UNIVERSITIES were urged to offer more places to students from poor families or underperforming schools, in a shake-up unveiled by Lord Mandelson yesterday.

They should use “contextual data” – taking into account a pupil’s background, as well as raw exam results – in a fresh bid to widen opportunity, the Business Secretary said.

The Higher Education Framework also calls for businesses to “fund and design”

university courses – a suggestion likely to anger vice-chancellors who value their independence.

And it warns that scarcer funding in the spending squeeze to come will give priority to courses delivering “high level skills”, particularly science, technology, engineering and maths.

Announcing the ten to 15- year strategy, Lord Mandelson said: “Universities are not islands, they are not ivory towers, they have to respond to the world around them.”

But a decision on whether to lift the current £3,225-ayear cap on tuition fees will be delayed until after next year’s General Election. Some leading universities want fees raised to £7,000.

As hinted at earlier this week, the emphasis is on improving the “customer experience”

of students, who will have a right to expect upfront information about the quality of their courses.

The food-labelling style system should include not only the number of face-to-face hours with tutors, but the number of drop-outs and likely job and earnings prospects.

Last year, the National Audit Office criticised Durham, Newcastle and York Universities for failing to hit benchmarks for the number of students from struggling families and neighbourhoods.

In an interview with The Northern Echo, Universities Minister David Lammy urged them to offer more places to young people who attended summer schools, or who would be the first in their family to enter higher education.

He insisted ministers were not interfering in admissions procedures, but added: “Universities should support students from poorer backgrounds and reach out to the largest pool of young people.”

Asked whether universities would resent being told to turn to business for extra funding, Mr Lammy replied: “I hope not. They are already doing this on low-carbon technologies, engineering, IT and the health service.”

No one from Durham University was available to comment, but the Russell Group – which represents both Durham and Newcastle universities – pledged to consider “fair, accurate and relevant”

information about a candidate’s potential.

However, the group insisted: “Academic achievement continues to be the key factor in determining whether a student will go on to university.”