Helping estranged students excel

£27,000

DONATED BY THE HOWARD DE WALDEN ESTATE TO OUR ESTRANGED STUDENTS

41%

OF ESTRANGED STUDENTS IN THE UK HAVE CONSIDERED WITHDRAWING FROM UNIVERSITY

59.7%

A student is defined as ‘estranged’ if there is an irreconcilable physical and emotional distancing between them and their family members. The cause of estrangement varies, but these students often have unstable family backgrounds and have removed themselves from the family home without intervention from the local authority. As such, they rarely receive housing support and a Stand Alone report found that over 30 per cent of estranged students were registered homeless or had considered registering as homeless before their course began.

Without the backing of a family network, attending University can be especially challenging for estranged students. In support of the local community, The Howard de Walden Estate is funding accommodation scholarships, to reduce the financial burden and allow estranged students to focus on reaching their potential at Westminster.

Outside of tuition fees, accommodation is the largest cost a student needs to meet. Estranged students, for whom staying in their family home is not an option, have no way of avoiding this expense. While most students will return home for the holidays, those who are estranged require year-round accommodation, and with the cost of living so high for students in London, the total support they receive from Student Finance is hardly enough to cover the higher rents, commuting charges and inflated cost of general living expenses.

Stand Alone Pledge Westminster has a long and proud history of enabling social mobility and supporting disadvantaged students to ensure they get the most out of higher education. In 2016, Westminster signed the Stand Alone Pledge, publicly committing to supporting students who are studying without the support or approval of a family network. Fulfilling this commitment, Westminster now still struggle to have the full funding, security and support they need to focus on their studies without the concerns of financial instability.

OF ESTRANGED STUDENTS ARE REGISTERED IN THE LONDON AREA

offers estranged students bursaries, year-round accommodation and a number of scholarships in partnership with the Unite Foundation. However, with over 100 registered estranged students studying at the University, many Estate is funding two accommodation scholarships for estranged final-year students at Westminster. Thanks to the funding (now totalling £27,000), these students are able to reduce their part-time working hours so that they can

I WAS WORKING IN A LABOURING JOB, SO REDUCING THIS HAS BEEN BENEFICIAL IN ALLOWING ME TO DIRECT MY ENERGY WHERE IT IS NEEDED MOST

The Howard de Walden Estate scholarship The Howard de Walden Estate is the freehold owner of most of the buildings in the 92 acres of Marylebone. For the second year, as part of its commitment to support the local community, the

focus on studying and stand the best possible chance of success.

“The Howard de Walden Estate is committed to supporting its community and helping it continue to flourish,” says Jenny Hancock, Place and Community Director for the Howard de Walden Estate. “Supporting local students is part of this programme and it has been a pleasure to work with the University of Westminster, to help realise these ambitions.”

One of the students selected to receive funding this year is Jessica. When Jessica was 14, her mum was sadly diagnosed with cancer, and when she passed away, Jessica was unable to live at home with her father. She moved out at the age of 17 and became estranged from her family thereafter. Now a final-year Psychology BSc student, she hopes to continue in higher education and complete an MA in Mental Health Research.

“This scholarship has benefitted me untold amounts,” she says. “Being estranged has meant that I have lived by myself and supported myself financially since the age of 17, since studying for my A Levels without any state welfare support. I was finding it difficult before the scholarship to find the money for rent. The scholarship enabled me to pay this outright, reducing my anxiety and allowing me to reduce working hours to participate more in student activities at Westminster and enhance my student journey here.

“It has also benefitted my mental health, as I have been able to devote more time to my studies, thereby raising my chances of attaining a good degree. I was working in a labouring job, so reducing this has been beneficial in allowing me to direct my energy where it is needed most.

“The team at Westminster helped me to elicit all the support I was eligible for. The Howard de Walden scholarship on top of this support truly transformed and elevated my student experience.”

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