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Dept for Education and Skills

Answer

Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the cash value is of loans granted to higher education students by the Student Loans Company in each year since 1997. [105938] Margaret Hodge: The number and value of loans paid to higher education students by the Student Loans Company in each academic year since 1996-97 are shown in the table: Student support provision: academic year 1996-97 to 2001-02 (provisional)1 _________________________________________________________________________________________________. Student loans (United Kingdom)2 Academic year Number of loans (thousand)3 Value of loans (£ million) 1996-97 589.6 877.2 1997-98 615.1 941.0 1998-99 of which: 659.5 1,233.5 Student Support Scheme Students4 275.9 557.3 Mandatory Scheme Students5 443.6 676.2 1999-2000 of which: 699.7 1,795.4 Student Support Scheme Students4 456.5 7,439.2 Mandatory Scheme Students5 243.2 356.3 2000-01 of which: 759.9 2,203.7 Student Support Scheme Students4 666.4 2,068.4 Mandatory Scheme Students5 93.5 735.3 2001-02 (provisional) of which: 809.3 2,485.2 Student Support Scheme Students4 786.0 2,450.7 Mandatory Scheme Students5 23.4 35.0 _________________________________________________________________________________________________. 1 New student support arrangements were introduced from academic year 1998-99. New students in 1998-99 (apart from certain specified exceptions) received support for maintenance expenditure through means-tested grants (comprising about a quarter of the support available) and non income-assessed student loans (comprising about three quarters of the support available). From 1999-2000 students who entered higher education after 1998-99 received support for maintenance expenditure through loans, of which approximately three quarters of the value was non income-assessed. Loans made under these arrangements are repayable on an income contingent basis. The ratio of support for mandatory award holders, i.e. those who entered higher education up to 1997-98, was roughly 50 per cent. means-tested grant and 50 per cent. non means-tested loan repayable on a mortgage style basis. 2 Student loans are available to eligible students normally domiciled in the United Kingdom on full-time undergraduate HE courses (and students on full-time and part-time postgraduate course of initial teacher training). 3 Refers to loans advanced in the target year only, which include those to students in their first, second, third and any subsequent year of their course. Excludes hardship loans and 5,700 (2000-01) and an estimated 7,700 (2001-02) fixed rate loans of £500 for part- time students introduced in September 2000. 4 Students starting their course from September 1998 under the new arrangements. 5 Students who entered higher education up to 1997-98 and those who entered in 1998-99 under the existing arrangements. Source: The Student Loans Company

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

105938; 403 c73-4W;403 c73W

Session

2002-03

Subjects

Finance Higher education Loans Students Student Loans Company

Contains statistics

Yes

Link

View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk