Peter Horrocks, the former vice-chancellor for the Open University, topped the table with his salary of £718,000, which included bonuses and compensation for loss of office. Other top earners included the London Business School and the University of East London vice-chancellors, who received £596,000 and £592,000 respectively.

Sir David Eastwood, the current vice-chancellor of the University of Birmingham, also received a salary of £444,000 – which is a 1.14% increase since 2016/2017.

Meanwhile, the statistics revealed that 124 out of the 133 universities in England paid their vice-chancellor more than the Prime Minister’s £150,000 yearly salary, with the average pay being set at £250,000 per annum.

On average, pay for senior staff has risen by 3.5% since last year, from £245,000 to £253,000, while just 11 universities have reduced the salaries awarded to their vice-chancellor as of 2017/2018.

This report was released amidst investigations into the earnings of former vice-chancellor of De Montfort University, Professor Dominic Shellard, who left his position early last week following students’ calls for clarity about DMU leadership. According to the OfS, Shellard received the largest pay rise compared to any other vice-chancellor, at a staggering £64,000, which meant his total earnings for 2017/2018 were £350,000. Shellard also lives in a rent-free flat on the university campus.

‘At a time when students have to take out stonking loans, it seems incredible that vice-chancellors’ pay is so excessive,’ said Robert Halfon MP, Chair of the House of Commons Education Select Committee.

Chief executive of the OfS, Nicola Dandridge, said: ‘Universities – and individual vice-chancellors – need to be confident that they can justify the pay they receive.’

In an official statement regarding UoB vice-chancellor Sir David Eastwood’s pay, the University said: ‘Professor Sir David Eastwood is recognised within the higher education sector as a highly successful and experienced leader of a large, complex organisation with global reach.

‘The Vice-Chancellor’s total remuneration reflects the size and complexity of the organisation, and as a percentage of university turnover it is half the sector average (0.068% compared to the sector average of 0.126%).

‘It also reflects Sir David’s huge experience – he was previously Chief Executive of HEFCE and AHRC, and Vice-Chancellor of UEA and is a go-to person nationally and internationally for advice on Higher Education policy matters.’

However, UoB students are largely unconvinced that Sir David Eastwood should receive this salary. ‘I can’t believe his salary has increased,’ said one second-year student. ‘It makes me feel sick when I think about all the other places where the money could’ve been spent to improve the University.’

James, a third-year Economics student, sympathised with the vice-chancellor and said that he ‘was not aware that he donated so much of his money, which is obviously great.’ However, James added: ‘This still doesn’t justify how much he earns. It’s a lot of money that students could really benefit from.’