CONTROVERSIAL moves to check the social backgrounds of potential undergraduates applying for university places has been supported by a Kent head teacher.

UCAS, the central admissions body that makes decisions about whether to offer places, has announced that from next year admissions officers will ask students whether their parents hold a degree.

It is part of a drive to increase the number of students from poorer backgrounds getting into university.

John Mathews, head of Chatham House at Ramsgate, one of the south's oldest grammar schools, said: "Universities should not be the province of the middle classes.

"There is extreme value in having grammar schools in an area of great socio-economic diversity such as Thanet as we offer a way for young people to go onto good quality higher education.

"The extra information that UCAS desires is already being provided by Chatham House as we believe it helps admissions officers make more informed decisions and obtained a more rounded picture of applicants.

"There is no way that the UCAS move will lead to discrimination against teenagers from middle class backgrounds. It should ensure that people from all backgrounds have the opportunity to access and benefit from higher education."