Students 'pushed into poverty' due to lack of financial support in Scotland

dailyrecord.co.uk:

A third of students have considered dropping out due to financial difficulties as they are “pushed into poverty” to complete their studies, a shock report has found.A survey by the National Union of Students (NUS) found that 12 per cent of all students have experienced homelessness since starting their studies - while eight per cent said they had to rely on foodbanks to get by.

Almost two thirds (64 per cent) said they have experienced mental ill health as a result of financial pressures. The NUS wants the Scottish Government to accelerate a commitment to bring student support up to the real living wage.

Matt Crilly president of NUS Scotland, said: “Students in Scotland are being failed by a broken system which is leaving many without enough money to live.“With more than a third of students at risk of dropping out, real action is needed – not words.“More than four years ago the Student Support Review recommended that student support should meet the real living wage.“This Scottish Government has failed to put that recommendation into action and now students are also being met with inflation-busting increases in our rents and a soaring cost of living.“It is no wonder students are dependent on foodbanks, working excessive hours on top of their coursework, experiencing homelessness at an alarmingly high rate, and taking on more and more debt.”The survey of more than 3,500 students found that a quarter had been unable to pay their rent in full on one or more occasion and more than half (56 per cent) said it was hard to cope financially over the summer.More than two thirds (68%) of students that work do so for more than 10 hours per week to make ends meet.Nearly one in three (31 oer cent) students said they have relied on