Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether his Department plans to increase the level of hardships funds for students.

The department recognises the additional cost of living pressures that have arisen this year and that have impacted students. Many higher education providers have hardship funds that students can apply to for assistance.

There is £261 million of student premium funding available this academic year to support disadvantaged students who need additional help. The department has worked with the Office for Students (OfS) to ensure that universities support students in hardship using both hardship funds and the student premium.

In addition, all households will save on their energy bills through the Energy Price Guarantee and the £400 Energy Bills Support Scheme discount. Students who buy their energy from a domestic supplier are eligible for the energy bills discount. The Energy Prices Bill introduced on 12 October 2022 includes the provision to require landlords to pass benefits they receive from energy price support, as appropriate, onto end users. Further details of the requirements under this legislation will be set out in regulations. A Treasury-led review will be launched to consider how to support households and businesses with energy bills after April 2023.

As part of the package of support for rising energy bills, the government is also giving a council tax rebate payment of £150 to households that were living in a property in council tax bands A to D as their main home on 1 April 2022. This includes full-time students that do not live in student halls or in property that is not considered a House in Multiple Occupation for council tax purposes.