College supports over 250 students during winter months

We have provided winter clothing to 270 students this winter thanks to the Household Support Grant.

Our Student Services team has sourced funding from Barnsley Metropolitan Borough Council (BMBC) to provide schemes focused on food, hygiene and warm clothing for students to support them during the cost-of-living crisis.

During the cold winter months, the funding has allowed us to create winter packs, containing a warm throw or blanket; underwear and socks; leggings or jogging bottoms; a t-shirt and a hoody as well as a warm coat. To date, 270 students have received a winter pack with more expected to collect one throughout the term.

“It is a privilege to see how we as a college can support and assist in transforming lives during a cost-of-living crisis.”

Other schemes that we offer with the funding include supplying students with food and hygiene products, where students receive a supermarket food voucher and a hygiene pack that consists of a variety of toiletry products. Currently, 150 students who have met the criteria have accessed this and this is expected to exceed the 322 students accessing the vouchers last year.

All schemes we run have been approved by the council with the BMBC Public Health Team for Wellbeing setting the criteria for the funding, which is then supplied to our Student Services team to support any students in need.

Liam Garside, Head of Student Services, said: “The Household Support Grant has enabled us to extend the outstanding wellbeing and welfare support already accessed by thousands of college students.

“In previous years, we had an open service area where students from across sites could take away hats and gloves if they needed to keep warm – it has been a success with 1,000 of each being distributed – so we wanted to expand on this, and the funding has allowed us to do that.

“It is a privilege to see how we as a college can support and assist in transforming lives during a cost-of-living crisis. The Household Support Grant does make a difference to a student’s personal life and college experience.”