An increase in the number of students at top universities using mental health services is due to the raise in tuition fees to £9,000, campaigners have said, adding that financial stress is heavily linked to depression.

 

More than 43,000 students had counselling at Russell Group institutions in the academic year 2014-15, according to figures obtained under the Freedom of Information Act, compared to 34,000 only three years earlier.

 

Stephen Buckley, from Mind, said tuition fee and student loan debt were major contributors to the rise in students seeking mental health help. He said: “Today’s students face an unprecedented financial burden with student loan and tuition fee debt higher than ever before.

 

“On the other side of this is the financial stress and uncertainty around employment on graduation,” Buckley said, adding: “Both of these are major contributors to mental health problems like anxiety and depression.”

 

The National Union of Students (NUS) urged universities to take the latest findings seriously. Shelly Asquith, NUS vice-president for welfare, said in a statement: “The evidence is clear. The marketisation of education is having a huge impact on students’ mental health.

 

“The value of education has moved away from societal value to ‘value for money’ and the emphasis on students competing against each other is causing isolation, stress and anxiety,.”

 

More than 6,000 students were reported to have anxiety, but many universities were unable to provide a breakdown of the problems presented at counselling sessions.

 

Yet the number of students experiencing mental health issues may be much higher than those reported to be receiving counselling. Almost eight out of 10 students said they had experienced mental health issues in the last year, according to a survey by the NUS last winter.