Uni students who live in halls are spending three quarters of their student loan on rent

University students who live in halls and take out the maximum student loan available spend three quarters of that money just on rent.

Those living in the most expensive cities are paying over £200 in rent every week, a new study suggests.

It’s no wonder that, according to an NUS survey, around a third of students survive on just £50 a month with one in ten students resorting to using foodbanks.

Rent has increased sharply because the building of new housing has not kept up with the rising numbers of students attending university.

New research by property company Cushman & Wakefield suggests that for every available bed in a halls of residence in London, there are 2.5 students.

David Feeney, a partner at Cushman & Wakefield, told The Times: “Rents are rising while maintenance grants have failed to keep pace.

“Only a limited number of students from the least wealthy households actually receive the maximum loan amount, meaning that only those with a household income of less than £25,000 per annum receive a loan higher than the average private sector en-suite rent.”

On average, students in cities like Bristol, Bath and Manchester pay £203 a week in rent- that’s 97 per cent of the maximum available student loan.

With the cost of living crisis raging, students are unsurprisingly feeling the pinch.

An NUS spokesperson said: “We’re hearing from students struggling to get by, who can’t afford to do their laundry and are cutting back on showers to make ends meet. They can’t even cover the cost of getting to the library or classes.

“This is having a severe impact on their mental health, being kept awake at night due to finances. We’re seeing stress and anxiety piling on them from bouncing debt between different cards to stay afloat. Despite all of this students are being completely ignored by the government.

“We are calling on the UK Government to put in place a tailored cost of living support package for students as a matter of urgency. We also need to ensure that the student maintenance package and the apprentice minimum wage are brought in line with the Living Wage.”

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