POORER students in England who are in their first year of university could graduate with an average debt of £60,000, a report found today.

Students from lower-income backgrounds have been leaving university with the highest levels of debt since the abolition of maintenance grants in England, charity Sutton Trust said.

Its research, analysed by London Economics, highlighted a “debt gap” at graduation between poorer students – from households with incomes of £25,000 or less – and wealthier students – from households with incomes above £62,000.