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Closed Increase student Maintenance Loans in England to close £1,500 inflation gap

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Maintenance (living cost) Loans in England are set to rise by just 2.8% this year. Along with recent forecasting errors, students will be £1,500 poorer than if loans matched inflation. Loans must increase by more to avoid embedding this shortfall into the system – a financial disaster for students.

At Save the Student, our 2022 Student Money Survey found that on average, living costs exceed loans by £439/MONTH (+£99 on 2021, +£216 on 2020).

This is mostly due to forecasting errors, with actual inflation rates exceeding predictions.

According to the IFS, 2.8% may be accurate for 2023/24 but doesn't fix 2 years of errors, leaving students £1,500/year worse off in real terms.

Unless this gap closes, students and parents will face extreme financial pressure, with many forced to drop out.

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  • Related activity

    Share your experience of increases in the cost of living for further and higher education students

    On Tuesday 19 September, Paul Blomfield MP will lead a debate in Parliament on the impact of increases in the cost of living on further education (FE) and higher education (HE) students.

    To inform the debate, he would like to hear how students and their studies have been impacted by any cost-of-living pressures. He may quote your contribution directly during his debate.

    Find out more and share your ideas with him by midday on Monday 18 September:

    Videos of the debate, the transcript of what was said, and other relevant material will be accessible shortly after the debate on this webpage.

    What are Westminster Hall debates?

    Westminster Hall is the second Chamber of the House of Commons.

    Westminster Hall debates give MPs an opportunity to raise local or national issues and receive a response from a government minister. Any MP can take part in a Westminster Hall debate.

    Debates in Westminster Hall take place on ‘general debate' motions expressed in neutral terms. These motions are worded ‘That this House has considered [a specific matter]'. This means that Westminster Hall debates don’t end in a vote on a particular action or decision.

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