Estranged and independent students

Over the years, Liverpool John Moores University have helped lots of students who are estranged from their family and are living and supporting themselves independently. During your time at LJMU we have lots of support available to you.

Student funding

Proving estrangement

For your funding body to award you the appropriate amount of funding, most estranged students will be required to provide evidence of their personal circumstances. The definition of an estranged or independent student is a student who has little or no contact with their parents or legal guardians due to a permanent breakdown in their relationship. 

You will need to provide evidence to your funding body to prove you are irreconcilably estranged from your parents or legal guardians. This evidence can be a letter from a professional who is aware of your circumstances such as a teacher, college tutor, your GP, Support Worker or other professional person. Your funding body will also have an ‘Estrangement form’ that you can download, complete and upload to your application.

Once approved, you will be given ‘Independent Student Status’ and will be assessed independently to receive the maximum maintenance loan. Your funding body may ask you to prove your estrangement for each year of your course. The Inclusion Team can support you with this and they can be reached on imagine@ljmu.ac.uk.

Support available

If you are an estranged or independent student, we understand that you might have specific questions or concerns whilst studying with us. Our dedicated Inclusion Team and staff within Student Advice and Wellbeing can work with you to plan out what support you might need.

Our support can include:

  • Meeting you at university events such as Open Days, Campus Tours and Applicant Days to answer any questions.
  • Liaising with you and any support workers or organisations that you might have, including guardians, Foster Carers, Personal Advisors or Social Workers to answer any questions before joining us.
  • A dedicated point of contact within the Inclusion Team to provide ongoing advice and support throughout your university journey.

We also offer:

  • Access to 365-day accommodation in an LJMU partner hall including support with guarantors
  • Support with applying for Student Finance and additional funding advice with access to Money Advisers
  • Wellbeing appointments with Wellbeing Advisers as well as access to Counselling and Mental Health support
  • Academic guidance from our Specialist Study Skills tutors
  • Careers and employability support including CV workshops and interview skills
  • Support for taking a year to study abroad with the Go Abroad team

The Inclusion Team will also send you email updates on support and specific opportunities that might be available to you.

John Lennon Imagine Award

If you are care experienced or estranged from your family you may be eligible for our John Lennon Imagine Award. This is an annual bursary of £1000 per academic year to support with your living and study costs. This award is available to students up to the age of 25 and can be awarded alongside support offered from your Local Authority. To find out more about the award and eligibility please contact imagine@ljmu.ac.uk.

Estranged information for staff

Students can become estranged from their family at any point during their studies with us. Funding bodies typically define being estranged as a student who has little to no contact with their parents (biological or adopted) due to a relationship breakdown that is irreconcilable.

If a student discloses this, it is important that they know there is support available from the Inclusion Team in Student Life and Wellbeing.

Confirmation of estrangement form

When applying to for funding through Student Finance, students might require proof of their estrangement, or they might need to complete a ‘Confirmation of Estrangement form’ which can be located on the Student Finance website. A third party must complete the form on behalf of the student to confirm this estrangement. A third party can be:

  • University lecturer
  • Support worker
  • Social worker / Personal adviser
  • Doctor
  • Solicitor
  • University named contact for estranged students

Student Finance Northern Ireland will also accept:

  • Police Officer
  • Minister of Religion

If you know the student well enough then please feel free to complete the Confirmation of Estrangement form with them to avoid any delays in their student finance application being processed.

Our support