HEP bulletin - December 2025

Last updated: 18 Dec 2025

Registration and attendance confirmations

Thank you for your timely return of registration and attendance confirmations. We’ve noted an improvement in results for academic year (AY) 2025/26.

Please keep prioritising outstanding registration or attendance confirmations for AY 2025/26 courses. You should follow up all registrations with an appropriate attendance confirmation.

Make sure to submit an 'N' (not registered) or another appropriate attendance code for students who've not enrolled. You should also clear your Change of Circumstance (CoC) worklists.

Please check your registration and attendance worklists for previous years' outstanding confirmations. If reassessment details are correct, you should reconfirm attendance in acceptance of the changes made. This will let us release payments or recover overpayments. If the details are not correct, please contact our Partners Support Desk to change this.

Tuition fee changes for AY 2026/27

From 1 August 2026, maximum tuition fees for undergraduate students starting or continuing full-time and part-time courses at approved (fee cap) providers will increase by 2.71%. This is in line with inflation.
  • Standard full-time courses: up to £9,790

  • Full-time accelerated courses: up to £11,750

  • Part-time courses: up to £7,335
Ministers have confirmed that Scottish universities and colleges will be able to charge students from the rest of the UK the same maximum fee of £9,790. This is in line with the maximum amount English universities and colleges will charge.

The Scottish Government will also raise the tuition fee loan available to Scottish-domiciled students studying elsewhere in the UK to £9,790. This is to cover the cost of their tuition fees from AY 2026/27 onwards.

The Department for the Economy (Northern Ireland) will make the same changes to enable flexibility for NI providers. NI-domiciled students studying outside Northern Ireland will be able to access loans up to £9,790.

Designated providers outside Wales can assume that Welsh-domiciled students will be eligible for a full tuition fee loan of up to £9,790 (or equivalent). Welsh Ministers have indicated they will match the English fee cap increase, subject to regulatory approval.

Providers may apply inflation-linked increases for returning students if this is clearly stated in their terms and conditions and linked to objectives in their access and participation plan.

Lower level fee-limit

For AY 2026/27, the lower-fee limit for ‘classroom-based’ foundation years in England will remain the same. The maximum fee continues to be £5,760.

‘Classroom-based’ refers to courses in Office for Students (OfS) price group D, where teaching takes place in a classroom setting without laboratory, studio, or fieldwork components.

We determine which courses this lower fee limit applies to by using Higher Education Classification of Subjects (HECoS) codes. This is under the specified common aggregation hierarchy (CAH) 03 groupings.

All other foundation years will continue charging the higher fee foundation year study limit — which has a maximum fee limit of £9,535.

Bursary Administration Service (BAS)

You should now be finalising and activating your BAS awards for AY 2025/26. If you need to delay activation, please notify your Account Manager to keep them informed.

Fee limits for part time undergraduate foundation year courses

All students on the foundation year of a part time undergraduate course must have their tuition fee reflected in line with the new regulations.

For courses that meet the criteria for the lower fee limit, there's guidance on the foundation year tuition fee limit available on the HEP Services website.

Fee limits for part time undergraduate foundation year courses

All students on the foundation year of a part time undergraduate course must have their tuition fee reflected in line with the new regulations.

For courses that meet the criteria for the lower fee limit, there's guidance on the foundation year tuition fee limit available on the HEP Services website.

Partner Support Desk training

To prepare for the launch of the LLE and upcoming system changes, the Partner Support Desk will attend training sessions on 18 and 19 December.

During our scheduled training sessions, we’ll have reduced capacity for handling calls. While we’ll ensure staff are available for urgent matters, we kindly ask that you email us wherever possible. Thank you for your cooperation as we prepare for upcoming changes.

Training schedule:

  • 18 December – 9:30am to 12pm and 2pm to 4:30pm

  • 19 December – 1:30pm to 4pm

Attendance Management reminder

Please make sure you follow published attendance management guidance. This helps to make sure that student finance is administered accurately. You should have a clear attendance policy and confirm attendance through SIS at the required points. You should also take action if a student withdraws or fails to attend.

Processes should be consistent across all courses, including those delivered through partnerships.

Further Attendance Management guidance is available on the HEP Services website.

LLE seminar presentations

The presentations from our recent LLE seminars are now available on the SLC Events page. These resources provide essential information on upcoming changes and how they will impact your processes.

We encourage all providers to:

  • Nominate a lead contact or LLE champion within your organisation if you haven’t already. This will help us maintain two-way communication and make sure you’re prepared for implementation.

  • Stay up to date with our LLE Resources and LLE FAQ pages for the latest guidance and answers to common questions.

Your proactive engagement is key to a smooth transition to the new entitlement.

Season’s Greetings from SLC

As we approach the festive season, we’d like to take this opportunity to thank all our higher education providers for your hard work, collaboration, and commitment throughout the year. Your efforts have been instrumental in supporting students and delivering excellent service.

We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from everyone at SLC.

Festive opening hours:

  • Wednesday 24 December – 9am to 1pm

  • Thursday 25 December – closed

  • Friday 26 December – closed

  • Monday 29 December – 9am to 4pm

  • Tuesday 30 December – 9am to 4pm

  • Wednesday 31 December – 9am to 4pm

  • 1 January – Closed
Normal service resumes from 2 January, except for Glasgow-based teams such as our Partner Support Desk, who will return on 5 January.

Thank you once again for your continued partnership. We look forward to working with you in 2026.