Welcome to the jmsYOU mini-series of LJMU’s 1823 podcast. 

We aim to focus on YOU as students and we want this to be a space where you can share your personal stories and experiences. Meet Lois, your student host for jmsYOU. She will be uncovering the stories and experiences of other students to discuss wider topics of conversation that may encourage, help and inspire listeners who may be going through similar journeys.

To kickstart our mini-series, we talk about the impact of the cost of living crisis on students, as a result of funding and money struggles which quite often lead to mental health problems. For students, this is becoming not just a cost of living crisis, but a cost of learning crisis, where students are having to make a choice between studying and eating. Only last month it was reported that 11% of UK students are turning to food banks, which is a huge increase from the 5% in January 2022.

You will hear the story of our guest speaker, Amber, as she explains how she struggled with her finances during her first year at university. She shares her experience and advice after getting herself out of her financial situation with the help of LJMU’s Student Support Fund. You will also hear from James, a member of LJMU’s Student Advice and Wellbeing services, as he sheds light on the support on offer to students today.

To find help, support or advice you can contact our advice team at jmsuadvice@ljmu.ac.uk or book an appointment online via the JMSU website. You can contact Student Advice and Wellbeing at studentwellbeing@ljmu.ac.uk, or reach out to their student funding and money advice team at moneyadvice@ljmu.ac.uk