10 August 2005
OFFA guidance
In the light of the recently published threshold levels for means tested state support, depending on the wording of access agreements and financial information for prospective students, institutions may wish to revise their agreements and update their websites.
In mid July this year the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) announced the income threshold levels to be used for the maintenance grant means test for students entering higher education in September 2006. From 2006, students with a residual family income of £17,500 or less will be entitled to the full £2,700 grant. A partial grant will be payable where the residual family income is between £17,501 and £37,425. Full details can be found on the student support section of the DfES website.
We are aware that these thresholds are different from the working assumptions that many institutions used in drafting their agreements, of around £15,000 for full state support and up to around £33,000 for partial state support.*
The bursary arrangements in some agreements are phrased in such a way that, given the new thresholds, they may no longer be clear or accurately reflect the intentions of the institution. In such cases (for example, where an agreement refers to providing a bursary of £300 to a student with a residual family income of £15,200, but does not refer to the relationship with full state support) institutions may wish to revise their agreement with OFFA.
Other agreements have expressed their bursaries with reference only to students’ eligibility for state support rather than to actual income levels. Where this is the case it will not be necessary to revise, as the meaning of the agreement will remain clear. This is also applicable if the agreement explicitly states that the income levels used will be the same as those used in central student support assessments and refers to the income levels shown as indicative.
Our primary concern is that agreements accurately reflect the minimum requirement; that institutions should provide a bursary of at least £300 for those students who are in receipt of full state support and who are on courses charging £3,000. If, as a result of the new thresholds, other elements of the bursary scheme in the agreement are also now unclear and need updating or amending, then institutions may also wish to submit a revised agreement.
To ensure that access agreements remain accurate for their duration, revised agreements should make reference to the fact that income threshold levels will be uplifted each year in line with rises in state support.
Revised agreements should be sent to accessagreements@offa.org.uk as soon as possible, but no later than 30 September 2005. We will assess and approve amended versions on a rolling basis and will aim to issue approval of the amendments within two weeks of receipt.
In light of any changes to your agreement you may wish to revise and update the financial information provided in Annex B, but there is no requirement for you to do so
Institutions will also be aware that, in the light of the confirmed thresholds, they may need to update bursary and scholarship information for prospective students on their websites and elsewhere.
If you have any queries about the process for amending agreements please contact Chris Scrase, or David Barrett, 0117 931 7171 or email enquiries@offa.org.uk
Notes
* Please note that the uplift in the state support threshold levels for 2006 takes into account increases in family income and the numbers of students accessing the maintenance grant in 2004-05. It is not anticipated that institutions will need to award greater numbers of bursaries than they had planned for, as the DfES estimates that the proportion of students eligible for either full or partial state support remains consistent with previous estimates at around 50-55 per cent (DfES estimates around 30 per cent will get a full grant and 50-55 per cent will get a full or partial grant).