THE university of York has fallen down the world rankings, as British institutions slip down the lists amid post Brexit uncertainty.

The prestigious QS World University Rankings, which are seen as the most important such listings were published this week.

York is one of several British institutions to lose places on the list, falling from 103 in last year’s ranking to 127 this year.

At the top of lists, the University of Cambridge has fallen from third to fourth, Oxford has maintained its 6th place, and Imperial College in London has slipped from eighth to ninth.

The University of Leeds has fallen from 87th to 93rd, and Hull has stayed in 551st position in the rankings which list around 700 universities.

However, York’s Vice Chancellor Professor Koen Lamberts said the rankings hide the universities successes in other measures - and in a survey of how students feel about their institutions.

Prof Lambert said: “York, along with many other British universities, appears to have fallen in the QS league table because of concerns about the impact of Brexit; specifically, this has been attributed to worries about future access to research funding and whether we will be able to recruit excellent academic staff and students from all over the world.

He added: “The ranking does not reflect York’s continued rise in research grant income, our improved position in the National Student Survey and our outstanding performance in the survey of taught postgraduate students.

“As a university, we are committed to remaining strongly international in our outlook, while also making a vital contribution to the City of York and the regional economy.”

The Brexit impact has been blamed for the wider fall in British universities’ fortunes, with QS’s own head of research Ben Sowter citing uncertain research funding, immigration rules, and the ability to hire and retain the top young talent from around the world as reasons the UK higher education sector is seeing its reputation damaged in the eyes of the wider world.