Oxford Brookes and Staffordshire - Requests to raise loan limit

Special permission to borrow amounts greater than 4 per cent of their income has been sought by Oxford Brookes and Staffordshire universities. Universities have to gain authorisation from the Higher Education Funding Council for England before exceeding this threshold. Rex Knight, deputy vice-chancellor of Oxford Brookes University, confirmed that the institution was borrowing £32.5 million to build halls of residence. He said: "The university has asked Hefce for this permission on a number of occasions, and has not only been able to repay the funds, but has also generated additional surpluses." Staffordshire University is borrowing an additional £60 million, £50 million of which is to be invested in the new "university quarter" - a joint project with a further education college and a sixth-form college in Stoke-on-Trent.