More families will have access to the largest government grant available to help fund university living costs from 2025, the Education Minister has confirmed.

Currently, full maintenance allowances can be claimed by families earning less than £50,000 a year – a limit which has remained unchanged since 2018 despite inflation.

The announcement comes after a Jersey parent said she may be forced to ask her child to use a food bank at university because her the government grant could not cover all their living expenses.

MP Rob Ward said the threshold would be increased by 5.2% from September 2025, provided politicians agree to it in the government’s budget – which will be decided in November.

Mr Ward said the thresholds had been “determined by reference to average incomes in Jersey” and would be reviewed annually.

The Jersey Student Loan Support group said it was “a start towards fixing the threshold” but was “still more than 31% lower than it should be”.