Living on max maintenance grant at Bristol University?

[Poundshilling]

DS hopes to start at Bristol university in the autumn and we're trying to get our heads round the finances. It's going to be tight.

Reading previous threads on Mumsnet, some parents pay for the accommodation and the student receives the minimum maintenance loan as living costs (£4289 for 2020/21.)

DH feels that the total annual outlay shouldn't exceed £9203 (maximum maintenance loan) so that would leave 9203-4289=£4914 for accommodation. Looking at the costs of halls in Bristol, DS would have to get the cheapest rooms to come in on budget. But he can't guarantee to get the cheapest rooms, in which case, he'd have less than the minimum maintenance grant to live on.

Can anyone with a student at Bristol (or a uni in a comparable city) tell me:

1. Does your student manage on less than the minimum maintenance grant for living expenses?
2. Is it realistic to expect to do it all for £9203? Uni website talks about £9000-£14,500!
3. Are there many student jobs that will still exist in these days of C-19?

Thanks.

Dd2 is at Bristol in her second year and gets the minimum loan to live off and we pay her accommodation and give her £30 extra a week to add to the loan as she was struggling on the minimum loan alone and is very good with money so we know she wasn't just wasting it on drink and partying.
HTH

Sorry I forgot to say her accommodation cost over £6000 first (halls)and second year (shared flat )so I can't see it being done for your dh budget at all !

Thanks @spagbog5 - that's really helpful. He's working off a site called www.savethestudent.org which says average student spend in Bristol after accommodation is £354/month, which seems low to me.

Students on a low income would qualify for up to £2k bursary from the university as well, as a top up, which matches your figures more closely than your dhs

My DS in Nottingham. He got almost the maximum loan and £2000 in bursaries. He has also worked all the holidays in a seasonal job when home (so had additional funds to take with him). I think your DS would struggle on the funds your DH is suggesting.

Well if accommodation is £6000 that leaves £3200 for him to live on. Spread over say 35 weeks that's £90 a week. £30 for food, maybe £10 on travel, £10 phone/Spotify leaving £40 a week for partying. Sounds ok!

In fairness if you pay his accommodation then maybe he could get by on £357 a month first year as all bills are included but definitely not the other years where they have bills on top of their accommodation costs.
It would be tight for him and fairly miserable I would think and I would worry how he would get by to be honest ie food and socially.
Poorer students get top ups too through uni to help them as a previous poster said so I think you would need to give him an allowance too if you possibly can.

If he gets 9k loan and accommodation is 6k thst gives him 3k to live off which is 75 a week for a 40 week academic year. If he gets a job in the summer and is frugal that will be fine, surely?

Problem is the loan does not come in three instalments the same and neither do the accommodation costs the first year halls. So it is actually hard to budget the first two terms.

The loan does come in three instalments Also most uni halls rentals are due in line with loan payment dates.

And second and third year private rents are usually inclusive of bills.

It depends on books, sports subscriptions, travel home etc. Things like that really add up, some of them are very expensive.
I pay accommodation plus phone, sports kit and travel. My ds has the maintenance loan to live on plus I send a couple of food shops occasionally.

Rents for ds have not included bills in year two and three.

Standard for bills to be included in Bristol and many other student cities. Students can also subscribe to package deals which arrange and pay bills - they cost more than if they did it themselves, but can be useful where there's one housemate who never seems to have the cash for the gas bill....

It’s not, it varies.

Neither of DD2's Bristol rentals have included bills. Which is usual within the people she knows.

We found Bristol much more expensive for halls and rentals than Cambridge ( where DD1 went.) She didn't have a swanky en suite room or anything but she still needed 2.5k more than her sister every year for a similar lifestyle.

Same @cathyandclare, I have one at Bristol and one just finished. All house shares and not had bills included.

My dd has lived on under £9k this year, thanks to c19 she has £2k still in the bank. Depends on how good they are with money, if they work (term time or holidays), if they can scratch cook etc. She batch cooks, takes sandwiches to campus etc whereas friends have burned through £5k more

Fair enough re Bristol. Very few of my dcs friends are paying bills and a quick check of Rightmove suggests there are student rentals there which include bills.

OP what I would suggest is that you give your child a fixed amount, and they use the loan for accommodation, with you topping up if rent is more than loan. That way they can budget just for day to day costs and if you have any subsequent children they'll have the same standard of living regardless of local rent costs. I'd also reccommedn if you can giving a chunk extra for freshers week - society subs will be due all at once and they can mount up!

Bills are included in students halls but so far not in private accommodation.

DD managed fine on about £1000 a term. Actually on much less in the third term. However be warned that the first term can be very expensive, especially if playing sport. Subscriptions were high then she had to buy kit, including a blazer. Plus you have freshers.

Obviously alcohol and take aways are expensive, as are loads of nights out. Some students have lots of money, but plenty don't.

@Poundshilling

Thanks *@spagbog5* - that's really helpful. He's working off a site called www.savethestudent.org which says average student spend in Bristol after accommodation is £354/month, which seems low to me.

That's about £100 less than my budget after accommodation costs. I'm also a student at Bristol Uni, but have 2 children (I am entitled to more than your DC, but saving it). It's fine - the libraries are excellent, so I've spent very little on books.

Bristol have a bursary for anyone with a household income under £45k I think, if it's any use? It's on a sliding scale. There's also a LOT of bursaries available to apply for.

Public transport is awful and very expensive in Bristol. I save a lot by walking instead and I live a long way away from student areas. I walk over an hour each way because it's actually quicker than the bus aswell as free.My best advice would be to take up walking or take a bike. Cars are not advised by Bristol Uni and I've yet to meet a Bristolian (in 25 years...) who would advise first bus.

To be clear, my budget is also for household bills and food for 3. I'd think your DS should be fine on that with no additional household bills and only food for 1.

Thank you all for sharing your ideas and advice. Much appreciated.

My twin sons are in their last term at Bristol now and one of their sisters went there in the past. They have had friends with all kinds of incomes from rich friends who separents don't get them even the top up from minimum to maximum loan (so those are in a sense less well off friends) from those with full maintenance due to low parents' income to people in between.

I agree with your husband that for students with student loans the maximum out of London loan is about right in terms of top up so often from about 4300 topped up to about £9k of whatever those less well off get in bigger loan.

One thing to note is that (certainly under CV19) in December of term 1 you tend to enter into a contract with your friends for your year 2 house and have to pay a deposit at that point although it may just be a holding deposit. Those tenancies run from about 1 July for a year even though you will not move in until Sept.

Some have jobs and others don't. I have worked full time since 1983 without a break and am able to help them so they don't have any student loans and I pay the rent which from memory in year 1 was about £7500 a year including food and years 2 and 3 was about per child about £500 a month rent and £46 a month bills and a weekly allowance of £150 a week which i think is quite generous. They also this year get about £505 each a month rent from a property in their name. I am only giving this as one example. Lots of friends have less money and I am sure some have more.

On the questions

1. Does your student manage on less than the minimum maintenance grant for living expenses? Not in our case but they have friend who will and everyone just rubs along. In fact I have not been that keen one of my son's often seems to lend money to others (including those whose mothers choose not to work full time as I do which is a bit annoying) although he seems to get most of it back and I am talking about hundreds of pounds here not just £20. I do not think it is a good idea to borrow and lend like that from friends.

1. Is it realistic to expect to do it all for £9203? Uni website talks about £9000-£14,500! Yes, you can manage on not much. it also depends what you do there. I graduated (elsewhere) a teetotal virgin top of year with law prizes (one reason I can fund my 5 children at university without student loans - by our virtue are we rewards... I am laughing at myself here) and had a really good time, even going abroad with university chamber choirs to sing abroad. I didn't spend much. Those out at parties or buying alcohol will find things a bit more expensive.

1. Are there many student jobs that will still exist in these days of C-19?

My daughter when at Bristol worked part time in a restaurant. She also worked in university holidays abroad for a UK holiday company. Obviously CV19 things will be different but presumably the supermarkets still need staff.

Don’t forget most student bank accounts come with a free overdraft of up to £1500 which helps for the one off large costs eg bus pass, gym memberships and deposits for second year houses. Costs in first year are very front loaded - it gets better after the first term

Please see the link below OP which confirms that University of Bristol is only offering on-line courses from October
tv.com/news/westcountry/2020-05-31/bristol-university-becomes-second-in-the-uk-to-confirm-lectures-will-stay-online-in-next-academic-year/