Documents submitted to the Government’s Office for Fair Access confirm that the university merely hopes to maintain existing numbers of deprived undergraduates from 2012.

The move risks leading to a further breakdown in the relationship between top universities and the Coalition following claims from ministers that institutions seeking to charge £9,000 should “dramatically” increase their intake of poor students.

It represents the first official warning that the Coalition’s higher education reforms risk failing to widen access to elite universities.

According to News Agency report, Under its plans, all universities seeking to charge more than £6,000 must submit an “access agreement” to Offa outlining plans to increase participation among deprived students. This includes proposed fee_waivers and outreach programmes to attract more applications from disadvantaged communities.

Ministers have warned that universities will be barred from setting high fees unless they set challenging targets to boost access.