A new £50 million
fund to support mature students with learning difficulties or
disabilities, parents who need help with childcare, and
ex-military personnel has been announced by Business Secretary
Vince Cable and Skills Minister John Hayes today.
The bursary scheme will support mature students to get the skills
and qualifications they need in further education, by helping to
meet costs such as childcare, travel, books and equipment.
The fund is one element of a package of support for people
who take out 24+ Advanced Learning Loans from next year.
The package of support also includes:
Allowing those taking Access to Higher Education Diploma courses
to apply to the Student Loans Company to write off any outstanding
24+ Advanced Learning Loan on completion of their HE
course.Additional information, advice and guidance for adults who
are unsure about taking out a loan, provided by the National
Careers Service including a targeted face to face session with a
careers adviser for older adults.
Business Secretary Vince Cable said:
“I strongly believe in the importance of adult learning. We
recognise that some people face financial barriers which is why we
are introducing this fund and extra support.
"There are many people who discover an appetite and
aptitude for study later on in life and want to pursue a
university degree. These measures will support access to HE
students who will not incur the cost of two loans to achieve a degree."
Skills Minister John Hayes said:
“Learning should drive social purpose and serve the common
good. Through gaining and using skills, individuals obtain a
stronger sense of pride in their own achievements. People with
such esteem nourish a healthy society.
“That is why I am determined that further education and the
benefits it engenders, should be available for all, not the
privileged few.
“Investing in the substantial package of measures announced
today is evidence of the Government’s commitment to ensuring
everyone, no matter what their age or background, can pursue their
chosen path in life.”
24+ Advanced Learning Loans will be introduced for students
starting in September 2013 and will operate on the same basis as
Higher Education student loans, with repayment starting after the
course is finished and the individual is earning above £21,000.
Regulations which allow these loans to be introduced will be laid
in Parliament today.
Notes to editors:
From September next year, people over the age of 24 who are
studying at Level 3 or higher, including Advanced and Higher
Apprenticeships, will be able to take out a 24+ Advanced Learning
Loan to cover the cost of their course fee. The loans will be
better than anything on the high street and will have low real
rates of interest and any outstanding loan amounts will be written
off after 30 years. They will replace Government grants for this
group who represent around 10 per cent of learners. Younger
learners, those seeking to gain basic qualifications at Levels 1
and 2, and those on out of work benefits will continue to be
funded by grants.
The budget for 24+ Advanced Learning Loans is £129 million in
2013-14 and £398 million in 2014-15. The loans are expected to
help 82,000 adults in 2013-14 and 204,000 adults in 2014-15 access
learning.
Research published by the Department for Business, Innovation
and Skills in May shows that 74 per cent of people surveyed say
they might, probably would or definitely would undertake learning
following the introduction of loans. It also shows that when the
terms and conditions of the loans were explained, they became even
more positive. More information can be found on the BIS website
http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/biscore/further-education-skills/docs/a/12-795-attitudes-to-further-education-loans.pdf
The £50 million bursary fund is spread over two years (2013-14
and 2014-15). The profile across the two years will be confirmed
in due course. It comprises £20 million which has yet to be
allocated to colleges and training organisations, plus a
reprioritisation of £30 million of current budgets for learner
support. The level of the bursary fund will be kept under review
so that the right level of support is provided. The method of
allocating the fund to colleges and training organisations will be
confirmed in due course. Colleges and training organisations will
have freedom to disburse the fund, but the Government will set an
expectation about the vulnerable groups that could be supported
(eg. learners with learning difficulties and disabilities).
Access to Higher Education Diploma courses are designed to help
people with low skills move quickly to a Higher Education
programme. In 2010/11, 23,000 people aged 24 and above took Access
courses. The projected cost of writing off 24+ Advanced Learning
Loans for these courses, for learners who subsequently complete a
programme of HE, is being accommodated within the BIS budget. The
Student Loans Company will process applications from learners to
have the loan for their Access course written off on receipt of
their HE qualification.
People progress from FE to HE in a variety of different ways,
including by gaining A-levels. However, Access to HE Diploma
courses do not have the same value in the labour market as
A-levels without the subsequent HE programme. This is why the
Government is providing targeted support to those taking Access
courses.
Every Access course is validated by an Access Validating Agency
(AVA). AVAs are the organisations which develop, approve and
monitor Access to HE courses. AVAs do not themselves provide
Access to HE courses to students – colleges and other educational
providers do this on the AVA's behalf. AVAs are licensed
by the Quality Assurance Agency to act as the awarding bodies for
Access to HE. AVAs award Access to HE certificates to students who
successfully complete the course requirements.
Regulations are being laid today to allow 24+ Advanced Learning
Loans to be introduced. The regulations are made under the same
powers as the Education (Student Support) Regulations, which
underpin the HE student support system. As the regulations are
laid under the negative resolution procedure, they will not come
into force until more than 21 calendar days have passed and there
are 40 days for Parliament to consider the regulations.
The National Careers Service was launched in April this year and
combines highly-trained advisers with an interactive website. It
offers independent, impartial information and advice on learning
and work and access to a wide range of information about careers
and the job market.
The Government's economic policy objective is to
achieve 'strong, sustainable and balanced growth that is
more evenly shared across the country and between
industries.' It set four ambitions in the ‘Plan for
Growth’ (PDF 1.7MB), published at Budget 2011: To create the most
competitive tax system in the G20To make the UK the best place in
Europe to start, finance and grow a businessTo encourage
investment and exports as a route to a more balanced economyTo
create a more educated workforce that is the most flexible in
Europe.
Work is underway across Government to achieve these ambitions,
including progress on more than 250 measures as part of the Growth
Review. Developing an Industrial Strategy gives new impetus to
this work by providing businesses, investors and the public with
more clarity about the long-term direction in which the Government
wants the economy to travel.
BIS's online newsroom contains the latest press notices
and speeches, as well as video and images for download. It also
features an up to date list of BIS press office contacts. See
http://www.bis.gov.uk/newsroom for more information.
Contacts:
BIS Press Office
bispress.releases@bis.gsi.gov.uk
Victoria Heath
Phone: 020 7215 5950
victoria.heath@bis.gsi.gov.uk