John Hayes MP
Minister of State for Further Education, Skills and Lifelong learning
Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
1 Victoria Street
London SW1H 0ET

15^th June 2012

Dear John,

I am writing with regard to the Government’s proposed changes to further education (FE) funding for students aged over 24, due to be implemented for 2013/2014.

As I understand it, the Government proposes to replace current arrangements with ‘24+ Advanced Learner Loans’, modelled on higher education funding and administered by the Student Loans Company (SLC).

In effect, a system that currently sees 50% funding for mature students’ FE provided for by the state will be replaced by one that places sole financial responsibility on the individual learner. From August 2013, more than 300,000 people will be required to pay for their own FE.  

I am deeply concerned by the damaging effects such an ill-conceived policy will have upon the individual, society and economy at large.

There is a real risk that the primary effect of this proposed policy will be to deter prospective students on the basis of financial capacity. Certainly this is the assessment made by the Principal of City College, Brighton and Hove who cites the potential reluctance of adult students to take out a loan as grounds for concern.  

Moreover, the Government’s own Impact Assessment in July 2011 suggests that between 20 and 40% of students will be put off by the proposed changes.

In essence, the importance of a prospective students’ financial background will be amplified as a variable effecting the distribution of mature students in FE, and at the expense of variables such as academic and vocational potential.

The social costs of such a scheme are likely to include exacerbating unemployment and acting as an obstacle to social mobility. According to the Government’s ‘New Challenges’ document, FE currently provides significant advantages for “students facing single or multiple disadvantages”.

The proposed policy change may well undermine this achievement by reducing the number of adults from disadvantaged circumstances that are able to retrain in order to find work that is both economically and socially useful, as well as personally enriching.

Efforts to reduce temporary unemployment will also be undermined, with, for example, mothers wishing to re-enter the workforce possibly being deterred by the prospect of escalating personal debt.

As you will know, FE can be a stepping stone to higher level apprenticeships and university education and there is a real access that a loans-based system will result in a narrowing of access.  

Crucially, this policy could potentially alter the entire demographic of higher education and consequently weaken the ability of the UK to build a strong economy supported by a skilled, professional workforce.

There is also a risk that the new funding arrangements will prove to be a false economy. The Government often cites the need for a supply side recovery to recession and asserts its commitment to nurturing a culture of aspiration and hard work. Yet by deterring prospective students, this policy will stifle aspiration and narrow the base from which economic innovation can be generated.

Aside from the negative social and economic implications of the proposed new funding scheme, current opposition from much of the education sector is also a cause for deep concern.

The Association of Colleges (AoC), NUS, UNISON and the University and Colleges Union have all argued that the speed with which this policy is being implemented could prevent proper consultation or adequate consideration of a full impact assessment. In particular, AoC is concerned by the fact that BIS has only budgeted for FE loans until 2015, as it raises the question of the Government’s long term political commitment to the scheme and hampers the ability of Colleges to effectively plan.

City College Brighton and Hove currently has 530 students aged 24 and over who are studying a level 3 or 4 course, and who next year will have to take out a loan for their course fees, despite not knowing this would be the case when they started at the college. On their account, and in light of all the concerns I have raised above, I would like to register my strong objection to the proposed FE loan scheme and urge the Government to reconsider its proposals.

Yours sincerely,

Caroline Lucas, MP Brighton Pavilion

Read the ministerial response here.