Student Minds responds to the 2024 Autumn Budget

Today, we tuned in to the new government’s Autumn Budget, keen to hear about changes that will be made to support our 2.8 million students in UK higher education. This follows years of financial hardship, insufficient maintenance funding, and a spiralling cost-of-living crisis which saw students skipping meals, unable to buy necessary study supplies, and suffering through cold winters without heating and suitable housing. Student finances are a student mental health issue, with financial difficulties being a predictor for greater mental illness among the student population.

Pay increases for many students

We strongly welcome the government’s progress in bringing pay equity to many students, narrowing the gap between the national minimum wage and living wage for 18-20 year-olds. This, combined with an increase in the national minimum wage for both age brackets, will help students in part-time work make ends meet. 

This is significant progress toward our Student Mental Health Manifesto recommendation for everyone aged 18 and over to be entitled to the same national minimum wage and for the government to increase this minimum wage in line with the Real Living Wage. With a long-term plan confirmed to achieve a single adult minimum wage, we’re looking forward to further progress in future.

Budget increase for the NHS

We also welcome the news of a total £22.6bn budget increase for the NHS. The Lord Darzi review showed the critical state of our health service. Its findings reaffirmed much of what our students have told us about spending years on waiting lists and becoming more and more unwell as a result. On top of this, students in healthcare disciplines are currently providing hundreds of hours of free labour to our National Health Service, which in turn limits their ability to take up paid, part-time work.

We are keen to hear more details of how this money will be spent and in particular, what investment will be made into mental health support. We want to see higher staffing levels with reasonable workloads for NHS workers, specialist support for students, and bursaries for healthcare students on placement.

A higher education sector in financial turmoil

Despite this, there was no specific mention of the higher education sector or students within the budget. We know the government has a lot to do but universities need financial support, and they need it now. Our world-leading institutions are facing a financial sustainability crisis, with students and staff paying the price. Student maintenance funding continues to be compromised by years of real-terms cuts without any relief in sight. ​

Forgetting about students is an expensive mistake

Students are not a small demographic. One in two school-leavers go on to study at university and millions more are university graduates. Students are our future social workers, teachers, scientists, doctors, and leaders. Everyone knows someone in higher education, be it  a friend, family member, or co-worker. It’s not just wrong to forget students, it doesn’t make economic sense. Mental health concerns are the single biggest cause of long-term sickness in the workforce and cost the UK economy £300bn per year. We need our students to be well supported not just so they succeed at university, but they can thrive in our wider society. When doing the right thing also saves money, it’s a no-brainer.

Rising transport costs add to everyday expenses

Finally, we heard how the price cap for bus fees is increasing from £2 to £3 for a single fare. At a time when students are already being forced to cut back on the essentials - and indeed, where we should be focusing on cutting emissions and encouraging sustainable modes of transport - this is a step in the wrong direction. Only 18% of students who commute by necessity receive any money from student support funds or grants to alleviate these costs - meaning more than four in five could be directly affected by this change.

We’ll keep putting you first

We’ll keep advocating for student’s interests, including tackling the economic factors that drive poor student mental health. We need the government to meet us halfway and properly fund mental health services and higher education institutions. You can find out more about our Student Mental Health Manifesto or how to get involved with our work.