Student Loan amounts - discussion

Your parents can afford to support you, their earnings and therefore the reason you receive very little from student finance proves that.

The reason you think they can't support you is because of their choices, they could easily buy a smaller house, or cancel their summer holiday, or purchase a cheaper car to ensure you could be sent money but they don't and that isn't student finance's fault.

You know nothing about my parents and what they have (except their house), so please don't make assumptions about what they have.

I never blamed anyone in my post, I just expressed my views about what you said.

They moved into their house in a better location so you could get into a better school. Why are they still living in that house now then? You're starting university..

The reason they won't move is because they like the house and don't want to move

That's their choice and isn't student finance's fault. If your family earn over the maximum threshold then they have enough to support you just choose not to.

?? How do you know I haven't got siblings still attending that school or if they moved away, the siblings would be out of the catchment area.

Once again, I haven't blamed student finance or anyone at all.

Ps: Why do you have your full name and school on your bio?!

'To get me into a better school'

And because I do? What's the issue?

Ugh. I hate the whole 'my parents don't have enough money to pay even though they earn £50k'. In America a lot of parents put money aside from the childs birth for their tuition fees!

It makes sense...there is not enough money to go around.
So the parents who have the capability to paying towards maintenance, are expected to contribute. The parents who have nothing, are not expected to contribute.

Children are for life and for certain I would consider whether I could afford to put my future children through education before even trying to conceive them!

It's unfortunate that some parents put a big house, holidays, Sky TV as a higher priority than their childs education.

To say you're going to be experiencing it is frankly ridiculous and shows how little you know about the world. If you need an extra £100 you can just phone your parents and I'm sure they'd help. People on low incomes don't have that, their parents are struggling to buy food and heat the house every day of every year.

As I've said already though, some universities don't allow students to get a job. Plus you don't want to be struggling throughout the entirety of your degree trying to scrape the money just for food.

If you did that though, how would you prevent those students (the vast majority) whose parents are willing to support them? If we gave everyone just enough for their food and maintenance - how are you going to stop parents from giving their children an extra couple of thousand each year?

If you've only had a paper round how could you afford to buy everything for yourself? Let me guess.. pocket money?

No, no pocket money. Please tell me, what does a 13 year old NEED to buy? On £20 a week if I worked 5 mornings, that added up to £80 a month, which I saved. I don't buy clothes unless my old ones are literally falling apart.
Also, what are you on about saying that it's unfair if people just got their food and maintenance? All the low income people would be secure financially and that's all that matters. You're basically saying that that'd be unfair because the 'rich' are at a advantage, so you're a blatant hypocrite as it's a mirror version of student finance today, with low income people getting thousands more than they actually need. Which university are you at which refuses you to work?

This hits the nail on the head. My parent's combined income is £25k per annum (comparatively, the average person in the UK earns £26k per annum) and they manage to give me money every week. How? Well they don't buy a brand new car every 6 months, they haven't been on holiday in 6 years, they got rid of most of our Sky package, etc. Learning how to cut down on spending has left us with more money than we had when their combined income was £40k.

You never said only when you were 13, you said you've bought everything for yourself since you were 13. Unless you're still 13 now, what have you done for the last 5 years?

Well it is unfair that the rich are at an advantage? But that's how society works.
Student finance are trying to combat that by making it an equal playing field so everyone can afford the same things at university. Obviously when catering to this many students there's going to be cases where it doesn't work.

And I'm starting at Oxford.

What is there to buy that is absolutely a necessity apart from a roof over your head and food? I've bought my own glasses/contacts, clothes, hair cuts, phones. I don't really know what you're saying with what have I done for the last 5 years? I went to college and worked along side it. Now I have savings to allow me to go to university where student finance lets me down.

You're obviously an intelligent person, and I think that's who university should be for, regardless of parental income. Children of low income families shouldn't have money thrown at them when they achieved DDD, but children of low income families should be given the money required for maintenance if they are intelligent and are deserving of a place at university.

Not everyone's circumstances align together. A family simply cannot reverse time and anticipate which of their children intend on going to university.

True, but it's not difficult to support your child with an extra £100-£200 a month when you're earning £50k+. Especially since they no longer have to buy you food, clothes, pay for travel, pocket money etc. Some people don't do this and that's their decision, but saying they most of them can't is just ridiculous. If you earn £50k+ per year and don't have £100-£200 a month spare then clearly you're not investing your money wisely and need to reconsider your financial situation as a whole.

Parents should frankly help their kids in anyway they can. My parents are paying £9000 just for my accommodation and giving me an extra £250 every month to help me, but I know not every parent can afford that, but they should still contribute if they can. And for students from a low income family there really should be something in place to assist them, studying on an empty stomach isn't conducive and honest yields poor grades. I feel student fiancee should at least help them more. The system is really flawed. I know off a friend who is from a relatively rich family but still gets the full loan and grant on top of extra grand from her father just because her parents are separated and her fathers isn't in the UK and his income don't taken into consideration. Never worked a day in her life but yet still drives the best care and can afford a London accommodation with ease.

This situation is of course unfair on others but how do you suppose that the system changes in order to stop this? Where some parents are seperated the other parent may not contribute any of their money for their child especially after they turn 18 and therefore cannot be forced to give money to the other parent for support. You can also look at a slightly different sinario where the household income is very high but only because of a step-parent and there are sure to be a lot of step-parents who refuse to support their step child and a lot that will. It is hard to determine exactly how much money is available to the child. As said above about how you can't just have a box to tick if the parents don't want to give money to their child you can't just have a box to tick for any other reason as it would be so easy for people to lie and no one to be able to prove either way, unless you kept a constant eye on their bank account which I'm sure would probably not be allowed.

The state could always help students with lower household income, by providing them with extra support. I feel the income of a step parent really shouldn't be taken into consideration. And perhaps proof of out going expenditures should be taken in to consideration for those whose household income is slightly higher. If I was the first child in my family to go to university I know for a fact my parents wouldn't be able to supply me with all the financial help they currently offer, especially when you have kids in private schools and sometimes not even in the uk. Student finance should really take all factors into consideration before giving out help.

The government does give those on lower incomes more support..

If your parents can afford to send you to a private school, they can afford to help you somewhat.

That's not always the case when you spending £48k every year for tuition fee and you earn around £250k combined income and then paying tuition fees for your kids who are currently in university at £9k a pop and funding another through masters at £12k, not to talk about other household cost, maintenance etc they all add up and then 45% tax which still has to be paid not everyone can find a spear £100 every month to support a child. I count myself lucky that my parents can help me out financially and I still work to support myself. The general misconception people have is if your parents can send you to private school then they should support you at university, majority of the time these kids are in private school through loans, you will be surprised how many parents take out tuition fee loans just so their kids can go to the best of the best in order to guarantee them a future,and still live in a council house not everyone is born with a sliver spoon.