20m in recurring staff costs, to contribute to long-term financial sustainability.
He said its financial performance must be considered against a range of measures, such as cash generation, liquidity, balance sheet strength, and long-term sustainability.
Cardiff University said it was facing “ongoing financial challenges” like many universities, but said the deficit was also agreed by its governing body. It aims to return to a “sustainable position” in the coming years.
The university pointed to a “strong balance sheet”, saying: “A deficit budget… does not mean that Cardiff University is in financial difficulty. A deficit was forecast by the university and its governing body, council, allowed it to budget for this deficit.”
Other Russell Group universities either did not want to comment or did not respond.
But a Universities UK spokesperson said: “After years of real-terms cuts, universities are under significant financial pressure, but they are on the front foot, making huge efforts to reduce costs and strengthen their financial resilience.”
‘Desperate for cash’
Nick Hillman, director of the Higher Education Policy Institute think-tank, said universities are “desperately strapped for cash” and face a “perfect storm” of tightening immigration rules and capped UK tuition fees.
But he said that “questions start to be asked” of those that posted deficits across multiple years.
“If you’ve got a deficit just because you’ve got a deficit, and it’s not because you’re making yourself stronger for the future, then you have a serious problem,” he added.
He pointed to the University of Dundee in Scotland, which was “bailed out because they didn’t grip their financial situation even though they knew it was going in the wrong direction”.
The previous Conservative government tightened visa rules for international students in January 2024, barring them from bringing partners or children with them to the UK.
Meanwhile, tuition fees for UK students were frozen for years so they do not fully cover the cost of delivering the places, forcing institutions to rely on higher fees paid by international students to prop up their finances, Hillman said.
Iain Mansfield, a former government policy adviser, said university deficits indicate they are facing “financial difficulties”, with three consecutive years of losses being “significant”.
He warned new rounds of redundancies were expected this autumn.
Mansfield, now head of education at the Policy Exchange think-tank, added: “As universities become more financially desperate, they become less selective and are willing to drop standards. We see that at almost every level of prestige, including in the Russell Group.”
An OfS spokesperson said “students heading to university this autumn should have confidence that most are responding well to these challenges”.
But they “encourage institutions to be realistic in their financial forecasting and remain alert to risks, including those associated with global factors, increased energy bills, and uncertainty around domestic and international student recruitment”.
Do you have information about this story? We would love to hear from you. Please contact alexa.phillips@theipaper.com
Hence then, the article about the seven elite universities losing millions of pounds while bosses pay rises was published today ( ) and is available on inews ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( The seven elite universities losing millions of pounds… while bosses’ pay rises )
Also on site :
- ‘The Debut’ Review: Julianne Moore Is Astonishing in Jesse Eisenberg’s Funny and Dizzying Community-Theater Comedy
- 1981 No. 1 Hit, Written by Hank Williams Jr., Is Still an Iconic Salute to Wilder Days 45 Years Later
- The Pioneer Woman’s ‘Darling’ Scalloped Ramekins Are Just $5 and Perfect for Snacks, Dips, and Desserts