Student Support for Care Experienced students Sarah Kirkpatrick, Student Support Team, SFC Student Support Seminar – 1 June 2017

The Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014 Under the act, colleges have responsibilities as corporate parents:

Background

HE Students SAAS Support Full Bursary for 2017-2018 - £7,625 Also, up to £105pw towards housing costs in holidays if living alone. Conditions: If the student has ever been looked after by a Local Authority in the UK. Is under 26.

SFC Bursary Guidance – Award Assessment section On funding allocation… 41. When allocating funding to care experienced students, Colleges should ensure that the student receives the optimum award, taking into account the student’s wider circumstances. This will usually mean that the student should receive the maximum level of funding (for example, a bursary rather than an EMA). However, if the award of the higher level bursary funding will reduce the care experienced student’s entitlement to other benefits, then the college may allocate the lower amount.

SFC Bursary Guidance – Award Assessment Section On exemptions from parental assessment… 92. In line with practice for the EMA programme, young people who are in the care of the local authority, living in foster homes or in children’s homes should be eligible for support without recourse to an assessment of the assessable parent’s income, as long as they meet other eligibility criteria. 93. In these circumstances, colleges should process the award by entering £0 for the parental income. Unless otherwise eligible, these students should not be assessed as self-supporting students.

Student Support Guidance – Advisors notes On the definition of Care Experienced… 8. The terms Care Experienced, Care Leaver and Looked After refer to young people who have experience of being in care at any time of their lives or who are currently looked after. It includes any student who is under the care of the Local Authority, including (but not limited to) where the care is being provided in the student’s own home, in their parent(s) home, in the home of relatives, in a foster home, a care home or a residential unit. It also includes students who are cared for under a kinship order.

Student Support Guidance – Advisors notes On self supporting students… 50. A student will also be considered self-supporting if they have not yet reached the age of 25 and: they are formally recognised as a care leaver who is living independently; or they have supported themselves for periods aggregating no less than three years. This includes periods where the individual was in care and can provide proof from the relevant social services department.

SFC Bursary Guidance – Fund management section On Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014 54. This Act confirms colleges’ status as corporate parents. Colleges should ensure that their student support policies take into account the circumstances of care experienced students and the college’s responsibilities towards these students. Care experienced students should be allocated the optimum award, for example in most cases they would receive a bursary rather than an EMA (see paragraph 42 of the Award Assessment section of the guidance). Colleges should also note paragraphs 47 and 64 of this document which allow colleges to exercise flexibility over care experienced students’ attendance and submission of documentation. The definition of Care Experienced is set out in paragraphs 8 to 13 of the Advisors Notes section.

SFC Bursary Guidance – Fund management section On attendance… 47. Colleges should have regard to equalities legislation (see paragraph 52) and the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014 (see paragraph54) when considering the position of students with protected characteristics and care experienced students. Colleges may exercise increased flexibility when considering attendance issues for these groups of students. Colleges should conduct Equality Impact Assessments on their attendance policies to ensure that protected groups are not disadvantaged.

SFC Bursary Guidance – Fund management section On documentation… 64. Students who are care experienced may have difficulty in accessing documentation where they have become estranged from their families and support networks. If a student who is care experienced cannot access the required documentation the college may approve an award to the student at its own discretion.

Further information SFC’s National Ambition for CE Students: http://www.sfc.ac.uk/web/FILES/Access/National_ambition_for_care_experienced_students.pdf Who Cares? Scotland information on Corporate Parenting: http://www.corporateparenting.org.uk/corporate-parenting/definition/ Propel website – information for Scottish CE students: http://propel.org.uk/Scotland