“When the weather turns cold, many students with tight budgets face a difficult financial choice,” says Student Finance Manager Paige Jarman.

“Should they pay expensive power bills and risk going broke, or stay financially afloat by living in cold, uncomfortable housing?”

For the second year in a row, Te Herenga Waka’s Student Finance team, in collaboration with Procurement and the Development and Alumni Relations Office, ensured students didn’t have to choose.

The recent Winter Hardship Campaign attracted donations to provide students with Winter Energy Grants to pay off their power bills. Alumni, University staff, and corporate sponsors came together to raise $40,960, and with a boost from existing Student Hardship funds, the communal effort supported nearly 900 students during the expensive winter months.

Applications to ‘warm your whare’ with a grant were open to students between 29 July and 9 August. Students were encouraged to apply as a flat, and each household received between $100-$300 in grant money depending on how many Victoria University students lived together.

Paige says the campaign has made a tangible difference in the lives of students.

“This initiative was born out of a desire to reach a high number of students with a low-barrier way to support them through the cost-of-living crisis.

“This year, we’ve heard from many students who reduce their grocery shop in order to afford power, or who only heat their home during the free power hour. Having more financial freedom makes a huge difference in their wellbeing and their ability to focus on their studies.”

Heat for your health

Support for the Winter Hardship Campaign kicked off in June with a promise of $18,700 in matching funds from corporate sponsors PB Tech, Kwikill Environmental Services, Setpoint Solutions, Fleetwise, Blue Star, ANZ, DXC Technology, and Aquaheat.

This special fundraising opportunity meant that every dollar raised by the public up to the pledged amount would be matched—doubling the philanthropic reach of each donation.

“Alumni and University staff quickly rose to the challenge, and within a few short weeks the total donations exceeded the matching goal by several thousand dollars,” says Paige.

“This outpouring of support meant that nearly twice as many students benefitted from the Winter Energy Grants this year compared to last year.”

While the chilly housing in Wellington is no secret, statistics from the 2018 General Social Survey highlight just how difficult it can be for students to find a healthy home:

• 48.6% of renters reported their homes were always or sometimes damp, compared to 26.6% of homeowners
• 47.4% of renters reported their home has mould, compared to 29.7% of homeowners
• 32% of renters reported they could see their breath inside, compared to 13% of homeowners

“Cold housing is also linked to a myriad of physical and mental health challenges, and many students reported getting sick more frequently when they couldn’t afford to run their heaters,” Paige explains.

In the application process, students were given space to describe their current living situation and financial stressors. One student offered detailed insight into the struggle of their household to make ends meet.

“We are all full-time students who struggle from week to week to afford basic necessities such as food and to heat our home. We live behind a cliff which means we get zero sunlight throughout the day and our home grows black mould in all of our rooms.

"Three out of the five of us are unemployed and due to the lack of jobs around Wellington, even with constant applying, we have no luck finding work. Each of us gets $300 a week for student loan living costs, but after our steep rent of $260 each per week, that leaves $40 for food and power.

"This grant would help us immensely as it would mean we can dry our clothes (it is taking 3-4 days to dry our clothes on racks throughout our living room), heat and dry out our home, and have more money for food.”

Low barrier, high reward

The Winter Hardship Campaign is a great example of what can be accomplished when a wide range of stakeholders come together to support our student community. While $100 may not seem like much, these grants have made a huge difference to students juggling the fiscal pressure that comes with flatting in an expensive city.

If you’d like to support similar student-focused fundraising campaigns, check out the Student Hardship Fund for more info.

Thank you again to these corporate donors for pledging matching funds: