Pilots don't need degrees. A degree in the UK is a 3 year plan which will need to be paid for in addition to flight training.
My 3 year plan (from scratch) would be:
1 Get a ground based airline job. Ideally in the office, close to HR and flight ops for obvious reasons.
2 Get a weekend job, preferably something which gives time to study.
3 Live with parents or as cheaply as possible.
4 Build 3 years of good credit
5 Use holiday to get PPL in year 1, CBIR in year 2 and borrow 20k unsecured for ME+CPL in year 3
I would now have a fATPL, a work ethic, minimal debt of ~£300pm and an airline job with, at best, access to the people who hire pilots and at the very least an airline name on my CV.