The Education (Student Support) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2009

Miscellaneous

14.—(1) Where paragraph (2) applies, an eligible student is not prevented from qualifying for fee support under this Part because—

(a) the student has an honours degree from an institution in the United Kingdom or the student has an honours degree from an institution in the Republic of Ireland for which he received financial support under previous regulations, where the student began the current course before 1st September 2009; or

(b) the current course leads to an equivalent or lower qualification, where the student begins the course on or after 1st September 2009.

(2) This paragraph applies where—

(a) the current course is a course for the initial training of teachers;

(b) the duration of the current course does not exceed two years (the duration of a part-time course being expressed as its full-time equivalent); and

(c) the student is not a qualified teacher.

(3) Where paragraph (4) applies, an eligible student is not prevented from qualifying for fee support under this Part because the current course leads to an equivalent or lower qualification, where the student begins the current course on or after 1st September 2009.

(4) This paragraph applies where the student’s status as an eligible student has been transferred to the current course pursuant to regulation 8 from a designated course which began before 1st September 2009.

(5) Where the current course is considered to be a single course because of regulation 6(7) and (8) and it leads to a honours degree from an institution in the United Kingdom or relevant institution of higher education in the Republic of Ireland being conferred on the eligible student before the final degree or equivalent qualification, the eligible student is not prevented from qualifying for fee support under this Part in respect of any part of the single course by virtue of having that honours degree.

(6) For the purposes of calculating the amount of fee support, an institution that provides courses designated by regulation 4 of the Education (Student Support) (Dance and Drama) Regulations 1999(1) 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(2).

(7) Where an institution allows an eligible student to study the content of one standard academic year of the designated course over two or more academic years, for the purpose of determining whether the student qualifies for fee support for those years, the last of such years of study is to be treated as a standard academic year and the preceding years of that kind are to be treated as years of repeat study other than for compelling personal reasons.

(1)

S.I. 1999/2263, amended by S.I. 2001/2893

(2)

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