Trinity College Cambridge launches annual £4050 grant

Today (31/03), Trinity College has announced that they will pilot the “Trinity Maintenance Grant” for Trinity students on home fees that qualify for the Cambridge Bursary Scheme from October 2022.

Broadly, this affects students with an annual household income of below £62,215.

The Maintenance Grant will be offered to Trinity undergraduates joining in 2022, 2023, or 2024 who are eligible for the Bursary Scheme. The Grant is worth £4,050 and will be paid in three termly installments for every year of study (up to four years) in addition to the Bursary Scheme. It will not need to be repaid.

The full Grant will also be available from October to existing undergraduates who are eligible for the Bursary Scheme or the Pilot Top-Up Bursary Scheme. The same applies to undergraduates who originally applied to Trinity and were later accepted to another college through the Winter Pool or Adjustment.

The grant is part of Trinity’s “ongoing commitment to improve Widening Participation” and is specifically set at the average price of renting a single-person room at Trinity.

An article on the College’s website explains the Grant aimed to give working-class students “the security to be able to enjoy the rich cultural, social and sporting life Cambridge has to offer.”

The article also recognised the potential financial stressors of the Covid-19 pandemic and rising cost of living, adding that they “hope the Trinity Maintenance Grant can alleviate some of that pressure.”

Tayla Hardy, the President of the Trinity College Students’ Union, was quoted as saying the “launch of this grant will hopefully encourage students from backgrounds who may not typically be drawn here to apply.”

For students from the lowest economic backgrounds, the combination of Trinity Maintenance Grant, Bursary Scheme, and Educational Premium could give up to £8,550 of support per year to cover Cambridge expenses.

The scheme was announced this morning in an email to Trinity students from Trinity’s Senior Tutor, Sachiko Kusukawa.

Featured Image Credits: Ted Bruce