Students: Loans

Department for Education written question – answered at on 2 June 2026.

Alert me about debates like this

Photo of Siân Berry Siân Berry Green Spokesperson (Crime and Policing), Green Spokesperson (Justice), Green Spokesperson (Transport), Green Spokesperson (Work and Pensions), Green Spokesperson (Culture, Media and Sport), Green Spokesperson (Democratic Standards)

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the quality of communications materials about student loans and their terms, in particular the communication of risk and long-term costs to vulnerable students; and what steps she will take to help ensure full transparency about the cost of these loans.

Photo of Siân Berry Siân Berry Green Spokesperson (Crime and Policing), Green Spokesperson (Justice), Green Spokesperson (Transport), Green Spokesperson (Work and Pensions), Green Spokesperson (Culture, Media and Sport), Green Spokesperson (Democratic Standards)

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will take action to review and reform student loan repayment terms, including (a) unfreezing the repayment threshold, (b) reviewing the current application of interest rates, and (c) abolishing or capping interest.

Photo of Josh MacAlister Josh MacAlister The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education

Prospective students have access to a wide range of information across a range of platforms before they submit their loan application including, but not limited to, GOV.UK, where students can access the student finance calculator, Student Loan Company (SLC) guidance and university prospectus.

Students can also access The Student Room webpage, where SLC provide articles on student loans and staff from SLC are available in the online forums to answer direct questions from individual students five days a week.

Access to this information up-front ensures that prospective students can weigh up the likely overall costs and benefits to them of undertaking higher education, alongside the financial cost of repayment across the length of the loan period. Additionally, for those who may still be unclear about the long-term commitment of a student loan, a potential borrower may seek other independent advice before accepting the terms and conditions.

The government is capping the maximum interest rates on Plan 2 and 3 student loans at 6% for the 2026/27 academic year. It does not resolve all of the issues with the Plan 2 system, which was designed and implemented by previous government. We are considering how to make the system fairer, but to be fiscally responsible we must consider how any change would be funded.

Does this answer the above question?

Yes1 person thinks so

No0 people think not

Would you like to ask a question like this yourself? Use our Freedom of Information site.

Secretary of State

Secretary of State was originally the title given to the two officials who conducted the Royal Correspondence under Elizabeth I. Now it is the title held by some of the more important Government Ministers, for example the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.