Gap between Oxbridge and the rest continues to grow

Cambridge University’s Trinity College. The celebrated institution still leads the way in the UK alongside Oxford University
Cambridge University’s Trinity College. The celebrated institution still leads the way in the UK alongside Oxford University
AFP/GETTY IMAGES

A gap between Britain’s handful of elite universities and the rest is widening with leading institutions losing ground, according to a new international table.

A “golden triangle” of Oxford, Cambridge and four London universities has largely held its own against growing global competition in higher education, it suggests.

But other big civic and research universities such as Edinburgh, Manchester, Bristol, Sheffield, Warwick, Southampton, Nottingham and Newcastle have slipped down the table.

The findings raised fears for future growth prospects beyond London and the South East and prompted calls for the Government to protect and even raise spending on higher education.

The rankings, published by Times Higher Education, have tended to place most British universities lower than other international tables.

They are compiled using a larger