Last year saw personal UK consumers take out a massive £37 million in loans to help cover the cost of their education.

New data released from Sainsbury’s Finance show that education costs increased in the 12 months till the end of February by five per cent, with the group attributing the higher costs as the main reason for bank assistance which was mainly used to pay university and school fees, personal loans and general education costs.

The supermarket bank estimated that close to 4,400 personal loans were arranged over the past year at an average rate of £8,500 for assistance with educational charges. The breakdown from Sainsbury’s Finance showed that 1,100 loans were granted at a total worth of £12.25 million to help payment of school fees.  University and college fees were worth £13.56 million across 1,900 loans.

Sainsbury’s Finance Head of Loans, Steven Baillie, confirmed that the cost of education was indeed rising, with school fees up by 5.9 per cent, while the Consumer Price Index educational component grew by five per cent. The slow pace of the economic recovery meant that many students still faced challenges to generate the revenue required for the completion of their studies.

An evaluation of government data by Sainsbury’s Finance discovered that £8.8 billion was spent on education between 2006 and 2008 across the UK – a figure which showed dramatic variances between regional fees. London students paid an average of £770 a year, as compared to just £208 in the North West of Britain.

Tags: college, Consumer Price Index, Education, fees, loans, Sainsbury's, Sainsbury's Finance, school, student loans, university