Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to improve financial support for student parents undergoing teacher training and not earning a salary.

Students attending full-time undergraduate courses and PGCE courses with child dependants qualify for a partially means-tested loan for living costs, a means-tested Childcare Grant, payable towards childcare costs for registered or approved childcare, and a means-tested Parents’ Learning Allowance to help with additional study costs.

The government announced in a Written Statement on 20 January 2025 that maximum loans and grants for living costs will increase by 3.1% for the 2025/26 academic year. This Written Statement can be accessed at: https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-statements/detail/2025-%2001-20/hcws372.

A 3.1% increase to loans and grants for living costs in 2025/26 is in line with forecast inflation based on the Retail Price Index Excluding Mortgage Interest (RPIX) inflation index.

Maximum loans for living costs for 2025/26 will be £13,762 for students living away from home and studying in London, £10,544, for students living away from home and studying outside London and £8,877 for students living in the parental home.

Higher rates of loan for living costs are available for students who are eligible for benefits, such as lone parents.

The amount of Childcare Grant payable in 2025/26 will be based on 85% of actual childcare costs, subject to a maximum grant of £199.62 per week for one child only or £342.24 per week for two or more children. The maximum amount of Parents’ Learning Allowance payable in 2025/26 will be £2,024.

The government published an Equality Impact Assessment of changes to fees and student support for the 2025/26 academic year on 20 January 2025. This is accessible at: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2025/263/impacts/2025/41.