Edinburgh University denies 'anti-English' claims

EDINBURGH University was accused of being "anti-English" today after it emerged they are favouring candidates from north of the border.

Leading private school headteachers said they were "alarmed" that the prestigious institution has said it will "give weighting" firstly to applications for certain subjects from schools in the local area.

A statement on the university's website says: "We want to make sure that our local applicants are not prevented from studying their chosen subject because of the pressure on popular subject areas.

"For certain degree programmes we will give additional weighting to applications from schools in the local area (defined as City of Edinburgh, East Lothian, Midlothian, West Lothian, Scottish Borders, Fife, Falkirk and district, Clackmannanshire."

It adds that priority will then be given to students applying from the rest of Scotland as well as Cumbria, Northumberland, Durham, Teeside and Tyne and Wear in the north of England.

But Richard Cairns, headmaster of fee-paying Brighton College, said this discriminates against the rest of England, particularly the south.

He said 25 of the 27 applications Brighton College students made to Edinburgh University were turned down.

"I think it is outrageous that any university should discriminate against young people because of where they live," Mr Cairns said.

"Scotland used to have a proud tradition of looking outwards and attracting some of the greatest international minds to its universities. Edinburgh has opted to turn in on itself and in a manner that strikes me as potentially both illegal and racist."

Andrew Halls, headmaster of King's College School, Wimbledon, south-west London, said a discussion with the school's upper sixth students had revealed a problem.

"What came through was that if you had applied to Edinburgh, it was worse than an extremely small chance of getting an offer.

"We will be advising students not to apply in future, until they sort out their rather perverse admissions, which appears to be anti-English."

"There is a very clear pattern that Edinburgh is not making offers."

Mr Cairns added: "I know how sixth-formers in Edinburgh would feel if Oxford University had a policy of favouring students from the South East applying for popular subject areas. They would be outraged.

"Yet for a Scottish university to act in this narrow-minded manner is somehow acceptable to the authorities of Edinburgh University."