Having been a legal resident of the UK for more than nine years after arriving at the age of ten, Arkam Babar discovered he was not eligible for student finance. Born in Pakistan, Arkam moved with his parents to the UK, who hoped to find financial security and educational opportunities for their children.
Sharon Akaka, now 19 having moved from Nigeria, found herself in a similar situation when applying for university. Arriving in the UK at the age of eight with her family, joining her father who already lived here, Sharon saw education as a vital distraction from the complex and lengthy immigration process her parents were facing.
With dreams of becoming a lawyer and after securing a place at King’s, Sharon was faced with huge financial pressures to fund herself through university. Discussing her frustrations over the barriers she faced, Sharon said: ‘I had seen myself to be British. I had British culture, British values. It made me realise that I am not British and I am going to be limited,’ she said.
Both Sharon and Arkam considered other possibilities: Sharon looked at expensive personal loans and Arkam had to turn down a place at another university whilst he sought financial support. Campaigning with charity Just for Kids Law as part of the Lets Us Learn youth-movement, they both lobbied for changes in law.
‘I searched for different options relentlessly as education means a great deal to me’, Arkam explained.