Education Minister Rod Bryans has said that discussions are currently taking place between the Treasury, Education and the Community Savings Bank to investigate introducing loans for Jersey students. He said that such a scheme could be in place by next year.
‘If the States start to support young people there is more chance they will come back after graduating’
Fleur Sharman, who started the Student Loan Support Group Jersey CI – which now has more than 240 Facebook members – has welcomed the news.
She said that a loan scheme would make university more accessible for all.
‘It’s certainly encouraging that they have realised the issue needs to be tackled,’ she said.
‘The system is wrong at the moment and we feel as a group that it is important to treat our young people equally and not discriminate against those who don’t have the money to go to university. We come from an Island that should be able to able to support its youngsters and a loan system would make university far more accessible for everyone.’
She added: ‘The States need to invest in the future of the Island and if they start to support young people there is more chance they will come back after graduating.’
Mrs Sharman, who works as a teaching assistant, said that she set-up the group six weeks ago after attending a public meeting at St Brelade’s Parish Hall.
At that event she asked Chief Minister Ian Gorst about the possibility of the States setting up a loan scheme for its students.
Since then hundreds of like-minded Islanders have joined the group on Facebook and there are now a six or seven core members who meet on a regular basis.
Her passion for the cause, she said, comes after her family suffered a ‘massive blow’ when a UK loan that was mistakenly given to her son had to be suddenly repaid because of a mistake in the system.
‘We were left having to pay a significant amount of money,’ she said. ‘We have another son who wants to go to university but unless there is some sort of loan scheme it’s going to be really difficult for him to go.
‘We are not saying that we want our children saddled with debt, but when the cost of going to university is so expensive the money has got to come from somewhere – at the moment it’s expected to come from parents even if they haven’t got the money.’
She added: ‘We want to work with the Education Minister and to support him. It’s definitely work in progress. It seems to be happening, but at what speed it’s going to happen I don’t know.’
Jersey students left in debt to the tune of tens of thousands of pounds because of a UK loan error were allowed to apply for finance in Jersey despite the window for applications being shut.
Hundreds of students in the Channel Islands were affected by a UK government mistake which meant that they were incorrectly awarded a total of £700,000 in loans.
At least 40 people in Jersey are known to have been affected, and the Student Loans Company – the UK department responsible for supporting students in higher education – threatened many with court action if they do not repay the money immediately.
But in January Andy Gibbs, head of careers and learning support at Careers Jersey, said that students who received UK loans in error would be allowed to apply for student funding in the form of a grant from the States to help offset the cost of repayments, as long as they are eligible.
Mr Gibbs has been in contact with Student Finance England, a branch of the Student Loans Company, and the UK department for Business, Innovation and Skills to try to persuade them to show some leniency over the issue.
He proposed that the loans could be honoured on this occasion, but even though the UK government department admitted that it was their error when processing Jersey postcodes, they insisted that the money had to be paid back immediately.
Mr Gibbs said: ‘Financial support is difficult for us, but students who are eligible for funding can still apply and we would consider their application even at this stage. But there is also an appeals process with the Student Loans Company, and we advise Islanders to make sure they make it to the third stage. I know someone who has been successful.’
Mr Gibbs explained the appeals process, saying that stages one and two were assessed my members of Student Finance England and the third stage was overseen by an independent body.
Islander Claire Matthews, who is studying at Leeds University and was incorrectly awarded a loan by the Student Loans Company of about £18,000 which was later repealed, said that she had been threatened with court action.
‘They withdrew all my fees from the university and I was told I couldn’t graduate until the fees were paid,’ she added.
‘My parents have managed to make arrangements to pay my fees. The UK authorities are now hounding me to repay the maintenance loan immediately, which is impossible as I am a student. They are threatening me with court even though I have tried to assure them I plan to keep to my side of the agreement, which is to pay them back when I start working.’
THE introduction of a student loan scheme, which is being considered by Education Minister Rod Bryans, could be seen as something of a mixed blessing.
As Malcolm Ferey, the head of the Citizens’ Advice Bureau, has said, loans would enable more people to go to university.
But they could also be a nail in the coffin of ‘free’ further education and saddle graduates with debt, possibly for decades after they leave university.
As Mr Ferey acknowledges, parents, even those on relatively good incomes, are struggling to pay for their child or children to go away to study. It is clear that the current system of grants is not offering the help some families need.
Universities must not be the preserve of the rich. Intelligence and wealth are not synonymous.
It is reassuring that Deputy Bryans has confirmed that the introduction of loans would not have an impact on the grant system.
Amid calls that Jersey should not be a slave to UK values and practices, the university grant system is a beacon of light which makes this Island stand apart from the UK and other jurisdictions.
The unfortunate reality is that fully States-funded university tuition for all is a luxury we cannot afford.
Deputy Bryans and his team at Education are therefore right to consider different funding models. They know the importance of balancing the interests of students with those of taxpayers generally, and must find a system which suits Jersey.
In the UK, students only start paying back their loans when they earn a certain amount – and some never reach that threshold. Loans seem to be the best way forward, but the repayment terms must be fair to all, and that could mean asking for a parental guarantee.
