New research published today by the Sutton Trust has laid bare the extent to which the poorest students are being hit hardest by debt and cost of living challenges.
Since the abolition of maintenance grants in England, students from lower income backgrounds have been leaving university with the highest levels of debt. New analysis by London Economics for the Sutton Trust estimates that poorer students could graduate with £60,100 of debt, 38% higher than the £43,600 for those from wealthier families, with the gap largely driven by the need to take out maintenance loans.
Despite racking up the largest debts, students from lower income families, who are less able to rely on family members for support, are also struggling to cover their basic living costs, as the level of government loans has not kept pace with rocketing inflation. Students living away from home outside of London can currently receive a maximum maintenance loan of £9,978 per academic year, but their average level of spending just on essentials such as food and rent is £11,400.
Essential costs are higher than the maximum available loan for 57% of students. For 19% of students housing costs alone are higher than the available loan, and a third (33%) of students from working class families have skipped meals to save on food costs. Others have taken on extra part-time work, with almost a quarter of students reporting they had missed a course deadline because of their job.
