By Harry Ward
Students at Leeds Trinity University are among thousands across England affected by problems with maintenance loan payments.
More than 20,000 students may have received loans they were not entitled to and could now be asked to repay them, according to a report by BBC News.
Leeds Trinity is one of around 15 providers impacted.
The issue centres on how some courses have been classified. The Office for Students (OfS) has previously said that courses delivered only at weekends could be considered distance learning, meaning students would not be eligible for maintenance loans.
The Department for Education (DfE) said the problem arose where some providers incorrectly registered weekend-only courses as “in-attendance”, allowing students to access maintenance funding.
It estimates around £190m in payments have been made in error this academic year.
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “This is not students’ fault. Too many organisations have let their students down, through either incompetence or abuse of the system.”
She added that universities “must take immediate action to support students who will face financial difficulties as a result”.
The DfE said providers are responsible for correctly registering courses and would be held to account where they fail to meet their obligations.
In a joint statement, universities including Leeds Trinity said they were “extremely concerned” that maintenance payments had been abruptly blocked.
They said they were taking legal advice to challenge the actions of the DfE and the Student Loans Company.
The group added that supporting affected students was their “primary focus” while the situation was reviewed.
It is not yet clear how many students at Leeds Trinity have been affected.
Maintenance loans are paid in instalments to cover living costs such as food and accommodation. Repayments normally begin once graduates are earning above a certain threshold.