Cost of living: Calls to boost students' £30 EMA grant

Keira says she often uses the money from her own pocket to buy the essentials she needs for class

Young people could be priced out of education because financial help has been frozen for nearly 20 years, it has been claimed.

Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) is available to 16 to 18-year-olds living in Wales who remain in further education after school-leaving age.

Keira said her £30 EMA was the same amount that was awarded to students in 2004.

The Welsh government said it offered learners a range of funding support.

A Plaid Cymru Member of the Senedd wants the weekly £30 grant increased to £55 due to the rising cost of living.

Students qualify for EMA if their household annual income is below £23,077, or £20,817 if there is only one young person in their household.

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Keira, 16, an art student from Bethesda, Gwynedd, is one of 17,000 college and sixth form students in Wales who qualify.

But she said the money did not always cover her bus travel and art supplies.

She added that her brother, who's now 31, also received the same sum when he was studying but the economic situation was different.

"He got on OK because prices weren't the same then, [but] now prices are so expensive. You'll be using big chunks of your money just to get places," she said.

"It's really hard to keep to that budget."

College students Rosie and Carys say more people should be able to claim the allowance because it gives financial independence

Rosie,17 and Carys, 16, are studying childcare in college in south Wales and both use the allowance to pay for their phone bills, transport and essentials.

"If I didn't have EMA I don't know what I'd do. I'd probably rely on family and feel terrible about it as they pay heavy bills," Rosie said.

"I feel like when it was 2004, living costs weren't as high as they are now, [so] we could use a bit of a raise to help."

Carys said: "Not everybody is made of money, not everybody has got money. I think it [the increase] would help everyone as costs are going up and they can be more independent."

Director of independent think-tank, the Bevan Foundation, Dr Victoria Winckler, said she was "absolutely shocked" when she discovered how the allowance value had "eroded" over time.

She said: "We've heard about students who are leaving college, because they can't afford to stay. They need to contribute to their household's finances and £30 a week just doesn't cut it.

"We're also hearing about students who are taking on those extra jobs, working evenings and weekends, and their studies are suffering.

"I think to restore it to its historic value is a big ask in the current climate, but the Welsh government should at the very least start, from this year, raising it by inflation.

"A 10% uplift on last year and then a commitment to an uplift going forwards, would at least stop things getting worse."

Dr Victoria Winckler, director of the Bevan Foundation, says she is "shocked" by the lack of increase in allowance

She said that this would mean £3 a week extra for students, adding: "To some of us that might sound not much, we might be spending that on a fancy coffee on the way to work. But for a young learner, it's a lunch that they can buy, it's their bus fare home a couple of days, and it puts and end to this decline in value that we have seen."

Plaid Cymru MS for South Wales West, Luke Fletcher, said he was supported by EMA when he was at school and wants it increased by £25, in line with inflation.

He said: "EMA is a very important tool for us here in Wales to make sure that kids from low income households are able to stay in education.

"The payment has stayed at £30 since 2004... [and] when we look at inflation it needs to be a lot higher than it is now. It's simply at the moment not doing the job that it was designed to do."

The issue was also raised in the Senedd on Tuesday by Swansea East MS Mike Hedges, who called for the Welsh government to raise the allowance.

The Welsh government said: "Unlike in England, where it was scrapped, Wales has continued to protect the EMA programme.

"Alongside the payment we provide support for transport costs, and the Financial Contingency Fund, which can help eligible learners in a further education college in Wales who are facing financial difficulties."

It also urged students to ask their colleges about what support is available.

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