Written Question · S2W-23519 · Session 2
Whether it has any plans to roll out the Disabled Student Allowance to further education students.
The question
To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to roll out the Disabled Student Allowance to further education students.
The answer
We have no plans to roll outthe Disabled Students’ Allowance to non-advanced further education students at themoment. Students at further education colleges studying on advanced courses arealready eligible for the Disabled Students’ Allowance.
Further education students withdisabilities can apply for additional support towards personal study and travelrelated expenses arising from their disabilities through the Additional SupportNeeds for Learning Allowance, which forms part of the non-advanced bursary. Thisallowance is not means tested, nor are there pre-set limits on the means or levelsof funding by which these needs may be met. The allowance is paid on a discretionarybasis by colleges to eligible students.
In addition to the individualsupport provided to further education students through the Disabled Students’ Allowanceand the Additional Support Needs for Learning Allowance, the Scottish Further andHigher Education Funding Council (SFC) provides core support to colleges in respectof their students with additional support needs.
SFC published a consultationon 24 February 2006 on proposals for developing and implementing a needs-ledapproach for identifying additional support needs of college students. The consultationis on the council’s website at http://www.sfc.ac.uk/library/sfc/consultation/2006.
Theproposals set out in the consultation aim to improve the future approach to determiningwhich students should attract a premium in the core college funding. The individualneeds-assessment which is the foundation of this approach will also assist collegesin the identification of student support needs which may be met from student supportsources. We will continue to work closelywith the SFC as work in this area progresses.
Currently, the SFC provides fundingto colleges according to the student activity they deliver. If the student has additionalsupport needs then this activity is weighted to recognise that this could mean additionalcosts for the college. This additional weighting is referred to as Extended LearningSupport (ELS) and is applied to both advanced and non-advanced provision.
Similarly, if a college providesa course specifically for a group of students with similar additional support needsthen this too is weighted in recognition of the higher level of costs required torun such a course. This additional weighting is referred to as dominant programmegroup 18 (DPG18).
Further education students withdisabilities can apply for additional support towards personal study and travelrelated expenses arising from their disabilities through the Additional SupportNeeds for Learning Allowance, which forms part of the non-advanced bursary. Thisallowance is not means tested, nor are there pre-set limits on the means or levelsof funding by which these needs may be met. The allowance is paid on a discretionarybasis by colleges to eligible students.
In addition to the individualsupport provided to further education students through the Disabled Students’ Allowanceand the Additional Support Needs for Learning Allowance, the Scottish Further andHigher Education Funding Council (SFC) provides core support to colleges in respectof their students with additional support needs.
SFC published a consultationon 24 February 2006 on proposals for developing and implementing a needs-ledapproach for identifying additional support needs of college students. The consultationis on the council’s website at http://www.sfc.ac.uk/library/sfc/consultation/2006.
Theproposals set out in the consultation aim to improve the future approach to determiningwhich students should attract a premium in the core college funding. The individualneeds-assessment which is the foundation of this approach will also assist collegesin the identification of student support needs which may be met from student supportsources. We will continue to work closelywith the SFC as work in this area progresses.
Currently, the SFC provides fundingto colleges according to the student activity they deliver. If the student has additionalsupport needs then this activity is weighted to recognise that this could mean additionalcosts for the college. This additional weighting is referred to as Extended LearningSupport (ELS) and is applied to both advanced and non-advanced provision.
Similarly, if a college providesa course specifically for a group of students with similar additional support needsthen this too is weighted in recognition of the higher level of costs required torun such a course. This additional weighting is referred to as dominant programmegroup 18 (DPG18).
In the Official Report
No contribution in the Official Report cites S2W-23519 by reference.