Andy Stafford, one of the Student Funding Advisors, explains what funds are available to help you if you’ve been financially affected by the pandemic, and how you can apply.
Our team helps students get their funding sorted out, whether that’s help with budgeting, access to the Coronavirus Impact Fund, or offering financial advice via bookable 15-minutes video calls.
We launched the fund when we first went into lockdown in 2020 to help students who were financially affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Who can apply?
- It’s open to all students! Undergraduate, postgraduate, part-time, full-time, international or home, it doesn’t matter.
- You can also apply if you’re studying with us from outside the UK e.g. from your home country.
- You must have been financially affected by the pandemic. This could include being furloughed or losing your job, being unable to find a new job, or losing family support due to their finances being affected by Coronavirus. It also includes specific IT or travel costs you’ve had to pay because of the pandemic.
What sort of thing can the fund help with?
- Essential living costs: food, bills, rent, or priority debts.
- Technology to help you learn online: things like a laptop, better broadband, a printer or ink cartridges.
- Unexpected travel you’ve had to undertake e.g., to return home.
- Charges your landlord isn’t willing to waive e.g. if you had to leave your accommodation suddenly.
What do you need to apply to the fund?
- A bank statement with your balance showing for the month you apply in.
- Evidence of any other income you have coming in.
- How much you spend each month on rent.
How much could I get?
- The amount of the award varies depending on your circumstances and need, it could be as little as £70 or up to a maximum of £4,000.
- We may not be able to cover the whole amount of the support you need, but we can help with a contribution towards those costs.
- You can apply to the fund more than once in an academic year.
How do I apply?
- Email student-funding@bristol.ac.uk briefly explaining why you want to apply.
- Andrew and his team can advise you on the funds you may be able to access.
- When an application is submitted, they will look at your income and expenses from when you apply to the fund until 18th June to calculate if you are eligible for an award.
- If you’re applying for technology to help with online learning, let us know what IT you have at the moment, why it’s not fit for purpose, and submit evidence of the cost of the new equipment e.g. a photo of a product on the Argos website, or a receipt for some equipment you’ve already bought. Equipment must have been purchased within a month of applying to the fund.
- The closing date for all applications is 7 June 2021 and applications will be assessed up to the 18 June 2021.