A UNIVERSITY which recruits almost half its undergraduates from working class backgrounds has been named the best in Britain for retaining its students.

Teesside was crowned University of the Year for Student Retention in the annual Good University Guide published this weekend by The Times and Sunday Times.

The university has the lowest drop-out rate in the country, with only nine per cent of students failing to complete their course, compared to a UK average of 17 per cent.

More than 47 per cent of Teesside’s undergraduates come from working class homes, with 26 per cent of students coming from areas where participation in higher education is low, putting it in the top 10 in the country for social inclusion.

The Guide praised Teesside for showing: “it is possible to provide outstanding opportunities for higher education to students who might not get the chance elsewhere, without paying for that with a crippling drop-out rate”.

It added: “Teesside is embedded in its region - specifically in Middlesbrough - to an extent that few other institutions can match”.

Professor Eileen Martin, Teesside University’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic), said: “We are delighted to be recognised as the best university in Britain for our retention rates.

“A student’s journey into higher education and the changes that take place during their studies are critical moments in their learning experience.

“We develop and support innovative strategies to reach a wider range of students and retention is at the heart of our widening participation agenda”.

Meanwhile Durham was honoured twice in the same awards, named the best university in the region and winner of the Sports University of the Year title.

The award to Durham acknowledges the university’s success on the pitch in a range of sports, ranging from archery to ultimate frisbee.

Durham, whose graduates including Olympic gold medal rower Sophie Hosking, triple jumper Jonathan Edwards and England cricket captain Andrew Strauss, has recently invested £12m in improving sports facilities at its Durham and Stockton campuses.

Quentin Sloper, Durham’s head of sport, music and drama, said: “We know, from experience, that what takes place outside of the classroom is as valuable to our students’ development as what happens inside the lecture theatre, laboratory and seminar room.

“Sport, alongside music, theatre, volunteering and many other extra-curricular activities helps our students develop important life skills such as teamwork, communication and leadership”.

The 56-page Good University Guide is published in The Sunday Times this weekend.