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

Prospective

PART 2 N.I. ELIGIBILITY

Eligible students N.I.

4.—(1) An eligible student qualifies for support in connection with a designated course subject to and in accordance with these Regulations.

(2) Subject to paragraph (3), a person is an eligible student in connection with a designated course if the Department has determined in connection with that course that the person falls within one of the categories set out in Part 2 of Schedule 1.

(3) A person is not an eligible student if—

(a) an old award has been made to him in respect of his attendance on the course;

(b) he is eligible for a loan in relation to an academic year of the course under the Education (Student Loans) (Northern Ireland) Order 1990 or the Education (Student Loans) Act 1990;

(c) there has been made to him or paid to him in connection with the course—

(i) subject to sub-paragraph (g), a bursary or award of similar description under Article 44 of the Health and Personal Social Services (Northern Ireland) Order 1972(1), (other than a bursary paid in respect of attendance on a degree in social work course at an educational institution in Northern Ireland, which the student commenced to attend on or after 1st September 2004), or section 63 of the Health Services and Public Health Act 1968(2) the amount of which is not calculated by reference to his income; or

(ii) any allowance under the Nursing and Midwifery Student Allowances (Scotland) Regulations 1992(3);

(d) he is in breach of any obligation to repay any loan;

(e) he has reached the age of 18 and has not ratified any agreement for a loan made with him when he was under the age of 18;

(f) he has, in the opinion of the Department, shown himself by his conduct to be unfitted to receive support; or

(g) he is, on or after 1st September 2005, commencing a course for a degree in social work at an educational institution in Northern Ireland as a Regional Social Work Degree Trainee under arrangements made by the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety under Article 44 of the Health and Personal Social Services (Northern Ireland) Order 1972.

(4) For the purposes of paragraphs (3)(d) and (3)(e), “loan” means a loan made under the student loans legislation.

(5) In a case where the agreement for a loan is subject to the law of Scotland, paragraph (3)(e) only applies if the agreement was made—

(a) before 25th September 1991; and

(b) with the concurrence of the borrower’s curator or at a time when he had no curator.

(6) An eligible student in respect of whom the first academic year of the specified designated course begins on or after 1st September 2000 may not, at any one time, qualify for support for—

(a) more than one designated course;

(b) a designated course and a designated part-time course;

(c) a designated course and a designated postgraduate course.

(7) Despite paragraphs (2) and (3), a person is an eligible student for the purposes of these Regulations if he satisfies the conditions in paragraph (8), (9) or (10).

(8) The conditions are—

(a) the person qualified as an eligible student in connection with an earlier academic year of the current course pursuant to regulations made by the Department under Article 3 of the Order; and

(b) the person’s status as an eligible student has not terminated.

(9) The conditions are—

(a) the current course is an end-on course (other than one of the kind referred to in paragraph (c) of the definition of “end-on course” in regulation 2) that the person begins on or after 1st September 2006;

(b) the person qualified as an eligible student in connection with the course in relation to which the current course is an end-on course; and

(c) the period of eligibility in respect of the course referred to in sub-paragraph (b) only ceased on the grounds that the student had completed the course.

(10) The conditions are—

(a) the Department has previously determined that the person is—

(i) an eligible part-time student in connection with a designated part-time course; or

(ii) an eligible student in connection with a designated course other than the current course;

(b) the person’s status as an eligible part-time student or as an eligible student in connection with the course referred to in sub-paragraph (a) has been converted or transferred from that course to the current course as a result of one or more conversions or transfers in accordance with regulations made by the Department under Article 3 of the Order; and

(c) the person’s status as an eligible student has not terminated.

Commencement Information

I1 Reg. 4 in operation at 1.9.2006, see reg. 1

Designated courses N.I.

5.—(1) Subject to paragraph (2), a course is a designated course for the purposes of Article 3(1) of the Order and regulation 4 if it is—

(a) mentioned in Schedule 2;

(b) one of the following—

(i) a full-time course;

(ii) a sandwich course; or

(iii) a part-time course for the initial training of teachers;

(c) of at least one academic year’s duration; and

(d) wholly provided by a publicly-funded educational institution or institutions in the United Kingdom or by a relevant institution of higher education in the Republic of Ireland which (in either case) are maintained or assisted by recurrent grants out of public funds or provided by such institution or institutions in conjunction with an institution or institutions outside the United Kingdom.

(2) A course that is taken as part of an employment-based teacher training scheme is not a designated course.

(3) For the purposes of paragraph (1)—

(a) a course is provided by an institution if it provides the teaching and supervision which comprise the course, whether or not the institution has entered into an agreement with the student to provide the course;

(b) a university and any constituent college or institution in the nature of a college of a university is to be regarded as publicly funded if either the university or the constituent college or institution is publicly funded; and

(c) an institution is not to be regarded as publicly funded by reason only that it receives public funds from the governing body of a higher education institution in accordance with section 65(3A) of the Further and Higher Education Act 1992(4).

(4) A course to which this paragraph applies is considered to be a single course for a first degree or for an equivalent qualification even though—

(a) the course may lead to another degree or qualification being conferred before the degree or equivalent qualification; and

(b) part of the course may be optional.

(5) Paragraph (4) applies to a course the standard of which is not higher than a first degree which leads to a qualification as a medical doctor, dentist, veterinary doctor, architect, landscape architect, landscape designer, landscape manager, town planner or town and country planner.

(6) For the purposes of Article 3 of the Order and regulation 4(1) the Department may designate courses of higher education which are not designated under paragraph (1).

Commencement Information

I2 Reg. 5 in operation at 1.9.2006, see reg. 1

Period of eligibility N.I.

6.—(1) An eligible student retains his status as an eligible student in connection with a designated course until the status terminates in accordance with this regulation.

(2) The period for which an eligible student retains the status is the “period of eligibility”.

(3) Subject to the following paragraphs, the period of eligibility terminates at the end of the academic year in which the student completes the designated course.

(4) The period of eligibility terminates when the eligible student—

(a) withdraws from his designated course in circumstances where the Department has not transferred or converted or will not transfer or convert his status as an eligible student under regulation 7 or regulation 97; or

(b) abandons or is expelled from his designated course.

(5) The Department may terminate the period of eligibility where the eligible student has shown himself by his conduct to be unfitted to receive support.

(6) If the Department is satisfied that an eligible student has failed to comply with any requirement to provide information under these Regulations or has provided information which is inaccurate in a material particular, the Department may take such of the following actions as it considers appropriate in the circumstances—

(a) terminate the period of eligibility;

(b) determine that the student no longer qualifies for any particular support or particular amount of support;

(c) treat any support paid to the student as an overpayment which may be recovered under regulation 84.

(7) Where the period of eligibility terminates before the end of the academic year in which the student completes the designated course, the Department may, at any time, renew the period of eligibility for such period as it determines.

Commencement Information

I3 Reg. 6 in operation at 1.9.2006, see reg. 1

Transfer of status N.I.

7.—(1) Where an eligible student transfers to another course, the Department must transfer the student’s status as an eligible student to that course where—

(a) it receives a request from the eligible student to do so;

(b) it is satisfied that one or more of the grounds for transfer in paragraph (2) applies; and

(c) the period of eligibility has not terminated.

(2) The grounds for transfer are—

(a) on the recommendation of the academic authority the eligible student begins to attend another designated course at the institution;

(b) the eligible student begins to attend a designated course at another institution;

(c) after commencing a course for the Certificate in Education, the eligible student is, on or before the completion of that course, admitted to a designated course for the degree of Bachelor of Education either at the same institution or at another institution;

(d) after commencing a course for the degree (other than an honours degree) of Bachelor of Education, the eligible student is, on or before the completion of that course, admitted to a designated course for the honours degree of Bachelor of Education either at the same institution or at another institution; or

(e) after commencing a course for a first degree (other than an honours degree) the eligible student is, before the completion of that course, admitted to a designated course for an honours degree in the same subject or subjects at the institution.

(3) Subject to paragraph (4), an eligible student who transfers under paragraph (1) shall receive in connection with the academic year of the course to which he transfers the remainder of the support assessed by the Department in respect of the academic year of the course from which he transfers.

(4) The Department may re-assess the amount of support payable after the transfer.

(5) An eligible student who transfers under paragraph (1) after the Department has assessed his support in connection with the academic year of the course from which he is transferring but before he completes that year may not, in connection with the academic year of the course to which he transfers, apply for another grant or loan of a kind that he has already applied for under these Regulations in connection with the academic year of the course from which he is transferring unless otherwise provided.

Commencement Information

I4 Reg. 7 in operation at 1.9.2006, see reg. 1

(1)

S.I. 1972/1265 (N.I. 14)

(2)

1968 c. 46; section 63 was amended by the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1972 (c. 58), Schedule 7, the National Health Service Reorganisation Act 1973 (c. 32), Schedules 4 and 5, the National Health Service Act 1977 (c. 49), Schedule 15, the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978 (c. 29), Schedules 16 and 17, the Local Government Act 1985 (c. 51), Schedule 17, the Health and Medicines Act 1988 (c. 49), section 20, section 25(2) and Schedule 3, the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1994 (c. 39), Schedule 13, the Health Authorities Act 1995 (c. 17), Schedule 1, the Local Government Reorganisation (Wales) (Consequential Amendments No. 2) Order 1996 (S.I. 1996/1008), the National Health Service (Primary Care) Act 1997 (c. 46), Schedule 2, the Health Act 1999 (c. 8), Schedule 4, the Health and Social Care Act 2001 (c. 15, Schedule 5, the National Health Service Reform and Social Care Professions Act 2002 (c. 17), Schedules 2, 5 and 9, the National Health Service Reform and Health Care Professions Act 2002 (Supplementary, Consequential etc Provisions) Regulations 2002 (S.I. 2002/2469), Schedule 1, the Health and Social Care (Community Health and Standards) Act 2003 (c. 43), Schedules 4, 11 and 14, the Health and Social Care (Community Health and Standards) Act 2003 Commencement (No. 2) Order 2004 (S.I. 2004/288), article 7, the Health and Social Care (Community Health and Standards) Act 2003 (Commencement No. 1 ) (Wales) Order 2004 (S.I. 2004/480), article 6 and the Primary Medical Services (Scotland) Act 2004 (Consequential Modifications) Order 2004 (S.I. 2004/957), the Schedule

(3)

S.I. 1992/580, amended by S.S.I. 2002/423 and S.S.I. 2003/401

(4)

1992 c. 13; section 65(3A) was inserted by the Teaching and Higher Education Act 1998 (c. 30), section 27