Students could be required to pass GCSE English to access university loans

More than 30,000 domestic students each year enrol on full-time courses without formal qualifications such as GCSEs. Photograph: Martin Anderson/Alamy

University students would face minimum grade requirements to qualify for student loans in England under proposals that could in effect bar thousands of young people from higher education.

Under one proposal being discussed by ministers, a pass in GCSE English would become the national threshold for students to access government-backed tuition and maintenance loans through the Student Loans Company.