University costs 'forcing parents to limit pension contributions'

07/08/2008

More and more parents are sacrificing their pension payments in order to put their children through university, a new survey has shown.

According to Norwich Union, which commissioned the report, one in five parents has either limited their retirement savings contributions or dipped into their savings accounts to pay university fees or living costs.

Around 25 per cent also said that they were concerned that they might have to take on more work, give up holidays or even re-mortgage due to the financial pressure.

Norwich Union found that the total cost of a three-year university course comes to over £30,000 for each student.

Just under half (46 per cent) of parents said that they would encourage their children to study nearby so that they could live at home and cut out accommodation fees.

Cheryl Cox at Norwich Union said: "Another generation of UK teens will enter higher education this autumn and, while parents may well be filled with pride, this looks set to be overshadowed by fear and panic over how they are going to shoulder the financial burden.

"We all want to do the best for our children but, by making the ultimate sacrifice and using their pension funds to cover the costs, a fifth may face a bleak financial future."

Tags; Budgeting Advice, Recent Graduate Debt,

Regional Debt Advice; Debt Advice Norwich,

• Share
• 
• 
• Store
• 
• Follow
•