Impact Investigates the correlation between the rise in student sex workers and the cost of living crisis

Impact Investigates the correlation between the rise in student sex workers and the cost of living crisis

by the Investigations Team, Gareth Holmes, Arabella Mitchell and Alex Paszkowicz

The cost of being a student is rising each year, with the current monthly costs estimated at being just under £1,100. Students must contend with the cost-of-living crisis, and hidden course fees alongside food shopping, rent, and utilities. With the advent of Covid, jobs commonly populated by students, like bar and café work, were no longer available, turning a number of students to sex work. This combination of circumstances has led to 4% of students have said they have tried sex work and 22% are now on the subscription-only upload site OnlyFans. Impact met with a student from the University of Nottingham who was willing to discuss their decision to join the subscription service and sell adult content. For the purposes of anonymity, all names have been changed.

After some initial greetings, we asked Robin about the situation that led to their decision. “It was after [the] third pot noodle” she laughed “Well sort off. I was missing fruit, and cooking with fresh ingredients. And I had some bills I needed to pay, phone and gas mainly. I had been let go from my bar job because of covid and was really stressed out, I even ended up crying to my friends.”

We asked Robin about the process and how she felt. “I mean I slept on the idea, but after a few days, I was still certain. I signed up with OnlyFans and looked online for how best to promote myself, this led me to making a separate TikTok and Instagram account. I knew I wanted it to stay private so I couldn’t show my face and I had to wear long gloves to hide my arm tattoos. I also discovered another student who had an account,

We asked her if this was something a lot of her friends were experiencing, with regard to work and financial concerns. “Oh totally, like, we were all struggling, stretching out food and stuff. Our parents were able to help a bit and Beth still had some hours from her care job, but mostly we were just skint and stressed. I had also borrowed three hundred quid from my ex, and I was just miserable. In our shared house we pooled food and supported each other as best we could, and someone was always making the joke about selling nudes or doing an OnlyFans account. I guess one day I just thought, fuck it, why don’t I do that?

“Why was the privacy aspect important to you?”

“I think it’s a mix of things. I’m not sure how my family would feel about it, future partners, and I want to go into quite a public-facing job, so these are all factors. I’m totally not ashamed of what I do, but I want it to be something I can walk away from. Added to that the uni can be really funny about it, things like this, I’ve heard of girls who got kicked off their course or evicted from halls, making it really hard to get further accommodation or even onto another course. I think they still [see] sex work as shameful. Also, despite OnlyFans giving me more control over who subscribes people are still shit, guys especially who feel they have access to you beyond your content because they have paid some money. The few content creators I have spoken to, some students, all have horror stories. Stalking, pestering to meet up, vile messages, one girl was even threatened with being exposed if she didn’t meet a guy. It[s] horrid. I know showing your face means you can charge more money but, I don’t like the idea of someone on campus recognising me and being weird about it. Having said that I do well, I graduate this year and am not worried about paying off my loan, and apart from a few guys, all my subscribers have been nice. I have been lucky I know that, but it is not something I would suggest doing lightly.”

The decision is certainly not easily made and The English Collective of Prostitutes stated that their helpline has seen a rise in university students calling for advice, increasing by a third. The rise in university sex workers has seen a number of universities release guidelines on supporting students who are sex workers. It is believed that the rise in intuition fees, rent, and the cost of living crisis have been the main factors of students feeling as though turning to sex work is the only option available to financially support themselves.

Without adequate levels of financial assistance available, students are at risk of getting caught up in severe and damaging situations which may arise from posting explicit content onto sites such as Only Fans. . For some individuals, this funding stream works well for them, however everyone’s individual situation differs entirely which is why it is vital to consider all the factors that are involved in such a decision.

As living costs spiral out of control, the ability to post pictures and videos of oneself online to make money has never been easier, yet still comes with significant risks. It is evident that students, on the whole, are struggling to make ends meet and as the financial demands of student life are worsening due to the cost of living crisis, it is clear that more support needs to be put in place from higher education institutions.

Although we are extremely lucky to live in a largely sex positive generation, it is important to consider all the consequences of engaging with and posting on such subscription sites. Whilst the anonymity aspect may make the whole ordeal seem appealing, cyber security is something that should not be taken lightly - especially when it comes to protecting your identity.

Universities across the nation must do more to provide financial advice and support, during one of the most difficult economic states Britain finds itself in. All students should be able to access an equitable level of support as it is vital that there is significantly less economic disparities between student communities…