UNIVERSITY students are to receive extra financial support to help them deal with increasing living costs, the Children’s and Education Minister has announced.
Deputy Inna Gardiner yesterday confirmed that Islanders receiving a higher-education maintenance grant would be given an additional 7.2% top up before the end of the year. This, in combination with a 2.9% increase which came into effect last month, brings the total increase to 10.1% for this academic year and is in line with the August UK Consumer Price Index.
A student from a household with an income between £50,000 to £59,999.99 would currently qualify for a £6,174 maintenance grant for an academic year. However, with the 7.2% increase they would receive £6,618.
Prior to the 2.9% increase last month, they would have received £6,000. The increase applies to those studying outside of Jersey and those who live independently while studying in the Island.
The news of further support follows a JEP article published earlier this week that highlighted the struggles faced by parents and university students, who called on the government for extra financial support to tackle the rising cost of living, energy bills and expensive flights to and from the UK.
A survey undertaken by the Student Loan Support Group Jersey revealed that several Islanders were concerned about the impact that tighter budgets were having on their ability to put their child through university, with some parents having to remortgage their properties or consider selling their home.
Deputy Gardiner said: ‘I am pleased to be able to announce this additional payment now, ahead of signing the order. While officers continue to finalise the law drafting to make this payment happen, I know that many students and their families are concerned about the increase in cost of living and will want reassurance now.
‘We provide maintenance grants to support the cost of going to university so that students, including those from lower-income families, receive assistance with costs of further study.’
To trigger the latest increase, Deputy Gardiner is expected to sign an order at the start of next month to ensure payments are made to students before the end of the year.
The extra assistance follows discussions between the minister, members of the Jersey Student Loan Support Group and the Children, Education and Home Affairs Scrutiny Panel.
Deputy Gardiner added: ‘University life has changed hugely in the last ten years. In 2012, fees increased to an average of just over £9,000. There is more competition for courses, an increased focus on employability and, now, increases in living costs.
‘This means it is only fair that our Student Finance system responds to these changes, starting with this increase. As outlined in the ministerial plan, I will be making further amendments to the higher-education order to increase grants for off-Island students, and tailor awards depending on where the student is studying.’
Currently Islanders can receive financial help from the government on a means-tested basis, to enable them to study at university. There is support of up to £9,250 a year to cover tuition fees and a maintenance grant of up to £7,718 for an academic year.
The current scheme was introduced in 2018 and was designed to provide households with support based on their earnings. Since its introduction, and before Deputy Gardiner’s announcement, the amount of support available had increased once – by 2.9%.
