As the cost-of-living crisis in Britain continues to worsen, government attempts at relief for the most vulnerable are falling short. While some have rightly taken to industrial action, others haven’t been able to join the strike wave and have hardly gotten a look in from government support either. Students have felt the squeeze, forcing many to abandon their education; the number of undergraduates dropping out of university jumped almost 25 percent last summer.

Unable to receive benefits and often working low-paid jobs, students find it hard to afford the rising costs of food and shelter. Research published by the country’s National Union of Students found that a quarter have only £50 a month left after paying their regular bills, and 42 percent are surviving off less than £100 a month. Nine out of ten say the crisis has affected their mental health, too.

In fact, university students have witnessed the biggest ever dip in their living standards. In November, the Institute for Fiscal Studies announced that compared with what they would have been entitled to in 2020–21, maintenance loans for university students from the poorest families had shrunk by more than £1,000 over the last year due to inflation — and that all students would be financially better off working a full-time minimum wage job.