This document discusses the high costs of textbooks and their negative impact on students. It notes that the average UK student spends around £1000 on books during their studies, and that 7 in 10 students have delayed or not purchased a required textbook due to cost. Not having access to textbooks can hurt students' academic performance and cause them to earn poor grades, drop or fail courses. The document advocates for open textbooks, which are published under open licenses allowing free copying and sharing, as a way to reduce costs and improve access and affordability for students.