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Original poster

Is £100 a wee living allowance about right?

76 replies

Dancesaideveryone · 29/08/2023 21:38

DS off to university. He's paying his halls from savings and part-time job. I'm planning (hoping) to give him £100 per week for all living costs.

Is £100 enough? Too much? It's to cover everything like food, clothes, going out, any contracts (mobile) etc.

Any comments are helpful.

OP posts:
Original poster
Dancesaideveryone · 29/08/2023 21:38

That should say week not wee!

OP posts:
LollipopChaos · 29/08/2023 21:40

I think that's very generous. Had he bought all study books? They can cost a fortune.

Original poster
Dancesaideveryone · 29/08/2023 21:43

LollipopChaos · 29/08/2023 21:40

I think that's very generous. Had he bought all study books? They can cost a fortune.

Fuck. Not had a book list yet.

It just feels never ending all the costs.

OP posts:
LollipopChaos · 29/08/2023 21:46

Might be worth starting off with a larger payment to cover all study materials and then when settled knocking down to the smaller regular payments.

LollipopChaos · 29/08/2023 21:47

Also what about a laptop? And photocopying and printing costs?

BHRK · 29/08/2023 21:48

I think it sounds about right

Offyoupoplove · 29/08/2023 21:48

Sounds very tight but doable. I went to uni in London, might be more generous somewhere cheaper.

Hellocatshome · 29/08/2023 21:48

Sounds very generous if you can afford it then great. If its going to cause you financial problems at your end then it could be reduced a bit I think. Is he also getting a student loan?

gogomoto · 29/08/2023 21:49

Mine gets £150 a month!

ssd · 29/08/2023 21:53

Its quite a lot actually

Haveyoubrushedyourteeth · 29/08/2023 21:55

We used to give 100£ a week too, but because Ds wasn't great with money (much better now) in his 1st year we gave 70£ on a Monday and the remaining 30£ on a Friday. That way he couldn't blow it all at the weekend.

Original poster
Dancesaideveryone · 29/08/2023 21:56

His loans, savings and work pay for everything else including laptop etc I'm just looking to cover day to day living costs.

He's going to be in enough debt so want him to actually enjoy being a student and being able to eat, go out a bit, and so on.

I've budgeted for the £100 so hoping that will do.

He'll be in Manchester

OP posts:
Original poster
Dancesaideveryone · 29/08/2023 21:57

Haveyoubrushedyourteeth · 29/08/2023 21:55

We used to give 100£ a week too, but because Ds wasn't great with money (much better now) in his 1st year we gave 70£ on a Monday and the remaining 30£ on a Friday. That way he couldn't blow it all at the weekend.

That's a very good idea, thank you

OP posts:
YerAWizardHarry · 29/08/2023 21:58

Can tell some on this thread haven’t been to university recently… I finished a 4 year degree last summer and didn’t buy a single book nor did I print or photocopy anything.

textbooks will be available digitally or in the library for free

JuneBeWonderful · 29/08/2023 22:08

@YerAWizardHarry some of us have children actually at university now so are going off our own experience of financing it. Ds doesn't need any course materials.

Costs to also consider, laundry, around £3.80 ish a load plus tumble drying around £1.80 a load. Train travel home for Ds is once a semester. Amazon Prime which we bought for him as a gift and paid for a Student account year, I believe they need a uni email address, Netflix and any other subscription services.

£100 a week is plenty and he might need to learn to live within his means. Ds's food costs around £35 a week. Consider choosing a student bank with a free young persons railcard. Ds also uses a Monzo bank account so if one freezes etc he has access to funds from the other account. He keeps a float in his student bank account and I transfer £100 a week to Monzo. We pay for all his clothes, shoes etc.

TheWayoftheLeaf · 29/08/2023 22:10

Jesús. I got £50 a month back in 2017.

TheWayoftheLeaf · 29/08/2023 22:11

Although I had a maintenance loan. Will he also have that?

Crispynoodle · 29/08/2023 22:22

Don't worry about books! Many of them are electronic these days

user73 · 29/08/2023 22:27

Around £450 - £500 a month is about right if they don’t have any other income from maintenance loan left over after rent payment. That’s what it costs to live. Those who say they give much less probably have kids who are getting more maintenance loan.

Wallywobbles · 29/08/2023 22:32

I give £250/month living costs. DD has rent, fees covered. I bought her laptop as 18th/passing her exams present. I bought all her kitchen & bedroom kit. I'd rather buy more up front and less on living. But they can get a job if they need more.

sleepD3pr1ived · 29/08/2023 22:36

Where is he going to uni - that makes a difference and how much maintenance loan does he qualify for?

BellaAndDave · 29/08/2023 22:41

It depends on the degree imo. Two of our children needed much more to live on to cover petrol, car insurance, mobile phone, internet access in the flats they lived in, food etc as they couldn’t work due to the placements they needed to do.

usernother · 29/08/2023 22:46

It's a very large amount. More than the majority of students will be given.

user73 · 29/08/2023 23:45

usernother · 29/08/2023 22:46

It's a very large amount. More than the majority of students will be given.

That’s simply not true. Maximum maintenance grant is just under £10k. If accommodation is say £6500 that is £3500 left which is about £115 a week. At £7k accommodation it’s still £100 a week to live in. That’s someone on max loan with £0 being funded by parents. A significant number of students will get maximum loan and the government expects parents to top up those who are not eligible so that they have the equivalent of the maximum loan.

TeeBee · 29/08/2023 23:52

OP, that's what I give my son. He's in an expensive city.