New students who begin studying in 2008 will have even more money available. The maximum parental income cut-off point will rise from £39,000 to £60,000.The new system does affect the amount you will receive via your student loan. More information is available at unimoney.direct.gov.uk.

Student interest rates are based on the previous March’s inflation rate. The rate in March 2008 was 3.8% which means it is likely there will be a reduction in the rate for students in the academic year 2008/9. However, for graduates this does not necessarily mean you should repay the loan earlier as it still remains the lowest form of borrowing on the marketplace.

A ‘Student Loan Repayment Holiday’ has also been introduced for students starting in 2007/8 onwards. It allows students who are due to start repaying their loan from April 2012 to have a break from repayments for up to five years. This is to help graduates who may need to use this money to, say, help put down a deposit for a house.