1. Student Finance Update Exeter HE Advisers’ Day 3 February 2011 Katy Barge Student Finance Consultant South West

2. Agenda 2012/13 Proposals Application Process – launch and deadlines Process Improvements New Resources for Practitioners

3. 9 th December 20109 th December 2010: Parliament voted in favour of a tuition fee increase up to a maximum of £9,000 per annum Any reforms will be introduced for those entering higher education in 2012 Changes will therefore not affect those already at university, those starting in 2011 and those who have left university and are in repayment It will be for institutions to decide the level of tuition fees they charge 2012/13 Arrangements

4. For those starting university in autumn 2012, details on student support should be announced by Summer 2011 2012/13Students who defer entry from 2011/12 to 2012/13 will have their loans and grants for living costs set at the 2012/13 rates A full white paper will be published in spring 2011 2012/13 Arrangements

5. 2011/122012/13* Tuition Fee LoanMax £3,375 Two tiers: max £6,000 or £9,000 £9000 only in exceptional circumstances Fee Loans for part-time courses if intensity 25% + Maintenance Loan Variable amounts in 3 bands Means tested Variable amounts in 3 bands – details to be confirmed Loans increased for household incomes from £42K - £60K Not available to part-time students Maintenance Grant Max £2,906 £25K / £50K thresholds Max £3,250 - £25K / £42K thresholds Not available to part-time students HEI Bursary £338+ for those on full grant paying full fees New £150m National Scholarships Programme – obligatory for HEI to participate if fees exceed £6,000 Application Separate application process post UCAS No details yet Repayment 9% of earnings over £15K threshold Interest inflation linked (currently 1.5%) Written off after 25 years 9% of earnings over £21K threshold Interest £21k - £41K - Tapered inflation RPI + 3% Written off after 30 years Early repayment arrangements being considered *Please note that these are ONLY proposals: detailed decisions have yet to be taken, and the package of support available to 12/13 entrants will not be announced until later in 2011 Summary of Proposals

6. Repayment thresholds will be modified: –The current £15,000 earnings threshold will be uprated annually in line with inflation from April 2012 –The proposed £21,000 earnings threshold will be uprated annually in line with earnings from 2016 (when first new system graduates start repayments) –This as opposed to every five years as originally proposed –No graduate will repay anything until they reach that income threshold NB. The above is all subject to parliamentary approval Additional Info

7. A student loan is very unlikely to affect your ability to get a mortgage (The Council for Mortgage Lenders ) Mortgage lenders are most interested in your monthly income (‘ability to repay’) Under the new system monthly repayments lower = greater monthly income NB. The above is all subject to parliamentary approval Additional Info (cont)

8. Loan Repayment Comparison Income each year before taxApproximate monthly repayment NowFuture £15,000£0 £16,000£8£0 £18,000£23£0 £21,000£45£0 £24,000£68£23 £27,000£90£45 £30,000£113£68 £33,000£135£90 £36,000£158£113 £40,000£188£143

10. 2011/12 Launch

11. Apply online from Spring 2011: 16 th March new Students (deadline 31 st May) 14 th Feb returning students (deadline 30 th June) Only 2 deadlines for 2011/12 When To Apply

12. Online Application Process www.direct.gov.uk/studentfinanceLogin via: www.direct.gov.uk/studentfinance Customer Reference Number (CRN) allocated Choose password and secret answer Review and submit application online Track application progress via ‘My Account’: - view correspondence/payments - change bank details - update profile/security details - make changes after submission

13. Roll-out of verification of household income with HMRC The majority of new applicants should not need to send in financial evidence for prior tax year 2009/10 Designed to reduce the time it takes to assess a new application for the majority of customers When we do ask customers to send financial evidence, we will only ask for copies of documents and not originals Improvements – New Students

14. Links in place: HMRC : confirm household income IPS : confirm identity DWP : confirm National Insurance Number UCAS : personal and course information shared with SFE Improvements – New Students

15. Those who applied for non-means-tested finance will be processed automatically if their circumstances haven’t changed They will simply need to sign and return the form they receive from SFE New and returning students will be paid NMT support if we are awaiting financial evidence to means test Returning Students

16. IAG Resources for Practitioners

17. IAG Quality Standards Materials Materials developed with Practitioners Linked to national IAG Quality Standards used by Ofsted (fully cross-referenced) Resources ready to use with students: - Lesson Plan - 2x scripted PowerPoint presentations

18. 11/12 Quick Start Guide is located here

19. Fact Sheets Fact Sheets for particular groups e.g. - NHS & Social Work students - Disabled students - Care leavers - Students on benefits - Erasmus students/studying abroad - Independent students - Sandwich course students - ITT students Electronic format – latest versions online Designed for use as: Quick reference guides Handouts for events

21. www.practitioners.studentfinanceengland.co.uk

22. 2011/12 Key Messages for Students Do your research early Don’t wait until you know where you’re going before applying Apply online from Spring 2011: –16 th March new Students (deadline 31 st May) –14 th Feb returning students (deadline 30 th June) Send in your signature & your evidence (if requested) promptly Let us know straight away if anything changes Make use of ‘My Account’

23. Contact Details  katy_barge@slc.co.uk  07827 449280  http://practitioners.studentfinanceengland.co.uk

24. Any Questions