Student maintenance loans in England will go up by 2.8% next year, the government has confirmed, despite soaring inflation and mounting concern about the impact of the cost of living crisis on students.
The increase, announced on Wednesday, was greeted with dismay by those in the sector who described it variously as “disappointing”, “woefully inadequate” and a “devastating blow” to struggling students.
The government also announced an additional £15m for university hardship funds, but with just under 2 million undergraduates in the UK, student money experts calculated it would amount to less than £8 a person.
The Russell Group of universities warned earlier this week that students would lose out on as much as £1,500 a year if maintenance loans – which students take out to pay for living costs – failed to keep up with inflation. With a 2.8% increase, a full-time student living away from home outside London will receive £9,978 in 2023-24 – £1,523 less than the £11,501 they would get if loans increased in line with inflation, it estimated.
