Claiming too late
Placement expense claims must be made within six months of the cost being incurred, and active-study dates decide the training grant instalments.
NHS funding for health students
Nursing, midwifery and allied health students in England can add NHS Learning Support Fund payments on top of their student loans.
What it is
The NHS Learning Support Fund
These payments are not loans. They are non-repayable, mostly not means-tested, and they do not reduce your student finance.
£5,000Training grant, per year
Non-repayable and not means-tested. Proportional rate for part-time study.
£1,000Specialist subject payment
Extra for mental health and learning disability nursing, radiography, podiatry,
orthoptics, prosthetics and orthotics.
£2,000Parental support, per year
If you have a child under 15, or under 17 with special educational needs.
£3,000Exceptional hardship fund
Maximum per academic year, for unforeseen financial hardship.
Placements
Travel and accommodation costs
Clinical placements often cost more to reach than campus, and sometimes need temporary accommodation. The Learning Support Fund reimburses the excess: 42p a mile for travel in your own car, public transport at actual cost, and commercial temporary accommodation up to £82.50 a night.
From 2026/27 there is also an advance payment facility, so you do not have to fund the upfront cost of a placement yourself while a claim is processed.
Who is eligible
Students on qualifying nursing, midwifery, dental hygiene and therapy and allied health profession courses in England who are also eligible for Student Loans Company funding. Pharmacy and healthcare science students can access the travel and accommodation element.
How we help
Getting both funding streams right
- Student finance first — LSF eligibility depends on being eligible for SLC funding, so that application has to be correct.
- LSF portal application — the training grant and any specialist payment you qualify for, claimed in the right year.
- Placement expense claims — within six months of the cost, with the right evidence, including the new advance.
- Household income questions — because the maintenance loan still depends on them even where the NHS payments do not.
Good to know
Three things students get wrong
Assuming it replaces the loan
The NHS payments sit on top of student finance — you still apply for the tuition fee and maintenance loans.
Checking benefits separately
If you receive benefits, check how the training grant interacts with them before it is paid.
Figures shown are the published 2026/27 student finance rates and the 2027-entry UCAS cycle. Rates and deadlines are set each year — confirm the current numbers on gov.uk and ucas.com before you rely on them. NHS Learning Support Fund rules are published by the NHS Business Services Authority.
Applying for nursing or allied health?
We handle the UCAS application, the student finance application and the NHS Learning Support Fund claim as one job.