10 July 2006
The Department of Health (DoH) issued a letter earlier this year (download letter as Adobe PDF) that outlined a change in policy regarding the bursary and fee support available for social work students. Following confirmation of the student support arrangements from the DoH and the DfES, we can now advise institutions on our position concerning full-time undergraduate social work students.
In light of this and the following guidance some institutions may wish, or need, to change their access agreements.
Full-time undergraduate social work degrees are covered by the fee legislation and institutions can charge up to their agreed fee limit for these courses. However, we recognise that changes in support arrangements may influence institutions’ bursary policies for these students.
As the new arrangements for social work students represent no net loss in cash terms for the poorest students when compared to the 2005 arrangements, we do not require institutions to provide minimum bursaries for social work students, although institutions may, of course, choose to offer bursaries.
Amendments to access agreements
If institutions intend their bursary provision, as set out in their access agreements, to be applicable to social work students there is no need to seek to amend their agreements.
Institutions only need to amend their agreements if they intend to provide a lower level of bursary for social work students, or if they exclude them from their bursary scheme altogether.
If applicants have already been informed of their bursary entitlements for 2006-07 then these commitments should be honoured. However if, due to the uncertainty of DoH support, applicants have been provided with holding statements indicating that institutional bursaries may be available, then institutions may now choose to provide a lower level of bursary for social work students or to exclude them from bursary schemes altogether.
Such changes can also be made to agreements for 2007-08 onwards.
Amended agreements should be sent to accessagreements@offa.org.uk as soon as possible, but it would clearly be in everyone’s interest if any revised agreements were submitted by the end of July 2006. 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.
There is no need to revise Annex B, but institutions that chose to include the financial information within their agreement will no doubt want to adjust these figures.
If you have any queries about the process for amending agreements please contact Chris Scrase, tel. 0117 931 7171 or email enquiries@offa.org.uk.