University students are turning to sugar daddies. Picture posed by models

by Jess Banham

Students in Kent struggling to meet mounting university costs are turning to rich men in a bid to help them pay off their debts.

The University of Kent comes second in a list of female students registered with "sugar daddy" dating website Seeking Arrangement.

A total of 57 girls have signed up in search of wealthy men on the site, second only to Nottingham University with 61 girls listed.

An ex-University of Kent student, who declined to be named, said she left university with a debt of £32,000 last year and was encouraged to try the SeekingArrangement internet site by a friend.

The 22-year-old, who left with a degree in film studies, said: "I was up to my eyes in debt and had no chance of paying any of it back in the short term.

"A friend from college had joined one of these sites and encouraged me to give it a go because she knew that I had always been attracted to older men. I was extremely reluctant at first."

The student went on six dates before finding the right "sugar daddy" to date.

She admits sleeping with her final choice and enjoying a champagne lifestyle with him and being paid £2,500 a month.

She said: "We saw each other for six months while I acquired the skills which enabled me to get a full-time job.

"In the end, it fizzled out and we split up amicably but I have no regrets about going on the site."

Colum McGuire, vice president of welfare at the University of Kent’s Student Union, said he was not surprised.

Mr McGuire, pictured above, said: "Student support hasn't risen in the last five years, despite rising costs.

"So when you’re looking at rising living costs, be that accommodation or bills or day-to-day-living, those things are all increasing, so students are really struggling.

"We see female students going into areas such as escorting, prostitution or lap-dancing in order to use their sexuality to make money, which is really sad.

"Students are having to go to those means just to get through their education - and that’s not OK."

In September, new tuition fees will come into force meaning students could face debts of almost £30,000.

Recent figures show there are still more than a million 16 to 24-year-olds struggling to find a job in the UK.

SeekingArrangement.com bills itself as a matchmaking service for older, wealthy "benefactors" and "attractive guys and girls" and is aimed at anyone who is seeking a "mutually beneficial relationship".