A STUDENT group campaigning to improve the affordability of education has launched a project to highlight the relationship between financial difficulties students face and their ability to integrate fully into university and college life.

Durham for Accessible Education says Durham University's plans to spend just £3.6 million on the Durham Grant Scheme by the 2019/20 academic year represents a cut of more than a third - compared to the £5.6 million contributed to this group in the 2014/15 academic year.

Campaigners say the Durham Grant Scheme, which provides financial support to students whose household income is below £25,000, is an essential part of the support available to lower income students at the university.

The group has now started an anonymous testimonial series to Durham students past and present to share their experiences of financial difficulties.

Campaign group founder George Stanbury said: “Students are currently going through a really tough time financially and it’s important that awareness is raised about this crucial issue.

“Many Durham students have expressed that the lack of financial support they receive directly affects their experience at university, preventing them from taking part in the community or extra-curricular activities due to the costs involved.

“University is meant to be a time to find friends for life, but instead students are forced into social isolation because they cannot afford a social life on top of university accommodation, which can cost over £7,000 for a 38 week let."

He added: “This has a significant impact on wellbeing, leading to loneliness and mental health issues such as anxiety, stress and depression."

The project, called Out of the Red into the Purple, juxtaposes the colour associated with debt with the university's emblematic purple - to highlight the direct link between financial stability and social integration.

A petition letter is running to lobby the university to commit to restoring its financial support back to the amounts available to students in 2013/14, when students received the most financial support from the university.

A Durham University spokesman said: “We are committed to encouraging the very best and the brightest students, regardless of background, to come to Durham, as set out in our Access Agreements.

“For the 2016/17 academic year, we are investing over £10 million to help students meet upfront costs and to deliver access, student success and progression activities.

“In September 2015, MoneySuperMarket found that Durham offered undergraduates the best deal on living costs when compared with the UK’s top 20 universities.”