How much money for living expenses?

[IWillNoLie]

We are in the position of being able to support DS at university so he doesn’t need to take out a loan or work term time to pay for living expenses. He is in self catering halls so will need to buy food but no utilities. Whilst we can do this we intend to only support a modest lifestyle where budgeting would be necessary. He can earn extra in holidays for frivolities. I don’t mean beans every night and never going out but neither do I mean clubbing every weekend (which would be a change of character anyway).

How much is a reasonable amount?

Depends hugely on where in the UK he will be based and his lifestyle. Also what can you afford? Have you worked out what his living expenses would be if he was relying on student loans? That could be an indicator

Glasgow. He is fairly studious, or at least has been up to now! The lifestyle bit is where the balance comes because there is a point at which we would expect him to fund it himself from holiday earnings. Bus transport is free. It would need to pay for food, books, clothing, toiletries, a modest amount of socialising. Just wondering what others give their dc?

Conventional wisdom is to make sure that he has about the same as students on a Maximum Loan. This is about £10k minus rent (outside London).

If rent is more than that, £50/week is a bit tight, and £100/week is maybe a bit generous, depending on city. Other posters will be along soon to disagree. 😀

We did the 'top up' method. DD managed to save money on that and came out with more than she started at the end of the first year. She's going into Year Two and her rent will be higher, but she worked over the summer and so has a buffer in her account. Planning on the 'top up' method again and cautiously optimistic. But she doesn't spend much on socialising..!

We have DD X 2 at university. Both get minimum maintenance loan about 4k. This works out roughly as £100 per week as they're there 40 weeks.
We pay rent, Netflix, Spotify, phones, car insurance, and send "big food shops" every now and again.
They work v part time when home, but not at uni as courses v work heavy.

Thanks. I was thinking around £100. No car so no insurance but also no fuel or running costs or parking fees.

£100 for Scotland seems about right. My twins had £150 in Bristol which I paid weekly (and I paid their rent and fees as they have no loans). £150 even in England is generous but it was still less than school fees all in so seemed about right for our family.

I’ve been thinking along the lines that DS needs his loan/whatever I top up to cover rent plus £50 a week. From reading this it seems I might be stingy though.

Following with interest

£50 might be a bit tight if they need to buy books, clothes, hair cuts etc

Text books may not be the thing they were in my day, with the internet. But if you have to get them I remember they were expensive. Depending on course, they may also have to buy some ‘kit’ at the beginning of term. So I imagine the first week or two will be more expensive regardless of freshers events.

Plus equipping room! Much better (if the finances work out) to go with minimal stuff and buy what you need, than take a carful of useless items. (NB doesn't apply to isolated campus universities in quite the same way...)

I think £400 a month so not quite £100 a week…
my DS lives off minimum loan which is about £90 a week, we pay his rent. It’s been fine.

DD gets £50 a week to cover food phone anything else she buys from her earnings, except her medical certificate which we pay for.

Aldi and similar are daily cheap and they have a few drinks before going out. She finds ways to save which is good for her future.

She saves about £4000 in holidays earning each summer and £1000 each Christmas and less in half terms.

Ooh! Another thing for you to consider. There seems to be an even split between those who pay their DC only while they are at uni, and those who spread it over the year including breaks. Pros and Cons on both sides.

we've paid, and with just left heading into the new academic year. and will pay accommodation cost and leave them with the minimum loan. Based on 32wks actual term time more than adequate I'd suggest, and taking 40 wks as indicated by a pp above this is still over £100 per week. All have / had holiday jobs as well.

just one left that should be

I don’t think we will pay the summer as he will be home, so fed and watered, and can earn then.

I have one going into his second year at an Oxbridge college and one going to Nottingham this year - I've realised that DS has lived EXTREMELY frugally but that his accommodation has been seriously cheap compared to DD's!!

Up to now, we've just paid his college accommodation bill and then he's lived on his minimum maintenance loan, but he's got very limited time to socialise due to his work load, so he's had enough to pay for his Varsity ski trip and is going to NYC next week without having had a summer job.

For DD, I think we're going to start with £75 a week (because Notts is catered, so no food bills) and adjust up or down accordingly....up I'm sure, as she's more of a party animal! However, she is also doing a far less intensive degree course so she will be able to work in the shorter holidays (and possibly even during term time if she wants to, tho she shouldn't need to).