Students heading home for the summer holidays could claim back nearly £40 for the unused months on their television licence.

If you paid for an annual colour permit — to watch TV at halls or other student accommodation — and have three months you don't need, you could be entitled to £36.37 back.

A colour licence currently costs £145.50.

The TV Licensing company says students are only entitled to a refund if there are three full calendar months left, as you can only get refunds in quarter-years.

You've got until the end of this month to apply for a refund if you bought your licence in September, or until the end of June if you purchased a licence in October, and so on.

To apply for a refund visit the TV Licensing website to complete an online form, or call it on 0300 790 6090.

Glen Morris, of TV Licensing, says: "As well as reminding students they need to be licensed to watch or record programmes as they are shown on TV, we also want to remind them to take advantage of the refund before they move back home for the summer."