Financial support

If you are eligible for student finance support, we may be able to help you with funding towards the cost of travel to college (you will need to live 1.5 miles or more away from your college campus), equipment and childcare.

For students aged 16 to 18 living with family – when you apply for Student Finance you need to submit evidence of the household income evidence for your family. This might only be mum or dad, but could include a step-parent, or it might be another relative such as grandparents. The household income must be less than £35,000 per year for whichever adults from your household. If you have younger brothers/sisters, we may be able to increase your income threshold – please do remember to tell us that on your application.

For students aged 16 to 18 who are one of the following, you may qualify for support through the vulnerable bursary: 

• Do not live with their own family, but are in care (which could include living with a foster family)
• Are recent care leavers
• Living independently and claiming benefits because they are living independently
• Who have a child of their own. 

We will need to see appropriate evidence such as a letter from a Social Worker or a copy of your Universal Credit statement and a Tenancy Agreement.

If you are unsure how to get to your College campus, or unsure if you will get travel support please use our Travel Pass Checker app.  Type in the postcode where you live, and select the campus you are studying at. The app will calculate the travel distance to your destination, and let you know if you would be eligible. Your household income must be less than £35,000 per year to receive travel support.

Students must normally live more than 1.5 miles away from the campus they study at to get support with travel. However, if you are a young carer we may be able to support you with a contribution towards travel, even if you live closer to campus than that. Please do make sure that you have informed the College when you apply for your course, or when you enrol and note this on your Student Finance application so we can factor this into your support. Your household income must be less than £35,000 per year to receive travel support.

If you received free school meals at school, you should be entitled to them at college. 

The Government support for free college meals is £2.61 per timetabled day. As a college, we may decide to increase this level of support for eligible students. 

Currently we are not provided with the free school meals entitlement information from the Local Councils or DWP. Therefore, you will need to apply and provide evidence to show your entitlement to free college meals, to receive these during your time at Nottingham College. 

Eligible benefits for free college meals 

• Support under part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
• From the start of the 2026/27 college year, free college meal (FCM) eligibility in England will expand to all households receiving Universal Credit

Meal support in college 

There are no legal requirements to offer food to students who aren't eligible for free college meals. However, where budgets permit, we may offer some support towards food in college to other students.  

Where we are able to offer additional meal support (in addition to the free college meal support) it will be very dependent on different budget allocations. As a College we receive different funding pots for 16 – 18 year olds, 19+ students, and vulnerable students and each pot has a different budget allocation and therefore we may support different groups with different levels of meal support subject to the different budget allocations and money available. 

Nottingham College can support eligible students with their childcare costs whilst they are studying. Please note that you will need to provide evidence of your relationship to the child such as a birth certificate, child benefit.  

You can apply for a place at our internal Nursery ‘Once Upon a Time’, or you can find your own external Ofsted registered provider to send your child to. This may be an after-school club, breakfast club, childminder, or nursery. All childcare providers must be Ofsted registered. 

Where possible we will try and contribute up to 100% of your childcare costs for the days and times you attend college. The amount we can fund is £180 per week, this is based on government guidance. If your childcare costs are over this amount our Student Finance team will discuss options with you. For example, can you find someone to look after your child for one day a week 

Please apply for your childcare support in the ‘Childcare’ Section of the Student Finance application to be assessed for this. Log in to your Nottingham College account dashboard, click on the “Apply for Student Financial Support”. 

For more information about Government support with childcare visit the websites below. If you are receiving free childcare hours where possible you will be expected to use these hours whilst studying at College. 

• Childcare Choices
• Childcare Calculator
• Childcare Funding Terms and Conditions