Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if her Department will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing student maintenance loans in line with Consumer Price Index inflation.

The government recognises the impact that the cost of living crisis has had on students. That is why the government is increasing the maximum maintenance loans for living costs for the 2025/26 academic year by 3.1%, in line with the forecast rate of inflation, to ensure that more support is targeted at students from the lowest income families.

The 3.1% increase is based on the Retail Prices Index inflation forecast for the first quarter of 2026, as published by the Office for Budget Responsibility at Budget. Using the corresponding consumer price inflation forecast for the first quarter of 2026 would have resulted in maintenance loans being increased by only 2.5% for the 2025/26 academic year.