KEELE University today became the biggest casualty of higher education cuts in the West Midlands after its funding for frontline services was slashed.

It will receive £31.662 million over the next year to cover teaching students, research, and work through the higher education innovation fund.

This marks a 1.8 per cent cut, £580,000 less funding, which is the biggest reduction in percentage terms across the region.

But Staffordshire University is bucking the trend. Its share of cash from the Higher Education Funding Council for England (Hefce) will rise by 3.2 per cent. The university is set to receive a total of £53.293 million.

Manchester Metropolitan University, which educates thousands of students at its South Cheshire base, will see a 0.5 per cent funding cut. Overall, MMU is getting £90.211 million in core funding for 2010/11.

University and College Union general secretary Sally Hunt said: "The consequences will be building projects on hold, class sizes growing where jobs are lost, thousands of students denied access to university and staff following them to the dole queue."

But Hefce played down the dire predictions, stressing universities will be given "moderation funding" to help them adjust to the lower budgets.