- Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 27 October 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Keith Brown on 10 November 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive how many teacher training course places it has funded in each year since 2006.
Answer
The following table shows the number of Bachelor of Education (four year BEd) and Professional Graduate Diploma in Education (one year PGDE) course places funded by the Scottish Funding Council through its main teaching grant in the General Fund for Universities and those over baseline numbers which are funded separately by the Scottish Government.
Total Full-Time Equivalent BEd and PGDE Student Places, 2006-07 to 2009-10
| Academic Year | Scottish Funding Council Funded Places | Scottish Government Funded Places | Total |
| 2006-07 | 4,327 | 2,055 | 6,382 |
| 2007-08 | 4,407 | 1,255 | 5,662 |
| 2008-09 | 4,396 | 1,709 | 6,105 |
| 2009-10 | 4,449 | 1,742 | 6,191 |
- Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 27 October 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 4 November 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive how many students are eligible for the full amount of income assessed loan.
Answer
It is estimated that around 15,300 students in academic year 2007-08 were potentially eligible to receive all of their support via student loan. These students could potentially draw on loan support up to the maximum loan amount, which varies depending upon residential and individual study circumstances.
- Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 27 October 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 4 November 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive how many students are eligible for a full young student bursary.
Answer
Based on information on background income, student characteristics, course type and study location, it is estimated that in academic year 2007-08 around 20,800 students were eligible for the maximum young student''s bursary (YSB).
This estimate is based on funding rules for 2007-08 and includes all students who were receiving the maximum YSB payment of £2,510.
- Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 27 October 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 4 November 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive how many students have been refused a place in university-provided student accommodation due to overcrowding in each of the last five years, broken down by (a) university and (b) year of study.
Answer
This information is not held centrally. University provided student accommodation is under the control of individual institutions.
- Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 27 October 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 3 November 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to help house students eligible for university-provided student accommodation who have been refused a place due to overcrowding.
Answer
I refer the member to the answer to question S3O-08248 on 29 October, which is available on the Parliament''s website and can be found at:
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/business/officialReports/meetingsParliament/or-09/sor1029-02.htm#Col20691.
- Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 03 September 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 15 October 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it is taking to increase the number of university places available across Scotland.
Answer
Through the Student Awards Agency for Scotland, we are financially supporting at a cost of some £8.6 million, an estimated 10 percent increase in the number of students entering Scottish higher education this year. By accepting some 3,000 additional students, Scottish universities have used the flexibilities in our higher education system to respond positively to increased demand for places during the current economic downturn.
- Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 08 October 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Alex Salmond on 8 October 2009
To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government is doing to provide financial support to students from lower-income backgrounds or who have dependent children.
Answer
This question was answered in the Chamber. The answer can be viewed in the Official Report using the following link: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/business/officialReports/meetingsParliament/or-09/sor1008-01.htm.
- Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 September 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 1 October 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive whether there are delays at either the Student Awards Agency for Scotland or the Student Loans Company in processing Scottish students’ student loans.
Answer
Systems for assessing and paying student support in Scotland are different to those in the rest of the UK. The Student Awards Agency for Scotland is delivering its normal levels of service and is processing applications within its published targets. Where delays occur, these are usually because applications have not been completed correctly or necessary supporting information supplied. The Student Loans Company has also been able to maintain its normal levels of service to Scottish students, with the exception of 39 cases in which an average payment delay of three days occurred due to a technical file transfer issue.
- Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 September 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 1 October 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive how many university places it has funded in each of the last three years and how many it will fund in each of the next three years.
Answer
Each year the Scottish Funding Council (SFC) funds a number of places in universities and other higher education institutions (HEIs), expressed as full-time equivalents (FTE).
The following table shows the number of funded places for undergraduates and taught postgraduates at Scottish HEIs for the last three academic years.
| | Funded Places |
| Academic Year | (FTEs) |
| 2009-10 | 130,799 |
| 2008-09 | 130,238 |
| 2007-08 | 127,788 |
Source: Scottish Funding Council.
The SFC will announce funded student places for academic year 2010-11 in March 2010.
- Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 September 2009
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 1 October 2009
To ask the Scottish Executive how many Scottish students have not yet received their student loan.
Answer
Applications for support by Scottish students are being dealt with within published target times by both the Student Awards Agency for Scotland and the Student Loans Company Limited. Scottish students are not experiencing delays that have been reported elsewhere in the UK. It is not possible to say how many students have not yet received their loan since the situation changes by the hour. There are several reasons why students may not as yet have received a loan payment. These include cases in which students may have applied less than 28 days before the start of their courses, have completed their applications incorrectly or have not supplied necessary supporting information.
