Fees and Funding

So, your child wants to go to university and that is great news. Many parents, however, may experience this with both joy and apprehension given that university study is generally regarded as an expensive endeavour. In reality, there are many ways for your child to secure the funds they need to pay for their course and enjoy their university experience.

How much does it cost to study at university?

When it comes to university studies, tuition fees are the main cost involved. Students starting in 2022 can expect to pay an annual fee of £9,250 for most full-time, undergraduate courses. Then you have living costs – everything from accommodation and food, to travelling back home for a short break.

The Gov.uk student finance website is the best place for students to learn more about how they can finance their studies and what options are available to them. From fees and loans to bursaries and grants, your child will find out all there is to know about student funding, check if they qualify and learn how to apply for it. Encourage them to apply early on – they do not need a confirmed place at university to do so and it will ensure their loan is available at the start of their course. If they change their mind about their chosen course later, they can update this on their submitted application.

You may also want to take some time and go through the UCAS website with them, as it contains some useful budgeting tips to help them plan their expenses and know what to expect. 

The brief video from Student Finance England, below, provides an overview of the student finance application process.

How to support a student finance application

Frequently asked questions

After your child creates an account with Student Finance to apply for funding, you will receive an email asking you to create an account and to provide your household income details for the previous financial year.

You will need to find details of your income for the relevant year, but you won’t have to provide evidence to SFE unless asked.  For example, they may ask for evidence if the income details you provide don’t match the records they have from HMRC or your earnings are from outside the UK.

 

The maximum Maintenance Loan is £9,978 for students living away from home in 2023/24 and £8,400 for students living at home. If students are getting less than the maximum, it is expected that parents will make up the difference so that your child has enough money to live on at University.

No. Student Finance factor assume a ‘parental contribution’ based on household income, but there is no obligation to pay this or indeed stop parent(s) contributing a larger amount. 

The maintenance loan will only be based on the household income and not the declared willingness or ability of parent(s) to contribute a particular amount. 

Not providing income figures will result in the minimum, non-means tested part of the maintenance loan being awarded to the student, which might then mean a larger financial contribution from parents is needed.

 

If your household income is less than £62,176 (£58,246 if the student will be living at home), then providing your household income details for the previous financial year will help your child get more of the Maintenance Loan. You do this once your child has applied for student funding. You will get an email to ask you to create an account and provide your income details.

You can ask SFE to do a ‘current year income’ assessment. You can either apply through the student’s online account or access the form via the government’s webpage.

You still need to provide income details for the relevant tax year first, but after that you can ask for a current year income assessment.

If your income has gone down by 15% or more since the relevant tax year, then SFE can pay an income-assessed loan based on that estimate. Once actual income for the year is known, the SFE will adjust the loan accordingly.

It is the parent who the student would usually live with. The household income assessment also includes the new partner of the student’s parent where applicable.

Do I have to create a SFE account as a student’s parent?

Yes, if you want to provide income details so that your child can get the extra income-assessed part of the loan. This will apply if your income is below £62,176, if your child will be living away from home, or £58,246 if living at home.

If your income is below £42,875 then there is no extra help.

But, if your household income is over £42,875 then the income above that is divided by the number of children you have at university.

For example: If your household income is £62,875 and you only had one child going to university then they would get no income-assessed part of the loan. But if you have two children going, then your income over £42,875 is divided by two, i.e. £20,000/2 = £10,000. So only £52,875 household income would be taken into account and each child would get some income-assessed loan above the minimum. In this example, that would be around £2000 extra each. Overall, in these cases the maintenance loan allowances for each child are slightly increased due to the reduced household income assessment.

It is a personal decision whether to do this or not, but it is worth bearing in mind that the student loan is repaid according to what the student earns in the future. How much they have borrowed may not make a difference to how much they repay. Alternatives might include putting the money aside for when your child needs it most, for example; when buying a home, a car or starting up a business.

At Leeds Beckett we have no bursary specifically for students who are the first person in their family to go to university. There are, however, funds to support those who encounter financial difficulty or meet other specific criteria. Visit our Bursary and Scholarships page for more information.

Grandparents’ income is never taken into account by Student Finance England.

Financially, students can be better off living at home. They would get a lower rate of student loan, but the savings made would more than cover the cost of accommodation depending on the travel costs to university.

There are other, non-financial costs to take into account though, and learning to live independently, the opportunity to enjoy student life in Halls and having university resources like the library closer to hand are some of the benefits of living away from home. At Leeds Beckett we have many students who decide the best option for them is to commute and these students are still able to settle in, access facilities, make friends and very much be part of our student community.

SPEAK WITH OUR STUDENT MONEY TEAM

At Leeds Beckett, we have our own Student Money Team, which can offer them free, confidential and impartial advice on funding, budgeting and debt. You can also take a look at our handy table of estimate costs, to help them get an idea of how much they can expect to spend each year, if they choose to study in Leeds.