MSPDon praisesrise instudent support

A move to increase financial support for students has been welcomed by a Renfrewshire MSP.

The Scottish Government recently announced that financial support available to undergraduate students will rise by £900 from the start of the 2023-24 academic year.

The move which will give students more support while in higher education will also see estranged students and undergraduate earners in low-income households maximum support package increase from £8,100 to £9,000 per year, as the ceiling for all student loan applications is uplifted by £900.

The annual non-repayable Care Experienced Bursary for eligible higher education students will also increase to £9,000.

In further education, a £900 increase will also be applied to the maximum bursary rate available to care experienced students.

These increases will be available to students already at college and university and for new students beginning their studies from autumn 2023.

Students in need of immediate financial support for the 2022-23 academic year are still able to apply to their college or university for assistance through their discretionary funds.

MSP Natalie Don welcomed the move as she backs the progress to allow more students to fulfil their potential.

She added: “This increase in support – which sees the maximum financial support package for the most vulnerable students, as well as those from the lowest household incomes in higher education rising to £9,000 – is an important step in delivering the SNP’s commitment to provide a total package of student support equivalent to the living wage.

“The SNP have always fought to improve the lives of students and ensure that access to education is about the ability to learn, not to pay.”