The Higher Education (Northern Ireland) Order 2005

Power of Department to impose conditions as to student fees, etc. N.I.

4.—(1) The power of the Department to impose conditions under—

(a) paragraph (2) of Article 66 of the 1986 Order (training of teachers),

(b) paragraph (1) of Article 30 of the 1993 Order (higher education), or

(c) paragraph (3) of Article 5 of the Further Education (Northern Ireland) Order 1997 (NI 15) (further education),

in relation to any grant made to the governing body of an institution includes power to impose a condition under this Article.

(2) A condition under this Article requires the governing body of the institution—

(a) to secure that, in respect of any qualifying course, the qualifying fees in respect of any academic year which begins during the grant period at a time when an approved plan is in force in relation to the institution do not exceed such limit, not exceeding the higher amount, as is provided by the plan for that course and that academic year,

(b) to secure that, in respect of any qualifying course, the qualifying fees in respect of any academic year which begins during the grant period at a time when no approved plan is in force in relation to the institution do not exceed the basic amount, and

(c) to comply with the general provisions of any approved plan that is in force in relation to the institution during any part of the grant period during which it is in force.

(3) For the purposes of paragraph (2)—

(a) an academic year which begins at the same time as the grant period is to be taken to begin during the grant period, and

(b) an academic year which begins with the day on which an approved plan comes into force is to be taken to begin at a time when the plan is in force.

(4) A condition under this Article may provide in the event of a failure by the governing body to comply with the requirement specified in paragraph (2) for the imposition by the Department on the governing body of financial requirements in accordance with principles specified in the condition under this Article.

(5) Any financial requirements imposed by virtue of paragraph (4) must relate to one or more of the following—

(a) the repayment, with or without interest, of the whole or any part of any sums received by the governing body in respect of the grant in question,

(b) the withdrawal or reduction of any amount that has been awarded but not yet paid in respect of the grant in question, or

(c) the refusal to award (or to award to the extent expected) any other grant under paragraph (2) of Article 66 of the 1986 Order, paragraph (1) of Article 30 of the 1993 Order or (as the case may be) Article 5 of the Further Education (Northern Ireland) Order 1997 (NI 5) in respect of the grant period or any subsequent period.

(6) Where—

(a) a condition is imposed under this Article in connection with any grant made to the governing body of an institution, and

(b) that grant is to any extent made in respect of persons undertaking a course which is provided in whole or part by any other institution,

then, for the purposes of this Article, fees payable by such persons to the other institution are to be regarded as fees payable by them to the first-mentioned institution.

(7) No condition under this Article applies in relation to any fees which are payable by students not having such connection with the United Kingdom or any part of it or any member State as may be prescribed.

(8) In this Article, Article 5 and Article 6—

“academic year”, in relation to a course, means an academic year applicable to the course;

“the basic amount” means such amount as may be prescribed for the purposes of this Article as the basic amount;

“the grant period” means the period in respect of which the grant to which the relevant condition under this Article relates is made;

“the higher amount” means such amount as may be prescribed for the purposes of this Article as the higher amount;

“qualifying course” means a course of any description prescribed for the purposes of this Article.

“qualifying fees”, in relation to an institution, means the fees payable to the institution by a qualifying person in connection with his undertaking a qualifying course;

“qualifying person” means a person falling within any class of persons prescribed for the purposes of this Article.

(9) The power to prescribe descriptions of course by virtue of the definition of “qualifying course” in paragraph (8) may not be exercised in such a way as to discriminate—

(a) in relation to courses of initial teacher training, between different courses on the basis of the subjects in which such training is given, and

(b) in relation to other courses, between different courses at the same or a comparable level on the basis of the areas of study or research to which they relate.

(10) The Department may not make the first regulations under paragraph (8) prescribing the basic amount and the higher amount for the purposes of this Article unless a draft of the regulations has been laid before, and approved by a resolution of, the Assembly.

(11) Where regulations under paragraph (8) have been made prescribing the basic amount and the higher amount for the purposes of this Article—

(a) no regulations may be made increasing the basic amount unless—

(i) the Department is satisfied that the increase is no greater than is required to maintain the value of the amount in real terms, or

(ii) a draft of the regulations has been laid before, and approved by a resolution of, the Assembly, and

(b) no regulations may be made increasing the higher amount unless—

(i) the Department is satisfied that the increase is no greater than is required to maintain the value of the amount in real terms, or

(ii) the Assembly has at any time after 1st January 2010 passed a resolution that, with effect from a date specified in the resolution, the higher amount should be increased to an amount specified in the resolution, and the increase is an increase to the specified amount with effect from the specified date.

(12) For the purposes of paragraph (11)(a)(i) and (b)(i) the Department is to have regard to such index of prices as may be specified in, or determined in accordance with, regulations.

Commencement Information

I1 Art. 4 wholly in operation at 13.2.2006; art. 4(7)-(12) in operation at 14.4.2005 see art. 1(2); art. 4(1)-(6) in operation at 13.2.2006 by S.R. 2006/30, art. 2