According to a poll, almost two out of every three tenants who are students are having financial difficulties.
In a survey of students, more than two in five (41%) admitted they had considered leaving school due to rent or other expenses.
According to a survey conducted by the website Save The Student, between 53% to 63% of student tenants said they were having trouble paying their rent.
According to the money advice website, students are receiving less money from their parents for rent than in past years, which illustrates the effect of the cost-of-living problem on families.
Save Between December and January, The Student conducted an online poll of 1,869 university students in the UK.
Nearly half (47%) of students who have private landlords and more than four in five (82%) students who live in university residence halls reported not receiving the government’s £400 energy bill rebate.
Students who reported having issues with their housing in the study reported that 43% of those issues had an impact on their academic performance and that 72% of those issues had an impact on their physical and/or mental wellbeing.
According to one of the students who responded to the poll, “My student loan doesn’t cover the cost of my housing, let alone money to live off of, so I am continuously working to try to obtain enough money to pay my rent and to buy food, etc.
“This then exhausts me and makes it difficult for me to concentrate on getting my degree because survival is my top priority.”
A different student admitted: “I’ve been finding it difficult to keep up with living expenses and have been skipping weeks of class to work on a construction site simply so I can pay rent and food.”
35% of the students said they stayed longer at school to avoid using electricity or gas at home, while 50% of those surveyed said they stayed in bed longer than normal to be warm.
“Given that rent in at least some halls will undoubtedly have increased to match rising energy costs, it’s alarming that many students haven’t received the essential support in return,” said Tom Allingham, Save the Student’s money expert.
It comes as no surprise that 63% of people now say they are having trouble paying their rent when you take into account the general cost of living crisis and the fact that over half of students living in privately leased homes were also denied the energy subsidy.
“We’re urging the government to stop ignoring students and to make sure they can take advantage of any energy bill assistance — both now and in the future.”
The Department for Education (DfE) announced last month that universities will receive an additional £15 million in funding this year to help relieve the stresses of cost of living for underprivileged students.
Additionally, it stated that maximum student loans for living expenses will increase by 2.8% in 2023–2024 while tuition prices for degrees in England would be frozen at a maximum level of £9,250 for the next two years.
“These are challenging times for many students, especially those from low-income homes,” a representative for Universities UK stated.
“Universities have increased their efforts to reduce budgetary strains brought on by the cost-of-living crises.
“We must pay more attention to how successfully the current system and the government’s own support measures are assisting students and determine what adjustments are required.
“Students contribute so much to society, yet there’s a chance they’ll be lost in the cost-of-living crisis.”
“We recognize the impact that cost of living pressures have had on students, and are giving £276 million that universities can draw from to offer hardship awards to underprivileged students,” a DfE spokesperson said.
