Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate her Department has made of the proportion of average living costs covered by the average student loan for a (a) student and (b) disabled student.

The Student Income and Expenditure Survey (SIES) reports on the average living costs across demographic groups. The 2014-15 report will be published shortly.

Loans for living costs are a contribution towards a full-time student’s costs while attending University rather than covering them in full. All full-time students qualify for some loan for living costs with the most support available for students from disadvantaged backgrounds. Disabled students can also apply for Disabled Students’ Allowances (DSAs), which are not income assessed and are not repayable, to cover essential, additional, learning-related expenditure.