A month and a half into the new year and the cost-of-living crisis is quite rightly still the main topic of conversation in the UK – and likely will be for the foreseeable future. But even as we are inundated with coverage of how high inflation is affecting different groups of people, there has been precious little focus on how university students have been faring.
It is not hyperbolic to say that the young people in higher education have had to deal with a lot over the past few years. The pandemic led to exam cancellations in 2020 and 2021, and the lockdowns were particularly challenging for people living through what should have been some of the most socially active years of their lives.
As vice-chancellor of the University of Kent, I saw first-hand the impact the pandemic had on students’ mental well-being – and now I fear that history is repeating itself. In a survey carried out by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) at the end of November, one of only a few to investigate how the crisis is impacting the well-being of students, around 45 per cent of respondents reported that their mental health and well-being had worsened since the start of the autumn term. This statistic is particularly alarming considering that it was carried out so early in the academic year, with 2023 forecast to be another tough year for the public and students alike.
The situation is being described as a gathering storm by many in the sector. According to the ONS survey, one in four students had taken on new debt in response to the rising cost of living, 66 per cent of whom did so because their student loan was not enough to support their living costs.
The crisis has exacerbated issues such as accommodation, mental health and student retention. Pressures on the private rental market have pushed up average rents across the UK, and this has a significant impact on students. Last year, more than 18,000 students had withdrawn from courses by February – and while, in percentage terms, this was in line with previous years, we expect that figure to grow this year. This is a tragedy, not just for the individuals affected but also for society more widely given the shortage of qualified people in many sectors of the economy; taxpayers won’t be realising the return on their investment through loans and grants.
That is why Universities UK has launched an initiative, which I am leading, to examine ways to support its 140 member institutions in doing all they can to reduce the financial pressure on students. This will be informed by sharing best practice. For example, at Kent we have increased our hardship funding for students in financial difficulty and we have established a campus pantry, from which students can take up to 10 food items. We've also served more than 7,000 cut-price healthy meals to students in just a few weeks.
The University of Essex, meanwhile, has introduced daily hot meals for £2 throughout the week, while the University of Aberdeen offers free breakfasts every Tuesday and Thursday and has extended the opening hours of its campus locations to ensure that students have access to warm spaces and can save on energy costs. The University of Swansea has been running regular online and in-person workshops that focus on providing and sharing money-saving tips.
However, universities are limited in how much help they can provide to students as the institutions themselves struggle to balance the books. Earlier this month, in England, the government offered some small respite as it announced plans to award £50 million to universities to top up their hardship support funds. But spread among more than 100 institutions, that is a drop in the ocean.
In January, meanwhile, the government revealed plans to increase maintenance loans for the 2023/24 academic year by 2.8 per cent. On face value, while this also looks like a step in the right direction, the increase is insufficient to make up for the real-terms cut to maintenance loans that students have experienced since inflation began to skyrocket.
Times are hard for everyone; I recognise that. But students are becoming a forgotten group in the cost-of-living crisis. It is vital that the government comes together with universities to find a better way forward.
Karen Cox is vice-chancellor of the University of Kent.
