ÃÛÌÒTV

Student Finance

You can apply for student finance as an estranged student if you haven’t had any contact with either of your parents for some time, or your relationship with your parents has broken down within the last 12 months and you don’t expect this to change in the near future.

If you are irreconcilably estranged from your parents, you will not be asked to provide any of your parent’s financial details. Student Finance understand that it may not be possible or safe for some students to ask their parents for their income details. If this applies to you, they can look to assess you as an independent student.

Common examples of estrangement can include students that are living with friends, living in supported accommodation, or living with other family members such as aunts, uncles, or grandparents. Each application for estrangement is reviewed on your own unique circumstances.

Please note, you won't be assessed on the basis of estrangement if you just live separately from your parents, they're unwilling to complete income assessment forms or if they're on a low income and cannot help support you financially.

The University can offer advice about applying as anÌýestranged student and provide assistance throughout the process. The Student Inclusion Team can support current students who become estranged during their studies complete a Confirmation of Estrangement Form for Student Finance.ÌýIf you haven’t been assessed by Student Finance as an estranged student but believe you should be, please also get in contact.

Stand Alone have compiled a useful guide to help you navigate the process and further information on it can be found .

The University’s Financial Support Package

If you are assessed as an estranged student, you will be classified as independent by the Student Loans Company. These individuals are assessed on their own income and are therefore usually entitled to the full Undergraduate University Bursary.

The University’s Student Support Fund is designed to help should you find yourself in financial hardship at any point during your studies. Further information on eligibility and how to apply can be found here .

Estranged Student Bursary

In addition to the above support package, eligible full time and enrolled students, assessed as estranged by Student Finance, are also entitled to our Care Leaver & Estranged Student Bursary of £2,000.

This is payable to you in two instalments, the first payment is made in November and the second payment is made in June. For more information on the eligibility criteria as well as the terms and conditions of the bursary, please click here .

Additionally, to aid in your transition to the University, eligible new students in their first year of study are provided a Welcome Pack containing vouchers and useful information to help you settle in.

Halls Accommodation

As part of our commitment, we can help you to access university halls accommodation for 365 days a year.

New students starting in the 2025/26 academic year must apply by the 1st July 2025 to be guaranteed an offer in halls.

Please apply for a standard university accommodation contract at your preferred halls site, and your designated point of contact will discuss your specific requirements with you in more detail once you have moved in.

Further information on our halls can be found on the accommodation homepage .

Private Rented Accommodation

For those who don’t wish to live in university accommodation, we encourage you to search for properties on the Southampton Accreditation Scheme for Student Housing ( ) website.

This scheme, run in partnership between the ÃÛÌÒTV, Southampton Solent University and Southampton City Council, exists to ensure that all students have access to a supply of high quality, safe accommodation. It’s helped thousands of Southampton students to find and rent a comfortable and well managed student home.

There are many ways to get involved with university life and many opportunities to meet new people; try to explore the opportunities available to you, as these can be a great way of developing a peer support network.

Clubs and Societies

The ÃÛÌÒTV Students’ Union has over covering a wide range of interests; these are a great opportunity to meet new people and maybe even try something new.

University Activities & Events

The University and Students' Union put on a range of activities and events throughout the year. To stay up to date with everything that is happening on our campuses make sure to check , the and Events Calendars, as well as the .

Become a Student Ambassador

Becoming an ambassador is great way to both meet other student and learn new skills, all while earning money. We are always looking for enthusiastic and friendly students to become Student Ambassadors to help with events organised by our Recruitment and Outreach team.

Working as a student ambassador can be fun and varied, providing you with a huge range of exciting challenges and opportunities to get involved with, alongside your studies. Further information and how to apply can be found here .

• Ease your transition and prepare for University life by getting involved in Welcome Week, held each year before the start of Semester 1; collect your Student ID card and get involved in the many events and information sessions.
• Download our official MySouthampton app onto your phone or tablet; this gives you easy access to your timetable, campus maps, university emails, travel information and more.
• As you settle in to university life take some time to familiarise yourself with your campus.
• Everybody’s life and demands are different but managing your time effectively and making a plan that fits with your studies or other commitments will help keep things on track.

Applying to external funding bodies can sometimes take longer than you expect. We recommend that you start looking to apply for Student Finance in February or March of the year you are starting university. To apply for the full level of funding you’re entitled to, you’ll need to supply some supporting evidence which may consists of some of the following:

• a letter from a member of staff at your school or college
• a letter from your doctor if you have consulted one because of related problems
• a letter from your social worker, local authority, housing support worker, or religious leader if they have helped with, or been made aware of, your circumstances
• a letter from a counsellor or charitable organisation
• a letter from your Jobcentre Plus office outlining any benefits you have claimed (e.g. income support)
• a statement from the police showing any related incidents
• a forced marriage or FGM (female genital mutilation) order
• a court order

Supporting statements which show you have very recently told an independent person about your situation aren’t acceptable as evidence for Student Finance. The person you ask must normally have historic knowledge of your situation, as well as being able to verify that you’ve not had written or verbal contact with your parents for a substantial period of time. Letters from other family members, family friends or partners also aren’t accepted but can be used as secondary supporting evidence if further details are required about your circumstances.

Proving estrangement can be difficult, we recommend you to try and gather as much evidence as you can. This will give Student Finance the best possible chance of understanding your situation. Try to ensure you’ve explained your circumstances clearly, sometimes making a timeline of key events can help if you’re comfortable doing so.ÌýWe also encourage you to send all of your statements together in the same envelope, with a covering letter which states your customer reference number. This will assist the person assessing your application to understand the whole picture of your circumstances when they look into your case.

The following websites, have some useful advice and tips.

• (Unite Foundation)

The University cannot accept responsibility for external websites.