Hardship Funding - Access to Learning Fund
The Access to Learning Fund (ALF) is provided by the government to give discretionary financial assistance to UK students to help them access and remain in higher education.
You may be eligible to make an application if you:
- need help with unexpected financial hardship or a shortfall in income
- are considering leaving higher education because of financial problems
- are experiencing a delay in payment of your funding for living costs
Before making an application to ALF students must have accessed all other sources of funding available to them. Undergraduate students must have taken out the maximum student loan to which they are entitled. ALF cannot act as a main source of funding for postgraduate students so they must be able to demonstrate that they were adequately funded when they commenced their studies. ALF is not a bursary or a scholarship and it cannot provide large sums for students who have made little or no financial provision for their studies.
Government guidelines state that ALF cannot be used to pay tuition fees.
Due to the discretionary nature of ALF there is no guarantee that each applicant will receive funding; there is no entitlement or automatic right to funding from ALF and awards are based on the individual situation of each applicant.
Funds will normally be paid as a non-repayable award. Occasionally, loans may be issued instead, particularly if the applicant has a temporary cash flow problem.
For further information about the Fund please listen to our Recap recording (31 minutes in duration) which provides detailed information about ALF and also talks you through the application form. Alternatively you may wish to contact us.
