Rich parents will be told to give their kids £5k a year towards uni

Rich parents must be told to give their kids almost £5,000 a year towards uni, a new review into the uni system has said.

Students on minimum loan should have the difference between the maximum student loan made up by their parents, says the newly-published Augar Review.

However, parents with a household income over £62,000 rarely give this much money, which would amount to £15,000 over the course of a degree.

The review says the Student Loans Company must address this, and make the expectation clear in every description of the student loans system.

The report, which recommends fees be slashed to £7,500 a year and maintenance grants be introduced, has said parents often expect their kids to get by on the student loan alone.

Currently, the difference between min and max loan is £4,800 a year, and "parents are implicitly expected to make up the rest."

However, most don't and "only 15 per cent of full-time students received parental income at or above this level", the review says.

Stats show that students at Durham are getting £500 a month on average from their parents, whilst students at Cardiff get only £25 a month from Mummy and Daddy.

The expectation isn't communicated clearly, and "parents are often uncertain about the provision they will need to make to cover their children’s living costs whilst at university."

As it stands, the minimum loan barely covers rent in most uni cities.

"Greater clarity in communicating this expectation is a matter we expect the Student Loan Company (SLC) to address," the review says.

"The expected parental contribution should be made explicit in all official descriptions of the maintenance support system."