Students slam London LPC providers for price increases

Students across the country have lambasted London’s leading law schools for hiking fees by an average of 8 per cent, with some now deciding against a career in law because of the hikes.

As exclusively revealed by Lawyer2B.com last month (25 February) would-be lawyers enrolling on the Legal Practice Course (LPC) at BPP Law School’s Waterloo and Holborn branches from September 2009 will face a hefty bill of £12,500 - £1,050 
more than in the current academic year.

Monica Gouveia, who is in her second year of studying law at the London School of Economics, said the price-hike has made her “think twice” about taking the LPC.

“It’s mad money that they’re asking for, pushing the prices up this much is restricting who can actually do the LPC. Law schools go on about diversity all the time but only a minority of people are going to be able to afford to pay that,” she said.

Kaplan Law School, meanwhile, is increasing its fees for 2009-10 by just over 9 per cent from £10,500 to £11,500. The College of Law is also upping its fees by just under 9 per cent at its London branches, from £10,340 to £11,250.

Kent University student Grace Adisa branded the spiraling LPC costs “elitist” and said it was a sure-fire way to rule out students from poorer backgrounds.

“This is putting barriers in front of people who find it hard to go to law school as it is. With the current credit crunch people are cutting back and won’t be able to pay for it,” she claimed.

One Oxford University graduate, who is toying with the idea of going on to study his Graduate Diploma in Law, said students will start looking outside of London for cheaper courses.

“The whole thing strikes me as a bad idea on the law schools’ part especially given the current economic climate. I think students will be more price sensitive and will look at studying at cheaper providers who essentially offer the same programme.”

Nottingham Law School has boosted its fees by a little more than 5 per cent, from £9,485 to £9,960.

Manchester Metropolitan University has increased its fees by over 7 per cent, from £7,650 to £8,250, while Northumbria Law School widened its pricing bracket from £7,150 to £8,000.

The University of Huddersfield Law School is only upping its price by £10, from £7,460 to £7,470.