The Education (Student Fees, Awards and Support) (Amendment) (No. 3) Regulations 2021

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations, which apply in England only, amend seven instruments relating to financial support for students (those instruments are referred to collectively as ‘the 7 instruments’).

Part 2 of these Regulations amends the Education (Student Support) Regulations 2011 (S.I. 2011/1986) (‘the Student Support Regulations’).

Part 3 of these Regulations amends:

(i) the Education (Fees and Awards) (England) Regulations 2007 (S.I. 2007/779) (‘the Fees and Awards Regulations’),

(ii) the Education (Student Support) (European University Institute) Regulations 2010 (S.I. 2010/447) (‘the European University Institute Regulations’),

(iii) the Further Education Loans Regulations 2012 (S.I. 2012/1818) (‘the Further Education Loans Regulations’),

(iv) the Education (Postgraduate Master’s Degree Loans) Regulations 2016 (S.I. 2016/606) (‘the Master’s Regulations’),

(v) the Higher Education (Fee Limit Condition) (England) Regulations 2017 (S.I. 2017/1189) (‘the Fee Limit Condition Regulations’) and

(vi) the Education (Postgraduate Doctoral Degree Loans and the Education (Student Loans) (Repayment) (Amendment) (No. 2) etc.) Regulations 2018 (S.I. 2018/599) (‘the Doctoral Regulations’).

Regulation 3 amends the Student Support Regulations for the 2022/23 academic year so that students qualify for the special support grant if they satisfy conditions contained in regulation 14(1) of the Universal Credit Regulations 2011.

Regulation 4 removes all references to 2008 cohort students from the Student Support Regulations for the 2022/23 academic year.

Regulation 5 amends the Student Support Regulations so that a course offered by a UK provider, in the UK leading to two first degree qualifications is not a designated course unless it leads to one of the exceptional qualifications listed in the new definition of UK dual degree programme.

Regulations 6, 41 and 57 amend the Student Support Regulations, the Master’s Regulations and the Doctoral Regulations so that persons studying for an apprenticeship are not eligible students under those instruments.

Regulation 7 amends the definition of “course for the initial training of teachers” in the Student Support Regulations and adds a new definition of “qualified teacher learning and skills status to those regulations. Regulation 7 also amends the Student Support Regulations so that students starting courses in 2022/23 who are holding “qualified teacher learning and skills status” and who are undertaking a second course for the initial training of teachers in the further education sector do not qualify for support.

Regulation 8 amends the Student Support Regulations so that where the Student Loans Company are wholly responsible for an error, support can remain in place for the first year if the error has been discovered before the course started, the year that the error has been discovered, and any previous completed year where a corresponding written notification of entitlement has been received by the student.

These Regulations amend the seven instruments to add a new eligibility category for persons granted leave under the Afghan Relocations and Assistance Scheme (‘Afghan locally employed staff’).

Regulations 9, 27, 34, 42 and 58 amend the Student Support Regulations, the European University Institute Regulations, Further Education Loans Regulations, the Master’s Regulations and the Doctoral Regulations respectively so that Afghan locally employed staff and their spouse, civil partner or dependent child may qualify for support under each of those instruments.

Regulations 10, 39, 43 and 59 amend the Student Support Regulations, the Further Education Loans Regulations, the Master’s Regulations and the Doctoral Regulations so that students eligible for support under those instruments by virtue of long residence must be ordinarily resident in England on the first day of the first academic year of the course.

Regulations 11, 29, 36, 45 and 61 amend the Student Support Regulations, the European University Institute Regulations, the Further Education Loans Regulations, the Master’s Regulations and the Doctoral Regulations so that persons who have settled status on arrival in the UK who come to the UK from specified British overseas territories (‘BOTs’) and who are starting full-time and part-time undergraduate courses in 2022/23 will qualify for the respective support packages (students qualify for tuition fee loans only for undergraduate courses in the Student Support Regulations, they do not qualify for grants and loans for living and other costs). To qualify for support, persons resident in the BOTs will need to satisfy the three-year ordinary residence requirement in the UK, the Crown Dependencies (‘Islands’) or specified BOTs. Equivalent provision is also made for those covered by the Withdrawal Agreements (the EU Withdrawal Agreement, the EEA-EFTA Separation Agreement and the Swiss Citizens’ Rights Agreement) who have spent part of their residence period in either the BOTs or EU overseas territories.

Regulations 12, 23, 28, 35, 44 and 60 remove redundant provisions relating to the grace period for applying to the EU Settlement Scheme, which ended on 30 June 2021, from the Student Support Regulations, the Fees and Awards Regulations, the European University Institute Regulations, the Further Education Loans Regulations, the Master’s Regulations and the Doctoral Regulations.

Regulation 13 amends the Student Support Regulations so that missing cross-references to courses set out in Schedule 2 to those regulations are inserted to ensure those courses are designated courses.

Regulations 14, 30, 37, 46, and 62 amend the Student Support Regulations, the European Institute Regulations, the Further Education Loans Regulations, the Postgraduate Master’s Regulations and the Postgraduate Doctoral Degree Regulations so that family members of all settled persons in the UK who are starting courses in 2022/23 qualify for support. This category of person must be ordinarily resident in the UK and Islands for three years before the start of their course in order to qualify for support. Previously, only family members of United Kingdom nationals qualified for support.

Regulation 15 removes expired provisions from the Student Support Regulations.

Regulations 16, 25, 32, 38, 47(a), 55 and 63(a) amend the definition of “persons granted Calais leave” in the 7 instruments.

Regulation 17 amends the Student Support Regulations so that references to “an intensive course” are replaced with “compressed degree course”. This ensures that living costs support for students undertaking courses by distance learning is restricted to compressed degree students. Students undertaking accelerated degree courses by distance learning will not qualify for living costs support unless they are undertaking a course by distance learning as a result of a disability.

Regulation 18 amends the Student Support Regulations to replace the maximum grant and loan figures for undergraduate and postgraduate courses in the second column of the Schedule that apply to the 2021/22 academic year with those in the third column of the Schedule that apply to the 2022/23 academic year.

Regulation 20 amends the Fees and Awards Regulations so that Afghan locally employed staff and their spouse, civil partner or dependent child who are starting courses in 2022/23 are subject to home fee status.

Regulations 21 and 52 amend the Fees and Awards Regulations and the Fee Limit Condition Regulations so that a person resident in Gibraltar as defined in those regulations does not qualify for home fee status and is not a qualifying person for the purposes of the Fee Limit Condition Regulations in respect of qualifying courses that start on or after 1st January 2028.

Regulations 22 and 53 amend the Fees and Awards Regulations and the Fee Limit Condition Regulations respectively so that home fee and qualifying person status of students from specified British overseas territories is extended from United Kingdom nationals to people who are settled when in the United Kingdom who are starting courses in 2022/23. Previously, only United Kingdom nationals and their family members qualified.

Regulation 24 and 54 amend the Fees and Awards Regulations and the Fee Limit Condition Regulations respectively so that family members of all settled persons in the UK who are starting courses in 2022/23 qualify for home fee status and are qualifying persons for whom maximum fee limits for undergraduate courses apply. Previously, only family members of United Kingdom nationals qualified.

Regulation 31 amends the European University Institute Regulations so that persons granted indefinite leave to remain as a victim of domestic violence or domestic abuse must be ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom before the relevant date rather than before the first day of the first academic year of the course.

Regulations 47(b) and 63(b) amend the definition of “section 67 leave” in the Master’s Regulations and the Doctoral Regulations.

Regulation 48 amends the Master’s Regulations to increase the maximum amount of the postgraduate master’s degree loan for new students starting their courses in the 2022/23 academic year.

Regulation 50 adds a new definition of “qualified teacher and learning skills status” to the Fee Limit Condition Regulations and amends those regulations so that students starting courses in 2022/23 who are holding “qualified teacher learning and skills status” and are undertaking a second course for the initial training of teachers in the further education sector are not qualifying persons for whom maximum fee limits for undergraduate courses apply.

Regulation 51 amends the Fee Limit Condition Regulations so that Afghan locally employed staff and their spouse, civil partner or dependent child who are starting courses in 2022/23 are qualifying persons to whom maximum fee limits apply for undergraduate courses.

Regulations 64 and 65 amend the Doctoral Regulations to increase the maximum amount of the postgraduate doctoral degree loan for new students starting their courses in the 2022/23 academic year and the maximum amount of the postgraduate doctoral degree loan that can be paid in respect of an individual academic year.

An impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no, or no significant, impact on the private, voluntary or public sectors is foreseen.