What support is available for care leavers and care experienced students?

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 from the University. 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. You can also attend drop-in sessions during Welcome Week where you can find more about the support available to you.

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.

Community support at University

The University of Surrey is proud to host Future Leaders. This is a student-led extracurricular programme that runs alongside your degree, enabling you to connect with other students from your community whilst accessing targeted support. Future Leaders supports students from a range of backgrounds, such as the Care-Experienced and Estranged Network.

You will automatically be added to the Future Leaders mailing list upon registration, and you can sign up to specific networks here.

In addition to the community and support offered by the programme, you can also complete a SurreyLearn module to supplement your learning and hear from various services across the University. Completing this module will award you with a digital badge, which can also be seen on your HEAR report upon graduating.

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. Here you will find details of three further bursary opportunities which are relevant to you as a care leaver:-

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 subject to availability; please ensure that you apply for your accommodation by the deadline. If you require extra support for your accommodation regarding the deposit or move in date, you can enquire with our accommodation team.

If you wish to rent privately, you can find advice on finding a qualifying UK guarantor when renting in the private sector.

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.

The Team Surrey Sport and Activity Access fund has been created to support those students who wouldn’t otherwise be able to participate in their chosen sport or activity due to cost. As a care leaver, if eligible, you can apply to the fund for the following financial support:

Contribution towards subscriptions costs, e.g. club membership fees or Team Surrey membership
Contribution towards club participation costs, e.g. equipment or clothing, if members are required to bring their own
90% off of a Surrey Sports Park membership

For more information and how to apply, please email the Student Success and EDI team.

Referral requires 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 the Surrey Employability Hub (formerly Surrey Pathfinder), 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.