Cost of living, it is not a topic that is new to many of us. We hear about it on the news, in political speeches or have spoken about it ourselves with friends and colleagues. To your Students’ Association is it not just a punchline, but a vital topic that impacts our students and can be a barrier to them getting the most out of their Arden journey.
We just didn’t know how much of an impact...
What does this mean?
We wanted to hear your views, share your stories and tell us what this means to you. This is why we chose cost of living as our first ever piece of research. 
Thank you to all 4,308 students who responded to our Students’ Association Cost of Living Survey. Not only was this the best response rate for an Arden survey, but your feedback has helped us to understand your individual experiences and how we can work with you in making positive change for all students.
What your responses helped us to understand, is that the cost of living is impacting your experience at Arden University. This is something we’ve made sure the University has heard loud and clear. It’s also the first time we’ve heard from you about the cost of living, and the range of shared stories coming from what this means to you.
What were the Top Themes?
Over the last few months since the survey closed, we’ve been working extremely hard with our Operational Research Team, for you. We have analysed the responses, collated these into clear themes, highlighted your stories and presented this to the most senior University colleagues, our Executive Team. We wanted to share the top themes that you shared about the impact of the cost of living crisis on your study experience and wider lives:
1. Affordability Stress
The cost of living pressures, including the affordability of essentials such as food, are impacting mental and physical health for many of you.
“The cost of living has impacted my mental health … and led to affecting my studies and involvement in Uni!"
2. Impact of Social Opportunities
For many of you, the cost of living has impacted your social opportunities, and nearly half of respondents said they had spent less time getting to know their course mates as a result.
“I have to stay at home because travel is too much”
3. Transport Costs
Affording transport is a struggle for many students, and one in four blended learning respondents told us they have missed attending university due to the cost of getting there.
“I am using money for food to travel to university”
4. Work More, Study Less
There is a pressure to work more hours, which one in five respondents told us means they have less time to spend on your study.
“I have to work extra shifts, which disturbs my studies a lot”
Where are we now?
Members of the Executive Team are working to take action forward using your feedback, to turn the findings into recommendations for investment and change. Our aim is to remove barriers to help you succeed, when you are facing the Cost of Living crisis and the knock on impact on your studies at Arden. 
As this fundamental work progresses, we will provide further updates and opportunities for you to get involved in the change happening. An example that will be taking place in the future includes our Chief Financial Officer presenting to our student representatives on what affordable food options on campus could look like in the future.
Support you can receive
Lots of you told us that you would like to know more about the funds immediately available, if you are in need please click here to be taken to the Financial Services Portal. There is a range of support on offer, and you can contact the team to find out more.
Staying up to date with our progress for you
As your Students’ Association, which exists to make positive change to your Arden experience, we want you to hold us to account on the progress we are making in this space. So please continue to view updates on our website page and keep an eye on our Student President Manifesto page, as Jay has many priorities he wants to implement, linking to the Cost of Living findings. You can also follow us on Instagram and Linkedin for more updates!
To make this easier we are in the process of developing a Cost of Living hub on our website where you will soon be able to find support and see the progress we are making to remove this barrier. For us the work is not over but simply just begun and we will empower you where we can to access opportunities to make lasting impact.
We also know we cannot do this alone which is why Jay, your student president, is also building connections with other Students’ Unions across the country to influence local government to do their part.