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Higher education

Talk to other parents whose children are preparing for university on our Higher Education forum.

Original poster

Eligible for full maintenance loan - parent contribution?

42 replies

MovingtoEssex · 07/08/2021 18:51

Hi

I'm in the early stages of getting my head around uni money needs for DD.

She's looking at Sheffield/Nottingham/Manchester where it seems that living costs would be about 10K, with accommodation being half of that.

STEM degree with good earning potential (so I would expect her to end up repaying all loans).

Due to my income she will be eligible for the full maintenance loan which pretty much matches suggested costs.
Should I be contributing too to allow a lower loan amount? Or put this money in savings for her to use later? Or something else?

There are younger siblings too to make sure I can do the same for.

If anyone could share what they decided it would be appreciated!

P.s. also posted in Money Matters

OP posts:
DahliaMacNamara · 07/08/2021 19:44

Are you in England? I think that may affect the accuracy of any answers, since education is a devolved issue.

Original poster
MovingtoEssex · 07/08/2021 21:22

Yes sorry, we're in England.

OP posts:
lannistunut · 07/08/2021 21:26

If your child is eligible for the full maintenance loan, there is no expectation that you would contribute. Your daughter can also work part time. However it can all cost more than you think, so it might be necessary to assist over and above the loan amount.

Your circumstances will dictate what you do - but if you don;t have much money I don;t think it would be wise to prioritise her living costs over the younger children you have at home.

Northernlurker · 07/08/2021 21:42

I would plan a small extra contribution to make life a bit easier for her if you can afford it.

hedgehogger1 · 07/08/2021 22:09

I think Martin Lewis has done a fair bit on this on the moneysaving site

VanCleefArpels · 07/08/2021 22:12

Eligibility for full maintenance loan indicates there is not any spare cash to be able to do a top up! I would say better to set up an ISA for them and any spare ££ from time to time goes in that. Far more useful to have a small nest egg for flat deposit/rent in advance etc on graduation than a few extra quid as a student

DahliaMacNamara · 07/08/2021 23:15

I'm not sure there's a mechanism for students to take a smaller loan than they're entitled to in order to minimise the amount owed. It's very much a question of 'Your household income is x, so we're prepared to loan you y'. And you can't have much spare, especially with other DC to feed and house, so even if you could, you'd be making a big unnecessary financial commitment.

Bagelsandbrie · 07/08/2021 23:18

Basically it’s up to you…! We are a low income family and our dd is off to Nottingham. She’s entitled to the full loans and has applied for a bursary. We really can’t afford to give anything but we have got her a 16-25 railcard for 3 years as that will help with travel home etc and we will help her out if she gets into desperate need. She has been working part time all the last year and saving half her wages to give herself a head start. She plans to apply for jobs as soon as she gets there. She knows she needs to work. It’s not ideal but it is what it is.

Bagelsandbrie · 07/08/2021 23:19

I’ve re read your post - I thought you meant giving extra money on top of the loans etc. You can’t really choose to take a smaller loan. You get awarded what you get on the basis of your income.

Original poster
MovingtoEssex · 07/08/2021 23:41

@Bagelsandbrie
I guess I meant both - just finding my way through this! I didn't realise the maintenance loan was a non-negotiable amount so that answers that question.
Funding railcard and helping out when needed sounds sensible.
Her dad will be benefitting from reduced maintenance payments and I would hope would use that saving to help her out too.
Thanks for all the replies Smile

OP posts:
HarrietSchulenberg · 08/08/2021 00:16

DS2 is my first child to go to university and qualifies for a full maintenance loan. It covers his accommodation and leaves about a third over. Ex-H and have agreed that we will send him money or do a big food shop for him each month, and he understands that he needs to get a job to cover any other expenditure.

Longtimenewsee · 08/08/2021 08:27

When you say the amount is the same as the ‘costs’, do you mean she would have nothing left for the year from a full maintenance loan after accommodation costs are taken out?

Or are you including food / travel / entertainment etc costs in that?

In his first year, Ds was left with about 2.5 k from full loan amount after accommodation costs were deducted. .
I did pay for train tickets home at Xmas and Easter etc and I took him for a big food shop when he started back each time.

Original poster
MovingtoEssex · 08/08/2021 09:36

1st year accommodation was looking to be just under 5000 so at least 4000 leftover to live off - for 3 x 10 week terms that is £133 per week which seems more than reasonable I think.
So yes, assuming the loan will cover all costs.
Location/accommodation costs are going to make a big difference.

OP posts:
Bagelsandbrie · 08/08/2021 11:53

£133 a week to live on?! That’s tons! More than many families have.

We’ve worked out that dd will have about £35 a week - but she’s in catered halls so her food is obviously included in that, so the £35 is literally spending / travel money etc. When she gets a job this will provide more spending money - until then we’ll give her the odd £20 ish to help her out.

Original poster
MovingtoEssex · 08/08/2021 12:26

@Bagelsandbrie
£133 a week to live on?! That’s tons! More than many families have.

Confused brain kicking in here - apologies - that's £500+ per month and probably equivalent to what I spend on all of us!
It's the best case scenario too.
Less per week if spread over the whole year, and less still if accommodation is more, but still good and she's keen on a part time job so will be fine.

Thanks for helping me process this, it's much appreciated.

OP posts:
celtiethree · 08/08/2021 22:36

There is an argument for taking the full maintenance loan, as others have said you may never need to repay it all. However if you think you fall into the bracket where you think you will pay it all back then you may wish to try and reduce the amount borrowed.

There is no requirement to take the maximum you are entitled to - if you think you can manage on less perhaps by combining with a part time job you can apply for less.

jayritchie · 08/08/2021 23:05

Which STEM degree? I'd be surprised if there are any STEM degrees (possibly excluding medicine or top CS courses) where a majority of the students will repay their student loans.

General guide - once you've borrowed for fees you may as well max out the maintenance loan as its unlikely to make any difference to repayments once you've graduated.

raspberryrippleicecream · 08/08/2021 23:20

No need to fund Railcards, opening a Santander student bank account gives a four year free Railcard.

They aren't tied in to Santander for four years though, so they can switch later on to a different bank if preferred.

Bagelsandbrie · 08/08/2021 23:30

@raspberryrippleicecream

No need to fund Railcards, opening a Santander student bank account gives a four year free Railcard.

They aren't tied in to Santander for four years though, so they can switch later on to a different bank if preferred.

I can’t remember which one it is but we compared bank accounts and one of the others had a higher amount of free overdraft (without the railcard) so we thought that would be a better option and paid the £70 for the railcard. Obviously hopeful dd won’t have to use much of the overdraft except for emergencies but worth having.
DahliaMacNamara · 08/08/2021 23:38

You can't really 'apply for less' loan, and even if you could, having spent many hours gnashing my teeth on the phone to student finance, I really wouldn't poke that bear. Keep it as straightforward as possible.

celtiethree · 09/08/2021 07:35

You definitely can apply for less, you enter the amount you want if you do not want the maximum. Again I’m not arguing whether a student should or shouldn’t take the maximum amount just pointing out that there is the flexibility of only taking what a student thinks they need if they have other funds/income.

RampantIvy · 09/08/2021 07:45

You can opt to not complete the part about parental income. Ths will result in your DD only getting the minimum loan, but I see no advantage in doing that because you will definitely need to top up as it won't even cover accommodation.

Graduates only start to repay their loan once they start earning over £27,295 pa.

BeyondMyWits · 09/08/2021 07:45

They need to remember to save a bit (or for you to) for next year's accommodation upfront stuff. Come the start of next year they will be looking to flat/house share for next academic year (halls are often first year only) and deposits etc will be needed.

Oddbutnotodd · 09/08/2021 07:46

Remember that the graduate doesn’t pay anything back until they earn over £27,500 - currently. You are better off saving any spare money for future housing needs. Look at moneysavingexpert.com for Martin Lewis’s explanation.

54321nought · 09/08/2021 07:53

bus fare to and from uni, deposits, bills, electricity/water/council tax/ gas/ wifi/phone, insurance, driving lessons, clothing, food toiletries, books and equipment ( but very few books these days!) high spec lap top, particularly for STEM, clubs and social life,

Mine are on maximum loans, and I give them an allowance of £200 a month. They also have part time jobs at uni, and during the summer, although they have not been able to get summer work this year.

It is still much less than it cost to have them at home.