National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts
The National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts (NCAFC) or Student Left Network is a membership-based organisation of activist students and education workers campaigning against tuition fees, education cuts and privatisation in the United Kingdom.
A National Campaign Against Fees and Cuts banner at the occupation of University College London (UCL) on 29 November 2010
Tuition fees in the United Kingdom
Tuition fees were first introduced across the entire United Kingdom in September 1998 under the Labour government of Tony Blair to fund tuition for undergraduate and postgraduate certificate students at universities; students were required to pay up to £1,000 a year for tuition. However, only those who reach a certain salary threshold (£21,000) pay this fee through general taxation. In practice, higher education (HE) remains free at the point of entry in England for a high minority of students.
Alex Salmond alongside a rock at Heriot-Watt University inscribed with the Scottish Government's continued commitment to having no tuition fees, pictured in November 2014.