GOLDSMITHS University has announced it will charge the maximum £9,000 tuition fees for students from next year.

The charge will apply to students on all undergraduate and PGCE courses.

But the university has tried to soften the blow by introducing £1.6m worth of bursaries and awards.

It includes waiving the charge for ten Lewisham students to cover the whole of their degrees and also five awards of £4,000 for care leavers.

Warden Pat Loughrey said: “We are committed to making Goldsmiths as socially inclusive as possible and this is reflected in our access agreement which is one of the most generous out there.

“We hope the £1.6million pledged towards fee waivers and bursaries will demonstrate the importance we place on ensuring Goldsmiths is open to those wishing to study with us, and firmly embeds Goldsmiths within the borough of Lewisham and south east London.”

Many Goldsmiths students reacted angrily when the government announced plans to increase tuition fees last year. Around 30 students occupied the Deptford Town Hall building in protest.

Some of the university’s pupils were subsequently arrested at a demonstration which saw the Conservatives’ Millbank headquarters stormed.