What support is available for care leavers?

If you are a care leaver – a student who is under 25 and has been cared for by any local authority for at least 13 weeks since the age of 14 – then you will be eligible for further support. We also support care experienced students who may not fulfil the above description, but have had care provided in one of many different settings, such as:

With foster carers under local authority care
In a residential children’s home
Being ‘looked after at home’ under a supervision order
Living with friends or relatives in kinship care.

Before you join the University

If you or your social worker would like to find out more about what support you may be able to get at the University of Surrey, you can get in touch with the Student Success and EDI team who can arrange an informal chat. The team also runs drop ins during Welcome Week and provide you with a Welcome Pack when you first make contact on arrival.

You may also wish to check out the UCAS pages dedicated to estranged students and care leavers/care experienced students.

General support at University

We understand that sometimes juggling University and your personal life can be challenging, and you may need to speak to someone. Our friendly Hive Case Coordinators can provide you with support. You can request support from the MySurrey Hive team via Surrey Support selecting "Other" as your enquiry topic or through your personal tutor.

Financial and technological support

You will be assessed on entry for The Care Leaver and Estranged Student Bursary if you have indicated you are a care leaver/care experienced on your UCAS or application form. If you did not indicate your are a care leaver/care experienced on your application form and believe you are eligible for the bursary, please contact Student Success and EDI by contacting the MySurrey Hive team on Surrey Support. Please select "Other" as your enquiry topic. Care leavers and care experienced students may also be able to access other funds/bursaries to support them during their studies if not eligible for the above - see our bursaries page.

If you require financial assistance you can apply for the Hardship Fund, and the Access to Learning Fund for money towards books and other learning equipment (such as PPE) for your programme.

You can also take advantage of our long-term Laptop Loan Scheme where you can rent a laptop for a whole semester or, at times, a whole academic year.

Accommodation

You will be given priority for on-campus accommodation during the summer breaks and in your second and third year of studying. If you require extra support for your accommodation regarding the deposit or move in date, you can enquire with our accommodation team.

Care leaver and care experienced students wishing to rent privately can access our Guarantor Scheme and have the administration costs paid by the University – please apply via the Student Success Team and EDI team.

Sports

If finances are a barrier to joining in with sports at Surrey, you may be eligible as a care leaver/care experienced student to access funding to support with this. Referral required a member of staff, such as your personal tutor, the Students’ Union, Student Success and EDI team, Centre for Wellbeing, or MySurrey Hive.

Study abroad

You can apply for a study award to fund participation in summer programmes abroad.

Careers and employability

The Employability and Careers team also have resources to support students in their job hunting and upskilling on their Surrey Pathfinder platform, as well as exclusive mentoring opportunities. Look out for emails from the team with details of how to apply.

Care Leaver Covenant

The University has signed up to the Care Leaver Covenant.

External support

There are many websites and organisations who support care experienced and estranged students, many of which the University is connected to enabling us to learn and share best practices and provide the best support.

These include:

National Network for the Education of Care Leavers (NNECL)
Unite Foundation – they have a handy list of guides, links, job opportunities, and organise meet-ups
The EaCES Handbook – information and advice written by estranged and care experienced students with practical tips and guidance on how to meet others from a similar background
This Is Us podcast is created by and for care experienced and estranged students.