The Education (Mandatory Awards) Regulations 1993

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations, which come into force on 1st September 1993, supersede the Education (Mandatory Awards) Regulations 1992.

Provisions in these Regulations which differ from the corresponding provisions of the 1992 Regulations (except as a result of minor drafting or consequential changes) are indicated by the use of heavy type. Omissions are indicated by the use of dots. The changes of substance made by these Regulations other than the changes in the rates of grant and allowances are described below.

The provisions relating to European students have been amended, so that they now are entitled to a fees only award from the authority in whose area the institution is situated (regulation 7).

The provisions for determining where “no area students” are treated as being ordinarily resident have been amended to provide for students referred to in regulation 5(4) (regulation 9).

All references to terms have been removed; an application for a mandatory award must now reach the authority not later than four months after the date of the beginning of the course (regulation 11), an authority shall not now be under a duty to bestow an award on a person in respect of his attendance at a course when he has attended another course for a period longer than 20 weeks (regulation 12), fees shall now be paid in three or four instalments after specified dates (regulation 24 and Schedule 1), and attendance at an overseas institution for at least eight weeks now increases a student’s maintenance requirement (Schedule 2).

Provision has been made to allow European students who have been ordinarily resident in the British Islands for only part of the three years preceding the first year of the course to obtain a fees only award, and to prevent students who have been ordinarily resident in the British Islands throughout those three years from receiving a fees only award as European students when they are not entitled to a full award from the authority in the British Islands in whose area they are ordinarily resident (regulations 2 and 13).

Provision has been made for transferring an award when a student who has commenced a course leading to a first degree transfers to a course leading to an honours degree in the same subjects (regulation 14).

The provision relating to assisted students has been amended so that fees payable to privately funded institutions which exceed certain limits may be taken into account in determining whether the level of assistance a student receives is sufficient to disentitle him to a mandatory award (regulation 23).

The provisions on payment have been amended so that specific deadlines for the payment of fees now apply only to courses beginning in the autumn, and so that payment of maintenance grants to students who have disabilities may on their written instruction be made to third parties (regulation 24).

Provision has been made to prevent the payment of validation fees charged by degree awarding institutions in relation to courses given by publicly funded institutions, as institutions now receive grants in respect of these fees (Schedule 1).

The provisions on sandwich courses have been amended: in certain cases periods of unpaid service outside the United Kingdom can be taken into account as periods of experience, as can periods of residence in a country whose language is a language of the course if the study of modern languages does not occupy half of the time spent studying (Schedule 5).