Most of the UK public back student loan forgiveness, grants or bursaries for young people training to work in the NHS, according to new polling.
A YouGov survey, commissioned by the University Alliance, found that 85% of respondents backed financial support for students training to enter professions such as nursing.
Support spanned the political spectrum, with 93% of Labour voters and 80% of Reform voters in favour.
The findings come amid renewed calls from the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) for a loan forgiveness scheme in England, under which student nurses’ debt would be gradually cleared in return for years of service in the NHS and other publicly funded healthcare settings.
A policy report published earlier this year by the union suggested that such a scheme would help keep nurses in the profession for up to a decade longer.
The YouGov poll also showed broader public appetite for supporting students with finances.
Nearly half of respondents (46%) ranked increased financial support – through lower tuition fees or greater living cost help – among their top three priorities for the higher education system.
Other popular measures included expanding alternative routes such as degree apprenticeships (38%) and designing courses with employers to meet skills needs (31%).
Meanwhile, 63% of respondents supported increasing living cost support for students from low-income backgrounds.
Support was strongest among Green voters (81%) and Labour voters (75%), but still a majority among Reform voters (53%).
The public’s understanding of the economic value of universities was also reflected in the polling.
Almost half of voters (48%) said the closure of a university in their local area would have a fairly big or very big impact on their local economy.
This sentiment was strongest in the North of England (56%), Wales (57%) and Scotland (55%), compared to just 36% in London. Just 12% said a university closure would have no impact at all.
The findings come as several universities across the UK have faced financial pressures that have threatened nurse education.
Cardiff University last year proposed axing all nursing courses to cut costs, before reversing the decision after protests from staff and students.
The University of Wolverhampton also announced plans to relocate all teaching from its Telford campus by next year, a move unions warn could disrupt nurse training in the Midlands.
Vanessa Wilson, chief executive of the University Alliance, said: “I’m pleased to see such significant public support for financial incentives for students studying to work in our public sector services like social services and the NHS.
“Our universities are a jewel in the UK’s crown, and I am pleased that families overwhelmingly recognise higher education as a powerful route for young people.
“Voters want university to be an opportunity for all. To make that happen, government must urgently work with the higher education sector to put it on a long-term sustainable financial footing.”
