The Education (Student Support) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations provide for support for students taking designated higher education courses in respect of an academic year beginning on or after 1st September 2006.

These Regulations revoke the Education (Student Support) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2005, the Education (Student Support) (2005 Regulations) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2005 and the Education (Student Support) (2005 Regulations) (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006. Regulation 3 sets out saving and transitional provisions.

These Regulations are based on the Education (Student Support) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2005 (as amended) (the “2005 Regulations”) to which they make a number of amendments some of which are minor and drafting amendments. Changes of substance other than increases in rates of grants and loans are described below.

Two main categories of students are recognised under these Regulations, “new system students” and “old system students” (regulation 2). A new system student is a student starting a full-time designated course on or after 1st September 2006, subject to certain exceptions. An old system student is a student who is continuing on a course that he started before 1st September 2006, subject to certain exceptions, and a student starting a higher education course at an institution in the Republic of Ireland. The support available under these Regulations depends on whether a student is categorised as a new system student or an old system student.

Part 4 of these Regulations provides for fee support for eligible students taking designated full-time courses. New system students are eligible for a fee loan (regulation 11 and Chapter 2 of Part 4) and old system students are eligible for a grant for fees and fee contribution loan (regulation 12 and Chapters 3 and 4 of Part 4). Part 4 sets out the circumstances in which a new system student and an old system student qualify for fee support including new provisions as to the effect of having taken a previous higher education course on current entitlement.

Part 5 of these Regulations provides for grants for living and other costs for eligible students taking designated full-time courses. A maintenance grant is available in accordance with regulation 49 to new system students. A special support grant is available in accordance with regulation 51 to new system students who are or may be eligible for certain types of social security benefits. A new system student who qualifies for a special support grant does not qualify for a maintenance grant.

Part 6 of these Regulations provides for loans for living costs for eligible students taking designated full-time courses. The age limit for qualifying for a loan for living costs is raised to 60. Part 6 and regulation 77 in Part 8 set out the circumstances in which the amount of loan for living costs available to a new system student is reduced because of the amount of maintenance grant that is payable.

Part 9 of these Regulations deals with payment of support in connection with a full-time designated course and recovery of overpayments. Under regulation 81, the Department may request information from an applicant that is needed to assist with the recovery of a loan and may withhold payment of the loan until that information is supplied. Under regulation 82, an institution is required to send the Department an attendance confirmation in respect of an eligible student. The Department may not make a payment of a grant for living and other costs or a loan for living costs without having received the confirmation, subject to certain exceptions. Regulation 83 makes new provision for the recovery of overpayments of grants for living and other costs when the eligible student withdraws from the course after support has been paid.

These Regulations make disabled students who are undertaking a designated full-time course but who are unable to attend for a reason relating to their disability eligible for fee support, the loan for living costs, the grant for dependants and the higher education bursary or the maintenance grant or special support grant.

Part 10 of these Regulations provides for support for designated part-time courses. Under a new regulation (regulation 91), the Department may make fee support available to eligible part-time students who attend a designated part-time course in England, Wales or Scotland. Regulation 93 introduces a new procedure for applying for support for part-time courses which requires the institution providing the course to provide a declaration to accompany a student’s application for support which provides details about the course and confirms that the student has undertaken at least two weeks of the course or has enrolled to undertake the course. Regulation 98 provides that, subject to certain exceptions, the Department must not pay support for part-time courses (other than fee support) until it has received the declaration. Regulation 100 makes new provision for the recovery of overpayments of grants (other than fee grants) when the student withdraws from the course after support has been paid.

Part 11 of these Regulations provides for a grant to help disabled postgraduate students with the additional expenditure that they incur as a result of their disability. Regulation 109 makes new provision for the recovery of overpayments of the grant when the student withdraws from the course after support has been paid.

These regulations implement the provisions of Directive 2004/38/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29th April 2004 (OJ L158, 30.04.2004, p77-123) on the rights of citizens of the Union and their family members to move and reside freely in the territory of the member states so far as the Directive relates to student support. Certain categories of person who were not formerly eligible for student support will be eligible as a result of the Directive. To qualify for support under these Regulations, a student must fall within one of the categories set out in Part 2 of Schedule 1. Schedule 1 has been amended to include the categories of person who are eligible for student support as a result of the Directive. Consequential changes have been made in regulations 13, 14, 37, 65, 85 and 101. A copy of the Transposition Note in relation to the implementation of the Directive so far as it relates to student support is available from the Department for Education and Skills, Sanctuary Buildings, Great Smith Street, London, SW1P 3BT or on the website of the Office of Public Sector Information at www.opsi.gov.uk.

Schedule 4 sets out the method for calculating the household income of a student taking a designated full-time course. A contribution from the student is calculated on the basis of the household income. The contribution is applied to reduce some types of support available to the student. A new provision has been added which deals with the calculation of a new system student’s contribution (paragraph 9). If an eligible student is deemed to be independent, the income of his parents is not taken into account in calculating his household income. A new ground on which an eligible student is deemed to be independent is added in paragraph 2 of Schedule 4. An eligible student is now independent if he has the care of a child on the first day of the academic year. Schedule 4 also sets out how the contribution from a student is calculated if more than one person from his household is applying for support. Paragraph 10 of Schedule 4 has been amended to cover the calculation of the contribution where one student in the household is an old system student and one is a new system student.

Regulation 61 and Schedule 5 introduce a new form of support namely a loan in respect of the college fees payable by a qualifying student to a college or permanent hall of the University of Oxford or to a college of the University of Cambridge in connection with his attendance on a qualifying course.