Legal warning over A-level fiasco

Universities have been told they will not suffer as a result of student movement following regrading, but institutions are being urged to check if the Government will cover them for lost rent.

And students could find themselves breaking an accommodation contract if their grades mean they can change university at short notice.

Education solicitor Hilary Crook, at York-based commercial lawyers Denison Till, said "potentially significant losses" may hit finely-balanced student accommodation budgets.

Mrs Crook, who advises more than ten universities and a number of further education colleges, schools and landlords' associations, said it remained a grey area whether the Government would underwrite lost rent.

Her warning comes after a Government report revealed that 168 students of almost 2,000 who have received the wrong A-level grades missed out on their first choice university and may now move.

She said: "We should heave a huge sigh of relief that this figure is not larger. But many universities offer residential accommodation to first-year students who sign tenancy agreements committing them to pay rent for the full academic year. These universities will need to decide whether students wanting to take up a place elsewhere can be released from their tenancies and, if so, who will pay for the empty rooms.

"Halls of residence must be self-financing and the loss of almost a year's rent at up to £90 a week could be significant. If there is no Government compensation, either the company or the student will have to lose out."

University of York spokeswoman Hilary Layton said no York students or any university accommodation was affected by the regrading fiasco.

She said: "Only one student is now qualified to come here who was not before his upgrade, and he wanted a deferred entry anyway. It also looks as if we won't lose any existing students as a result of upgrades."

Updated: 08:45 Tuesday, October 22, 2002