Student Finance Booklet 2025-26

STUDENT FINANCE

Information about the financial support available to students entering University in 2025/26

GOVERNMENT FINANCIAL SUPPORT IN GENERAL

Government funding for students starting their studies in September 2025 has not yet been announced. Some of the information included in this leaflet is provided for guidance and is for 2024 entrants. Please see our website which will be updated with information for September 2025 as soon as it becomes available.

The following groups of students are normally eligible for funding from Student Finance England, Wales, Northern Ireland or Student Awards Agency Scotland:

• UK nationals and Irish citizens who have been living in the UK and Islands for 3 years prior to the first day of the first year of the course;

• Those granted settled status who have been living in UK and Islands for 3 years prior to the first day of the first year of the course;

• Those granted settled and pre-settled status under the EU settlement scheme and who have been living in UK and Islands for 3 years prior to the first day of the first year of the course;

Students who have previously studied at Higher Education level or who already hold an equivalent or higher level qualification may not be eligible to receive the full package of financial support.

If you have any questions about your eligibility, please contact studentsandmoney@winchester.ac.uk

Useful websites

Student Finance England

Student Finance campaign (England only)

Student Finance Wales

Student Finance Northern Ireland

Student Awards Agency Scotland

www.thestudentroom.co.uk/studentfinance

www.winchester.ac.uk/studentsandmoney

NHS Learning support Fund

NHS Social Work bursaries

GOVERNMENT FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR STUDENTS NORMALLY RESIDENT IN ENGLAND

FOR FULL-TIME UNDERGRADUATE STUDY*

Tuition Fee loans

Tuition Fees for full-time UK students starting undergraduate courses in September 2025 will be £9,250. Students do not need to pay for their course upfront.

Eligible students can apply for a loan to cover the cost of their tuition fees. Repayments start when the student has finished their course and is earning over £25,000. Students need to re-apply for their funding each year.

Loans for living costs

• Available to help with living costs such as food, accommodation and travel.

• A loan of up to £10,227 will be available to eligible students living away from home.

• A loan of up to 8,610 will be available to eligible students who choose to live at home.

• Living cost loans are means tested, but all students* are able to receive a loan of at least £4,767 if living away from home, regardless of household income.

• The Living Cost loan is normally paid in three equal instalments over the academic year.

• Loans for final year students are reduced as they do not include an allowance for the summer vacation period.

• Final year students may receive their loan in two instalments.

Annual Package of Support 2024-25

* Subject to eligibility criteria. Please see www.gov.uk/student-finance **Assessment is based on income for the 2022/23 tax year

Additional support available

• Help with the cost of childcare and other financial support for parents.

• Financial help for students with an adult who depends on them financially.

• Grants for students with a disability to help with extra costs.

Students from England can use the Student Finance Calculator on www.gov.uk/student-finance to estimate loans and additional student funding.

How to apply

For more information and how to apply online, please visit www.gov.uk/student-finance. We anticipate applications will open during March 2025. We recommend applying during March and April each year but before the end of May, to ensure you receive your funding in September.

GOVERNMENT FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR STUDENTS NORMALLY RESIDENT IN ENGLAND

FOR PART-TIME UNDERGRADUATE STUDY*

Tuition Fee loans

Students do not need to pay for their course upfront.

Eligible students can apply for a loan to cover the cost of their tuition fees. Repayments start when the student has finished their course and is earning over £25,000.

Loans for living costs

Eligible English domiciled part-time students starting a course in 2025/26 and studying at a minimum of 25% intensity of the full-time equivalent course, can also apply for a loan to help with living costs.

The amount of loan available will depend upon intensity of study and household income.

Excludes distance learning.

Annual Package of Support 2024/25 for students living at home and studying part-time

* subject to eligibility criteria. Please see www.gov.uk/student-finance ** Assessment is based on income for the 2022/23 tax year

Additional support available

Grants for students with a disability to help with extra costs.

Students from England can use the Student Finance Calculator on www.gov.uk/student-finance to estimate loans and additional student funding.

How to apply

For more information and how to apply online, please visit www.gov.uk/student-finance. We anticipate pplications will open during May. We encourage you to apply online as soon as possible once applications are open to ensure you receive your funding when your course starts in September.

GOVERNMENT FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR STUDENTS NORMALLY RESIDENT IN WALES

FOR FULL-TIME UNDERGRADUATE STUDY*

Tuition Fee loans

Tuition Fees for full-time UK students starting undergraduate courses in September 2025 will be £9,250.

• Students do not need to pay for their course upfront.

• Eligible students can apply for a loan to cover the cost of their tuition fees. Repayments start when the student has finished their course and is earning over £25,000.

• Students need to re-apply for their funding each year.

Welsh Government Learning Grant

• Available to help with living costs such as food, accommodation and travel.

• A Welsh Government Learning Grant of at least £1,000 is available to all eligible students*; Maximum grant is £8,100 if household income is £18,370 or less;

• This grant does not need to be re-paid.

Loans for Living Costs

• A loan for living costs will be available in addition to the Welsh Learning Grant so that you have a maximum of £12,150 to help with living costs if you are living away from home.

• The Living Cost loan and Welsh Government Learning Grant are normally paid in three equal instalments over the academic year.

Annual package of support 2024/25 (Student living away from home)

* subject to eligibility criteria. Please see www.studentfinancewales.co.uk

** Assessment is based on income for the 2022/23 tax year

Students from Wales can use the Student Fund Calculator on www.studentfinancewales.co.uk to estimate loans, grants and additional student funding.

Additional support available

• Help with the cost of childcare and other financial support for parents.

• Financial help for students with an adult who depends on them financially.

• Grants for students with a disability to help with extra costs.

How to apply

• For more information and how to apply online, please visit www.studentfinancewales.co.uk. We anticipateapplications will open during March 2025. We recommend applying during March and April each year but before the end of May to ensure you receive your funding in September.

GOVERNMENT FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR STUDENTS NORMALLY RESIDENT IN WALES

FOR PART-TIME UNDERGRADUATE STUDY*

Please visit the Student Finance Wales website for further information regarding funding for part-time study.

GOVERNMENT FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR STUDENTS NORMALLY RESIDENT IN NORTHERN IRELAND

FOR FULL-TIME UNDERGRADUATE STUDY*

Tuition Fee loans

Tuition Fees for full-time UK students starting undergraduate courses in September 2025 will be £9,250.

• Students do not need to pay for their course upfront.

• Eligible students can apply for a loan to cover the cost of their tuition fees. Repayments start when the student has finished their course and is earning over £24,990.

• Students need to re-apply for their funding each year.

Maintenance Loan

• Available to help with living costs such as food, accommodation and travel.

• A loan of up to £6,776 will be available if you live away from home.

• The Maintenance loan is normally paid in three equal instalments over the academic year.

• Loans for final year students are reduced as they do not include an allowance for the summer vacation period.

• Final year students may receive their loan in two instalments.

Maintenance Grant

• If your taxable household income is assessed at £41,065 or below, you can apply for a maintenance grant of up to £3,475 a year.

• Maximum grant is £3,475 if household income is £19,203 or less.

• You do not have to re-pay this grant.

Annual package of support 2024/25 (Student living away from home)

* subject to eligibility criteria. Please see www.studentfinanceni.co.uk

** Assessment is based on income for the 2022/23 tax year

Additional support available

• Help with the cost of childcare and other financial support for parents.

• Financial help for students with an adult who depends on them financially.

• Grants for students with a disability to help with extra costs.

How to apply

• For more information and how to apply online, please visit www.studentfinanceni.co.uk. We anticipate applications will open during March 2025. We recommend applying during March and April each year but before the end of May to ensure you receive your funding in September.

GOVERNMENT FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR STUDENTS NORMALLY RESIDENT IN NORTHERN IRELAND

FOR PART-TIME UNDERGRADUATE STUDY*

Please visit the Student Finance Northern Ireland website for further information regarding funding for part-time study.

GOVERNMENT FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR STUDENTS NORMALLY RESIDENT IN SCOTLAND

FOR FULL-TIME UNDERGRADUATE STUDY*

Tuition Fee loans

Tuition Fees for full-time UK students starting undergraduate courses in September 2025 will be £9,250.

• Students do not need to pay for their course upfront.

• Eligible students can apply for a loan to cover the cost of their tuition fees. Repayments start when the student has finished their course and is earning over £31,395.

• Students need to re-apply for their funding each year.

Loans for Living Costs

• Available to help with living costs such as food, accommodation and travel.

• A loan of up to £9,400 will be available if you live away from home.

• The Living Cost loan is normally paid in three equal instalments over the academic year. .

Bursary

• If your taxable household income is assessed at £34,000 or below, you can apply for a bursary of up to £2,000 a year.

• Maximum bursary is £2,000 if household income is £20,999 or less.

• You do not have to re-pay this bursary.

Care Experienced Students

• If you are a Care Experienced student, you can apply for a funding package including tuition fee loan, a non-income assessed Care Experienced Students Bursary of £9,000 and a non-income assessed student loan of £2,400.

Annual package of support 2024/25 (Dependent*** students living away from home)

* Subject to eligibility criteria. Please see www.saas.gov.uk

** Assessment is based on income for the 2022/23 tax year

Annual package of support 2024/25 (Independent*** students living away from home)

Up to £20,999

£21,000 to £23,999

£24,000 to £33,999

£34,000 and above

£0

£9,900

£0 £8,400

** Assessment is based on income for the 2022/23 tax year

Students from Scotland can use the Budget and Funding Calculator on www.saas.gov.uk to estimate funding available.

Additional support available

• Grants for students with a disability to help with extra costs.

How to apply

£9,900

£8,400

For more information and to apply online, please visit www.saas.gov.uk. We anticipate applications will open early 2025. We encourage you to apply online as soon as possible once applications are open, and no later than the end of June to ensure you receive your funding when your course starts in September.

Independent students are those over the age of 25 and those under the age of 25 who:

• Have no living parents, or

• Have supported themselves through employment or benefits outside full-time education for any 3 years before the first day of the first academic year of their course, or

• Have been permanently estranged from their parents for at least one year before the start of their course, or

• Have a child dependent on them at the start of the academic year and who lives with you for the majority of the week, or

• Are married, in a civil partnership or living with a partner who is not a student

*** Dependent students are those under the age of 25 who do not meet the criteria to be classed as independent.

NHS FUNDING FOR STUDENTS ON PRE-REG UNDERGRADUATE HEALTHCARE COURSES

NHS funding for students starting their studies in September 2025 has not yet been announced so the information below is provided for guidance and is for 2024 entrants. Please see the NHS BSA website which will be updated with information for September 2025 as soon as it becomes available.

Students on pre-registration Healthcare courses such as Nursing, Physiotherapy, and Social Work courses may benefit from additional funding from the NHS:

• Learning Support Fund (not applicable for Social Work) for help with travel expenses and Childcare

• Social Work bursaries for students in year 2 and 3 of their course

Important considerations

• If you are currently in receipt of means tested benefits including Universal Credit, Housing Benefit and Tax Credits you must tell the benefit provider that you are a full-time or part-time student. The amount of benefit you receive may well be affected by any funding you are eligible to receive.

• Due to the nature of the Nursing, Social Work and Health Profession courses, it is not always possible to maintain part-time work alongside studies, particularly when on placement.

• We recommend that you plan your finances accordingly.

• Please contact studentsandmoney@winchester.ac.uk for guidance.

NHS LEARNING SUPPORT FUND

(NOT APPLICABLE FOR SOCIAL WORK)

The Learning Support Fund (LSF) provides supplementary funding to the higher education student loans support from the government, for eligible students attending eligible pre-registration healthcare courses starting on or after 1 August 2017.

In order to apply to the Learning Support Fund, you must be eligible for Tuition Fee and Maintenance Loan support from the Student Loans Company.

Part-time students will be eligible to pro ratad awards.

The LSF consists of five different award allowances. Eligible students can apply to the NHSBSA for some or all of these allowances, depending on their own personal circumstances.

Training Grant

Students studying one of the following courses will be able to apply for the Training Grant of £5,000 a year:

• BSc Midwifery

• BN Nursing (Adult)

• BN Nursing (Child)

• BN Nursing (Mental Health)

• BN Nursing (Learning Disabilities)

• BSc Nutrition and Dietetics

• BSc Physiotherapy

Parental Support

Students with parental responsibility for a child or children under 15 years of age (or under the age of 17 if the child has special educational needs) on the first day of the academic year for which they are applying, can claim a non-repayable grant of £2,000 a year.

Specialist Subject Payment

An extra £1,000 a year is available if you’re studying:

• BN Nursing (Mental Health)

• BN Nursing (Learning Disabilities)

Payments will be made in 3 equal instalments over the academic year subject to confirmation of course attendance.

Travel and Dual Accommodation Expenses(TDAE)

Reimbursement of some of the excess costs arising from attendance at a practice placement provided that a valid claim is made within 6 months of the costs being incurred.

Exceptional Support Fund (ESF)

Students in genuine hardship who have exhausted all other available avenues of funding support are able to apply.

How to apply

Register an NHS Learning Support Fund account with the NHSBSA no later than one calendar month after the start of active study.

Apply to the NHS Learning Support Fund no later that 6 calendar months after the start of active study. You must re-apply for this funding each academic year.

SOCIAL WORK BURSARIES

Eligible Undergraduate students in second and third year of study are able to apply for this bursary through the NHS in addition to any funding through the Student Loans Company.

The University only receives a limited number of bursaries each year so we are unable to guarantee that you will receive a bursary even if you are eligible.

Part-time students will be eligible to pro ratad awards

For full eligibility criteria, please visit www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/social-work-students

Please visit the course page on our website for further information regarding allocation criteria.

Students who are allocated a Social Work bursary will receive £4,862.50* in each of their second and third years of study. This amount includes Placement Travel Allowance and is not based on household income.

Students who are not allocated a bursary, but meet the residency and course eligibility criteria, will be eligible to receive a fixed Placement Travel Allowance of £862.50* per year.

* Figures are for 2023/24 academic year

REPAYMENT OF LOANS

Students who receive funding from Student Finance Wales, Student Finance Northern Ireland or Students Awards Agency Scotland (SAAS) will have different repayment terms. Please see the relevant website for full details.

Students don’t start paying back their loan until the April after they have finished or left their course and, are earning over £25,000 a year.

The amount to be repaid each month will be based on income, not the amount borrowed.

The repayments amount to 9% of income over £25,000 a year. For example, if earnings are £30,000, the repayment would be 9% of £5,000 which equates to £37,50 a month. This is based on repayments for Student Finance England for courses starting after 1st August 202.

of salary from which 9% will be deducted

repayments

Employers will automatically deduct payments from gross salary, alongside tax and National Insurance. In the case of self employment, deductions will be made through self-assessment. Those who move abroad to work will need to contact the Student Loans Company to make repayment arrangements.

It is also possible to make part or full payments towards a loan at any time.

If there is still an outstanding balance 40 years after the first repayment, the loan will be written off.

Interest*

Interest is charged on student loans from the day the first payment is made and will continue to be charged until the loan is fully paid back. The rate is set annually on 1st September.

The rate of interest will normally be set at Retail Price Index only. This means that the interest rate will fluctuate according to the rate of inflation.

LIVING COSTS AND MONEY MANAGEMENT

STUDENTS ARE ENCOURAGED TO MANAGE THEIR MONEY WELL WHILST THEY ARE STUDYING BY BUDGETING THEIR INCOME AND LIVING COSTS.

Income

• Student Finance funding is a contribution towards living costs.

• Other Income is bursary/grants, benefits, part time work*, money from family, your savings.

• Find part time work* by visiting our Careers and Opportunities Hub.

Total Student Income = Student finance funding + other income

Student Life Expenses**

Average monthly costs are £935 (Save the Student 2023)

• Accommodation

- £560 - £960 per month for university campus accommodation

- Private rental may be more expensive and may not include utility bills (gas, water, electric, broadband) allow £170 - £290 extra per month for these.

- Add in contents insurance and cost of a TV licence – about £25 per month.

- Plan for year 2 deposit and summer rent - £250 per month across 6 months

• Food and other living costs such as groceries, socialising, laundry, healthcare, phone

- These will vary depending upon lifestyle choices and need.

- On average, students spend £116 a month on groceries.

- Socialising – students spend about £59 per month.

- Make your own food and lunch – cheaper than buying takeaways and fast food.

- Purchase a student cookbook such as Nosh for Students (other books are available)

- Use University laundry facilities

• Course costs – study materials, books, photocopying, printing, software

- As a guide we suggest £45 per month

- Costs vary from course to course. Additional cost information is available on the relevant course pages on our website.

- Consider borrowing books – use the ebooks that are available or buy secondhand from students at this university

• Placements – especially teaching, nursing, social work and health related courses

- Must plan for extra travel and parking. If you are a parent – childcare costs

- Whilst on placement you may not be able to work part time

- Some courses have help towards additional placements costs, such as those with NHS Bursaries (see page 15). Cost information is available on the relevant course pages on our website.

* Recommended 15 hours per week during term-time

** Costs taken from National Student Money Survey

• Travel and transport – plan for going home or commuting

- Local discounts for bus routes and trains

- Buy a 16-25 Railcard or Young Persons Coachcard to save a 1/3 on most fares.

- There is no student parking on campus, unless you have accessibility needs

- Commuting by car - use the Park & Ride scheme, the University offers discounts.

- Live local – think about cycling – keeps you fit and saves money.

Student discount apps

Download student apps for discounts such as:

- Too Good To Go – helps reduce food waste and save loads on food

- Student Beans – offers discounts across many brands including Amazon Prime. Music and Spotify etc

- Unidays – offers discounts and ways to earn across many brands

- Totum. – offers discounts across many brands and is linked with Tastecard to provide discounted meals

Wellbeing

- Use the University Gym – generally cheaper than elsewhere

- Book university facilities for sports

- Pick up free sanitary products – available on campus and from the Student Union

- Sexual Health – speak to Student Union for access to condoms

- Wellbeing café – for those who are lonely, anxious or stressed – various activities and chats

- NHS prepayment certificates – a cheaper way to afford prescriptions cost when you have 2 or more items per month

- NHS Low Income scheme can offer prescriptions at zero charge for those who are eligible

Conditions preventing you from work and Government Benefits

If you’re unable to work due to specific medical conditions or disability, please ensure that you have been assessed by DWP as ‘not fit for work’ prior to starting at University so that you are eligible for benefits such as PIP or Universal Credit whilst you study. Any assessment by DWP once you have started at University, will prohibit you from accessing Universal Credit.

Money advice

The Students and Money team are happy to help students who have questions about managing their money. Whether this is because of Student Finance issues, bursary and scholarship queries or support with Universal Credit assessments.

For some students an unexpected event may mean that they find themselves in financial hardship. In such instances, eligible students may apply to the Winchester Learning Support Fund as long as the student is fully enrolled and is in receipt of their full entitlement from Student Finance, and any benefits which they may be eligible for. Applications are means tested and awards vary depending upon financial circumstances. A successful outcome cannot be guaranteed, so this cannot be relied upon as a definite source of income.

Useful websites

www.moneysavingexpert.com/students

www.16-25railcard.co.uk

www.nationalexpress.com/en/offers/coachcards/young-person www.totum.com