More students planning to live at home for university over 'insane' living costs

More new students are choosing to live at home for university this year than at any point in the last nine years, new data shows.

Over 81,000 UK 18-year-olds said in their accepted university application that they intended to live at home this year, according to the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (Ucas) - just over one in three students in that category.

In 2017, it was closer to one in five.

The figures vary across the UK - with 48% of applicants in Scotland intending to live at home, compared with 20% in Wales - but the trend is rising across the board.

Students told the BBC the rising cost of living was a major influence in deciding what to do after school or college.

For friends Beatrice and Amelia, who are from St Helens, Merseyside, the cost of accommodation was a big factor in their decision to live at home while studying.

Both are heading to university in September, but neither will be moving into student accommodation.

Beatrice is going to the University of Manchester to study maths and plans to commute by train, a journey which can take about 50 minutes in total.

"My first choice was Manchester and then my second was Liverpool, so I knew I could commute," she says, adding that the price of accommodation would have been "a few grand a year".

Amelia, who is going to study at Liverpool John Moores University - approximately 20 minutes away by train - says the accommodation she found was between £300 and £400 a week.

Although neither is looking forward to the commute, both are still hoping they can get the full experience of university while living at home.

However, fellow student Jessica, who is also going to study at Liverpool John Moores University, feels she will miss out.

She says she would have loved to live on campus and enjoy student life, but the price of renting is "ridiculous" and "insane".

"I have a part-time job as everything is so expensive, and then commuting is going to kill a lot of my free time as well," she says.

"It is a bit sad really when you think about it."

But she is pleased that staying at home means she will still be able to have her mum and dad's cooked dinners.

Earlier this year, BBC News followed the daily journey of one first-year student who said she was saving over £7,000 on accommodation by commuting 90 minutes into Manchester each day from home.

A record number of UK 18-year-olds have been accepted into university this year.

But student rents have risen sharply in recent years, alongside other living costs.

The Higher Education Policy Institute (Hepi) said last year that students needed £61,000 over the course of a three-year degree in order to have a "minimum socially acceptable standard of living" - and that's excluding tuition fees.

Its report found that in 2024 the cost of renting in university-owned accommodation ranged from £108 per week, for 40 to 44-week contracts in Northern Ireland, to £338 a week for the shortest contracts in London, where rent makes up nearly half (46%) of students' costs.

In most areas it was between £140 and £180 a week, with private halls usually being more expensive.

Many students are eligible for a maintenance loan, which can help with the cost of accommodation, but the average annual price of a room on campus is increasing much faster, according to some student unions.

Hepi says most young full-time students now work in paid employment during term time to make up the difference between their maintenance loan income and the cost of living.

For some students, it means a rethink about what university looks like.

The Open University, which offers distance learning and online courses, says more teenagers than ever are starting courses with it.

Almost 3,400 18-and 19-year-olds joined the university last year – making up 9.5% of new starters, compared with 5.7% six years ago.

Traditionally, it has been popular with mature students wanting to continue working while studying from home.

Its vice-chancellor, Prof Dave Phoenix, says it points to a shift in how younger people are thinking about university, adding that studying online "means they can avoid moving costs and high accommodation bills and, for others, it means keeping a job".

But a recent report by Prof William Whyte, from the University of Oxford, argues that the value of on-campus life extends far beyond the price of accommodation, and plays an important role in personal development and the wider university experience.

"The question isn't simply where students live. It's what they gain from living and learning together as part of a university community," he says.

"Currently, we have no real policy on accommodation for the overwhelming majority of students who want to leave home for study. It's time for a serious debate about the role accommodation plays in the university – and how we will pay for it."

A spokesperson for the Department for Education says the government recognises that too many students are facing financial hardship.

They say they are increasing maximum maintenance loans and reintroducing maintenance grants to help with living costs, as well as working with universities and councils to improve access to student housing.

Data analysis by Isobel Cottam & Phil Leake. Additional reporting by Emily Doughty