More does not mean worse: it simply means a greater range of institutions. And it may enable those that can now call themselves universities to improve further.. Last week my son’s rock group made its debut at a school concert, and four more 12- and 13-year-olds signed up to the teenage dream of one day making a successful career in a band. Dreams can take you a long way, and already these boys talk wistfully of demo tapes and recording contracts. The reality is, of course, that only a tiny percentage of hopefuls will ever make it big. But for those that don’t, the burgeoning music industry can accommodate them in ways they may not yet have considered – as managers or promoters, music technologists or recording engineers.

The news that six higher education colleges are to become universities will annoy those who argue that more means worse. But it is only fair to give higher education colleges, all of which have the power to award taught degrees, the same status as universities. Charles Clarke, when he was Education Secretary, overturned previous policy that virtually forbade any more universities. Since 2001, we have had a new University of the Arts London, a new university in Bolton and a new university in Gloucestershire. Offa’s job is to make sure that universities charging the full £3,000 fee have in place arrangements such as bursaries.Will the bursaries put more money in the pockets of poorer students?Yes, so long as they are able to navigate their way around the complicated system.l.hodges independent.co.uk. The big attraction is that in future students won’t have to pay any tuition money before or during the course.

Instead they will pay back once they are earning £15,000 a year.Why the new bursaries?The top-up fees legislation was so fraught that the Government introduced the idea of an Office for Fair Access (Offa) to placate Labour backbenchers who thought fees would deter poorer families from higher education. Finally, Blackstone says, Greenwich is in the middle of real higher-education “cold spots”, areas that have low proportions of people going to university, so it needs to encourage aspiration. That is why it is offering £500 bursaries to mature students on low incomes.University College Northampton also carried out market research, as a result of which it decided to charge a fee of £2,500. Ann Tate, its rector, gave much the same reasons as Blackstone for opting for a lower fee – the need to recruit people who might otherwise go into work and who would not be earning large sums when they finally did hit the employment market. Everyone on low incomes or with a local postcode will receive a £500 bursary.At last week’s announcement Sir Martin Harris, the access tsar, was at pains to say that university autonomy had not been infringed. All institutions had come up with their plans willingly, though he admitted that discussions had taken place and figures had moved.

According to Professor Sterling, universities were encouraged to spend more on bursaries. “The discussions were focused on how much we were spending, rather than on the establishment of bursaries,” he said. “The idea that this was a hands-off operation is misleading.” Is that why universities are putting £350m a year into helping students in need, almost twice the £200m that Sir Martin anticipated?TOP-UP FEES: THE NEW SYSTEM IN A NUTSHELLWhat are top-up fees?They are the controversial new tuition fees to start in 2006 to replace the upfront flat-rate fee Almost all universities are charging £3,000 a year Eight are charging less. Many of her alumni go to work in the public sector on modest salaries and could be put off by the thought of having to pay back too much of the new top-up fees when they are earning £15,000 a year. “This is a big university with more than 20,000 students and we must not be in a position where we are under-recruiting.”In addition, Greenwich takes a large number of students from low- and middle-income families, and it needs to be careful that it does not deter them from going to university entirely, she says.