Universities will face sanctions including fines unless they address the attainment gap between black and white students, the Government has warned.

Ministers are today releasing data showing that white students are around a third more likely than black students to get a good grade in their degrees.

The new Race Disparity Audit shows that only 56 per cent of black students achieve a 2:1 or first, compared with 80 per cent of their white peers.

Black students are also the most likely to drop out of university, and only 2 per cent of all academic staff are black.

Data has revealed only 56 per cent of black students get a 2:1 or higher at UK universities compared to 80 per cent of white students (file photo)

The reason for the difference is unclear, but some black students have said they struggled while at university because they did not feel supported or welcome.

Today the Government is calling on universities to do more to close the race attainment gap and will demand they set out measures to achieve this in the next year.

Those who do not comply will face intervention from the Office for Students (OfS), the new regulator, which has the power to punish and fine universities. It is not clear how much any fines would be.

The worst offenders for inequality will also be named and shamed in league tables that will expose the disparities in achievement between various ethnic groups.

Universities minister Chris Skidmore said: ‘Universities need to reflect modern Britain, and ensure that everyone who has the potential, no matter their background or where they are from can thrive at university.

‘It cannot be right that ethnic minority students are disproportionately dropping out of university and I want to do more to focus on student experience to help ethnic minority students succeed at university.’

Universities minister Chris Skidmore, pictured, said universities 'must do more to reflect modern Britain'

All universities will now have to publish data on admissions and attainment, broken down by ethnicity, gender and socio-economic background, to shine a spotlight on those making good progress and those lagging behind.

Universities will also be asked to ‘explain or change’ existing gaps in attainment. As part of this, they will have to draw up more ambitious plans to show what they are doing to close the gap – and must provide evidence that it is working.

Chris Millward, director for fair access at the OfS, said: ‘Where we see lower proportions of ethnic minority students continuing with their studies, achieving the best degree outcomes, or progressing into graduate jobs, we expect universities to have a measurable plan of action to address this.’

The move comes following accusations from campaigners such as Labour MP David Lammy that some universities – including Oxford – do not admit enough black students and are institutionally biased.

Three-year classroom-based degrees will ‘certainly not be the norm’ in future, Mr Skidmore has said.

In a speech, he hailed the arrival of degree apprenticeships and two-year courses, which he said would become more widespread in years to come. He said degrees would be tailored ‘to the needs of the future workforce’ and ‘enhance graduate employability’.

His comments suggest he is trying to tackle the problem of the large numbers of graduates in low-skilled jobs.