More than 20,000 students have been told they must pay back university maintenance loans and grants after they were reportedly given them in error.
The students received letters from the Student Loans Company (SLC) or their university telling them that they had never been eligible for maintenance loans or childcare grants due to studying weekend courses.
One letter reportedly sent by the SLC told a student that their university had provided them with incorrect information, stating: “Unfortunately, they didn’t tell us you only attended on the weekend.”
It adds that any “over-payment” will have to be repaid, the BBC reports. It is also understood that payments to the affected students have been halted.
Courses at 15 universities and colleges including London Met, Bath Spa, Leeds Trinity, Southampton Solent and Oxford Brookes are affected, the broadcaster found.
Each of these had on-site teaching at the weekends, while some also had online sessions on weekdays. Students on these course had taken out maintenance loans for living costs, and also grants for childcare in some cases.
Around 22,000 students are understood to be affected by the issue.
Maintenance loans are paid to students to cover costs such as accommodation and food while they are studying. They are usually paid in instalments that align with the academic terms. Unlike tuition loans, which are paid directly to universities, maintenance loans are paid to students. Both add to the same overall debt pile of the student.
Delivering a comment through representative body Universities UK (UUK), some of the institutions said they were “extremely concerned” that the thousands of maintenance loan payments have been “abruptly blocked”.
They add that they are seeking clarification from the government, and that many are taking legal advice while focusing on supporting students. Not all of those involved are members of UUK.
The Department for Education has confirmed that the issue has arisen from these providers incorrectly registering the type of course that their students were on.
It adds that the weekend courses affected were often franchised, where universities subcontract courses to external providers. Last year, the government announced it was tightening rules around these arrangements, citing concerns around fraudulent activity.
National Union of Students (NUS) president Amira Campbell said: “This is a scandal. The government approved students for maintenance loans and childcare grants and now they’re withdrawing them half-way through the year and making those students pay them back.”
An NUS petition protesting the decision has been signed by almost 20,000 people.
Education secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “I have long been clear about our commitment to crack down on university franchising arrangements that do not deliver for their students and abuse the system. I will always prioritise protecting students and safeguarding taxpayers’ money.
“This is not students’ fault. Too many organisations have let their students down, through either incompetence or abuse of the system. Many of these organisations lack the necessary governance and oversight to properly implement clear guidance.
“Others have used this loophole as another opportunity to abuse public money. Either way, this is not the standard I expect from our world-class university sector.
“Universities must take immediate action to support students who will face financial difficulties as a result.”
A spokesperson for SLC said: “The Department for Education (DfE) wrote to a small number of higher education providers (HEPs) on the 23 March, as they had incorrectly categorised courses that are distance learning. DfE has urgently requested that these providers work with SLC to correctly categorise the courses to enable the reassessment of students’ entitlement in line with the Government’s student finance regulations.
The administrator added: “We fully appreciate the students will be concerned about this action, however SLC are required to ensure that public money is used to support student finance as set out in the student finance regulations. DfE has made clear to HEPs it is their responsibility to support the students and provide financial hardship support.”
The SLC says that affected students will be advised of their reassessed entitlement, which may in some cases result in an “affordable repayment plan”.
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