Chamber and committees

The aim of the changes to the Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) proposed in 16+ Learning Choices: First Step Activity and Financial Support is to refocus existing resources to better target support towards the most vulnerable young people wherever they are learning. It is not to produce savings. Any changes to EMA would be phased in so that young people already in receipt of the allowance will not be affected by the changes. This means that the full amounts below would not be realised until 2011-12.

We estimate that the resource released from the reduction of the EMA income threshold is £3 million.

The proposal within the 16+ Learning Choices: First Steps Activity and Financial Support consultation is not about financial savings. It is being proposed to address the specific issue of parity of financial support for young people in education and those in vocational training.

Activity Agreements would provide young people who are not ready or able to access formal learning or training with an offer of learning which better suits their needs.

Our prime target group is the 7,000 young people who fail to reach a positive destination on leaving school together with those who are unable to sustain a positive post-school transition.

This information is not held centrally. The maximum amounts of means tested loan depend on students'' individual study circumstances, including their exact course length. SAAS record the amount of loan assessed but they do not record whether the amount is the maximum for the particular set of circumstances.

(a) The following table shows the number of students assessed by the Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS) as entitled to means tested loans broken down by the total amount of loan they were assessed for and their institution type. The total amount of loan includes the non-means tested element. Students receiving non-means tested loans only are not included in the table.

Total Loan	2005-2006			2006-2007			2007-2008
	Higher Education Institution	College	Total	Higher Education Institution	College	Total	Higher Education Institution	College	Total
Total	46,540	15,700	62,395	44,450	14,740	59,340	42,975	14,390	57,500
Up to £1,000	1,430	285	1,715	1,300	245	1,545	1,155	230	1,390
£1,000-1,499	5,140	2,755	7,900	3,755	2,300	6,055	3,465	1,700	5,170
£1,500-1,999	7,740	2,265	10,020	8,550	2,110	10,675	8,020	2,060	10,095
£2,000-2,499	10,640	1,825	12,470	9,705	1,565	11,285	8,640	1,570	10,220
£2,500-2,999	4,745	945	5,695	4,835	945	5,795	5,510	945	6,465
£3,000-3,499	3,910	1,020	4,940	3,945	960	4,915	3,935	945	4,890
£3,500-3,999	3,340	660	4,025	3,275	510	3,810	3,490	530	4,025
£4,000-4,499	7,725	4,440	12,220	7,390	4,410	11,830	5,870	3,975	9,865
£4,500-4,999	1,535	1,490	3,045	1,425	1,670	3,120	2,675	1,785	4,500
£5,000 and above	335	15	370	275	15	305	220	645	875

Notes:

Student numbers have been rounded up or down to the nearest five.

Total columns include a small number of students studying at other institution types.

(b) The following table shows the number of students assessed by the Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS) as entitled to means tested loans broken down by the total amount of loan they were assessed for and status (i.e. whether they are independent from their parents or not). The total amount of loan includes the non-means tested element. Students receiving non-means tested loans only are not included in the table.

Total Loan	2005-2006			2006-2007			2007-2008
	Dependent	Independent	Total	Dependent	Independent	Total	Dependent	Independent	Total
Total	44,085	18,310	62,395	41,320	18,015	59,340	39,210	18,290	57,500
Up to £1,000	1,660	55	1,715	1,490	55	1,545	1,335	55	1,390
£1,000-1,499	7,795	105	7,900	5,965	95	6,055	5,085	85	5,170
£1,500-1,999	9,830	190	10,020	10,485	190	10,675	9,875	220	10,095
£2,000-2,499	12,085	385	12,470	10,865	420	11,285	9,805	415	10,220
£2,500-2,999	5,385	310	5,695	5,460	340	5,795	6,100	365	6,465
£3,000-3,499	3,735	1,205	4,940	3,835	1,080	4,915	4,005	885	4,890
£3,500-3,999	1,550	2,475	4,025	1,555	2,255	3,810	1,690	2,335	4,025
£4,000-4,499	1,650	10,575	12,220	1,250	10,580	11,830	940	8,925	9,865
£4,500-4,999	190	2,855	3,045	270	2,850	3,120	250	4,250	4,500
£5,000 and above	210	155	370	150	155	305	120	755	875

Note: Student numbers have been rounded up or down to the nearest five.

The calculations and costings in the consultation document were based on data and intelligence available at the time.

Option 1b, like the other options in the consultation paper, is an example of how the additional £30 million available for higher education student support in 2010-11 could be used to improve the current student support system. The ultimate cost to the Scottish Government for all of these options would be £30 million and the basis for these costs, primarily the number of students affected and the relevant thresholds, are set out in the consultation paper. Further costs would only be produced after proposals are established following consideration of responses to the consultation. The consultation runs until 30 April 2009.

The calculations and costings in the consultation document were based on data and intelligence available at the time.

The options outlined in the consultation paper are examples of how the additional £30 million available for higher education student support in 2010-11 could be used to improve the current student support system. The ultimate cost to the Scottish Government for all of these options would be £30 million and the basis for these costs, primarily the number of students affected and the relevant thresholds, are set out in the consultation paper. Further costs would only be produced after proposals are established following consideration of responses to the consultation. The consultation runs until 30 April 2009.

In academic year 2007-08, 20,475 independent full-time Scottish domiciled undergraduate and post graduate diploma in education students studying in Scotland received support from the Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS). Six hundred and twenty-five of these students already received Young Students Bursary (YSB).

Of the remaining 19,845 students, 2,605 had declared benefactor income which was below the threshold for YSB. In addition 16,430 of these students were assessed as exempt from parental or spousal contributions to their support and therefore benefactor income details were not provided to SAAS. There are no income details for a further 350 of these students, either because they have not declared income or because their income is extremely low.

If we assume that everyone in these three groups would be entitled under an extended Young Student''s Bursary scheme, a maximum total of 19,385 students would benefit. 14,885 of these students would be considered ˜mature'' i.e. aged 25 or over.

The estimated number who benefit may be lower if the income of partners was taken into consideration as was introduced with the new means testing rules for higher education student support in academic year 2008-09. In 2007-08, the income of partners was not included in the means test for student support.

The information is only available from October 2006 when Scottish Gas was appointed as the managing agent. Scottish Gas has provided the following details, for the KY postcode area, on the number of applications received and the number of applications accepted, subject to survey, in each month since October 2006, in the following table:

Month of Application	Number of Applications	Accepted Subject to Survey
October 2006	164	119
November 2006	338	209
December 2006	139	80
January 2007	136	101
February 2007	116	77
March 2007	137	101
April 2007	166	136
May 2007	170	136
June 2007	147	132
July 2007	162	120
August 2007	174	141
September 2007	121	114
October 2007	196	124
November 2007	155	122
December 2007	74	63
January 2008	151	130
February 2008	142	106
March 2008	166	124
April 2008	164	134
May 2008	153	109
June 2008	61	16
July 2008	60	23
August 2008	51	22
September 2008	72	29
October 2008	95	10
November 2008	182	135
December 2008	568	303
Total	4,260	2,916

Note: An initial assessment is made at the application stage (normally by telephone) and those applications are recorded as accepted, subject to survey.

The information is only available from October 2006 when Scottish Gas was appointed as the managing agent. Scottish Gas has provided the following details for the KY postcode area, on the number of applicants on the waiting list in each month since October 2006, in the following table:

Month of Application	Number of Applicants on Waiting List
October 2006	119
November 2006	314
December 2006	384
January 2007	477
February 2007	489
March 2007	477
April 2007	456
May 2007	461
June 2007	449
July 2007	517
August 2007	567
September 2007	592
October 2007	617
November 2007	650
December 2007	636
January 2008	558
February 2008	552
March 2008	509
April 2008	520
May 2008	516
June 2008	420
July 2008	306
August 2008	282
September 2008	193
October 2008	175
November 2008	226
December 2008	235

 

(a) It is not possible to say if all the students in the exempt from parental/spousal contribution would be eligible to receive full means-tested support if bursary support was extended to independent students using the current income thresholds. The answer to question S3W-19187 on 23 January 2009 provided details of the number of independent student supported by SAAS in 2007-08 by age and residual income. However, these figures may be lower when the income of partners is taken into consideration as was introduced through the new means testing rules for higher education student support introduced in academic year 2008-09. In 2007-08, the income of partners was not included in the means test for student support.

(b) Under current rules SAAS are able to assess the support entitlement of some categories of students without the need for them to provide a detailed income statement. These students are shown in the income not declared / required category as answered in S3W-19187. It is therefore not possible to say how many of them would receive full means-tested support under a revised student support policy, because we don''t hold any records of their income at present.

All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament''s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.