Parental Contribution to Daughter's university loan.

Swirlywurly

I'm just finishing my fourth year of uni and I get no money from my mum. Even if she could afford to she wouldn't give me much (if anything) because she doesn't believe that she should have to.

I've worked since i was 14 years old to save for uni, and i've worked every year since. If you want something badly enough then you do I guess. Some people have everything paid for them and as nice as that sounds I have financial maturity. Though I wouldn't say no to some help now and again!

savingsuperstar

I'm in my final year at university and although occassionally I receive some food or money from my parents, I support myself with two jobs and a loan- I get basic rate loan too, which doesn't even cover my rent.

Uni is HARD financially, but what's a little hardship? It's part of being a student. If I'm careful then I'm fine, if I want to be extravagant then as an adult I need to be doing that with my own money and not spend that of my parents.

I resent this 'not financially independent til 25' idea they have. What an arbitrary thing. I have a 28 year old classmate who lives at home with her parents and pays nothing towards her keep gets several thousand pounds in grants just because she's considered independent, AS WELL as getting the same loan as me. All very frustrating!

Rosemary7391

I'm just about to apply for Uni, in England. The cost of halls seems to range from £65 - £150 a week. It is possible to support yourself on the £4500 you get from loans and/or grants. You have to learn to budget though - which is important! I think the best support parents can give is sitting down with a child and showing them what costs they'll need to consider etc. and HOW to budget properly. Rent free accommodation during holidays is nice too, so they can build up a surplus for the next term

dmg24

Is there anything to stop her working for a few years and going as an independent student? She will have more life experience, be more capable of supporting herself financially, and she will know by then whether it is the right thing for her x

Bamber19

poet123 wrote: »

Sometimes students get a false expectation of what should be done for them by the actions of their peers parents.

Parents should actually be providing the parental contribution, in the real world very few do, they may give a student cash if the student needs it and
they can afford it but no-one I was at uni with, myself included, seemed to get a set figure from their parents and we all seemed to get by fine without as unless you're drinking every night and not working you should easily be able to afford being a student. That said though if I remember correctly the Child (Scotland) Act provides that parents should be contributing to their "child's" expenses whilst they remain a student up until the age of 25.

bringmeshoes

I went to uni when i was 23 and had to fight to get independant status, i had not lived with my mother for 3 years but i only worked part time as i was at college (you had to have worked full time for 3 years to get independant status), I didn'e even know where my mother lived when i was going to uni so had to get a note off my dr to say that i had been suffering form stress and depression due to the brakedown of my relationship with her ( seriously how many 23 year olds are supported by thier parents anyway)
i worked full time

stationaryace

In theory when filling out the paperwork for University there is a certain figure that it is agreed the student will "get" each year, partly covered by a loan and partly by the parent depending on the assessment from SAAS. In reality a job will help her fill in the gaps not covered by the loan- simply point out that you can't afford it and if she still doesn't take this on then you don't have to sign the forms agreeing to support her and she can do it alone.

bringmeshoes

I went to uni when i was 23 and had to fight to get independant status, i had not lived with my mother for 3 years but i only worked part time as i was at college (you had to have worked full time for 3 years to get independant status), I didn'e even know where my mother lived when i was going to uni so had to get a note off my dr to say that i had been suffering form stress and depression due to the brakedown of my relationship with her ( seriously how many 23 year olds are supported by thier parents anyway)
i worked full time and was looked down on for this by people whos parents paid for everthing, their student loans were spent in the first week &credit cards maxed out, parents even sent money to pay off thier credit cards, what exactly does that teach about learning to live on a budget?
i would say to your daughter if she wants to go to uni then she will need to get a part-time job to support herself, theres always plenty of jobs in towns/cities with big student populations, i don't mean to sound harsh here but she sounds like a selfish little madam who needs to learn the value of money and that if she wants something then she should pay for it

codygirl

Oldernotwiser wrote: »

I really don't think that you have a problem here; as your family income is low, your daughter will be eligible for the full student funding as detailed in dmg24's link. It's really only when parents have a much higher income and there's no grant available that there's the expectation that the parents will make up the difference. Leaving aside any bursaries that might be available directly from the university, your daughter should receive at least £4,500 to cover a 30 week year, giving her an income of of £150 per week. Together with a few hours of part time work this should be perfectly adequate to support her. The assumption would be that she returns to live with her parents during the holidays where she can work and pay for her keep if you wish.

Your daughter's attitude may derive from ignorance of student finances but she needs to develop a more independent approach. As jm2926 says, having to do resits twice doesn't bode well for her academic future so you may well have her back on your hands before long. Make sure that she knows that, if that happens, she'll be expected to pay her way.

I'd have a thorough look at the information given here and sit her down for a serious discussion. She's being unrealistic and you need to face her with this before it goes any further. You must be doing brilliantly to be bringing up a family of 4 without claiming any benefits; don't let your daughter's selfishness rock your financial boat!

Hope you don't mind me side lining this thread. I have just applied for help with funding for my daughter. She has received a loan for £915 only for the year ( £21.00 per week). We are still waiting to here if and what her bursary will be, but when we were researching it we understood it to be enough to cover her halls of residency rent (£88 per week) for the year. I am seperated from her father who refuses to contribute and am at college myself, so on a very low income. I am just wondering why she is getting lesss than the £150 you mentioned.

joeizz

Her loans/grants should be enough to get her through uni. Sending her with some food/taking her to a supermarket when she first gets to uni is always really helpful. Providing she is sensible the only other time she might be struggling for money is paying rent over summer. If she can return to the part time job she has now over summer then she should be sorted.