Thousands of East London students to be ‘cut adrift’ as low-income FE students face EMA axe

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Half of all young students across three FE colleges to lose vital government funding.

The Vice-Chancellor of the University of East London and the Principals of three east London FE Colleges today warned the Government that cuts to funding for FE students are tantamount to cutting East London adrift and abandoning a generation of disadvantaged learners.

1234 (41%) of 16-18 year-olds currently studying at Barking and Dagenham College, 1300 (70%) at Tower Hamlets College and 622 (46%) at Hackney Community College are in receipt of the Educational Maintenance Allowance (EMA). Families depend upon this money in order to keep these young people in learning. Under Government proposals, no new students will receive EMA from January and existing students, even those on two year programmes, will lose their allowance from July 2011. The Government’s promised hardship fund will only offer around 10% of the funding currently available.

This situation is further compounded by the withdrawal of most free training to learners aged 19 and over in receipt of benefits other than Jobs Seekers and Employment Support Allowance, such as Incapacity benefit, Lone Parents Allowance, Income Support, Council Tax reduction and other identifiers of poverty. 93% of adult learners at Barking and Dagenham college would be at risk of falling out of learning because they cannot afford to pay the fees.

The government is also due to introduce fees for those learners over 23 years-of-age who do not have a first full level 2 or 3 qualification. Around 30% of Hackney Community Colleges’ 23 year-old and above learners currently receive free tuition.

UEL has strong partnerships with local colleges and devotes considerable resources to ensuring long-term sustainable progression to Higher Education (HE) for those students. UEL was recently nominated for Widening Participation Initiative of the year at the Times Higher Awards for its information advice and guidance projects to support progression in East London.

Professor Patrick McGhee, Vice-Chancellor of the University of East London, said: “The network of UEL and East London colleges is pivotal in creating opportunity, wealth and employment for hundreds of thousands of residents in some of London's most deprived boroughs such as Barking and Dagenham, Hackney, Newham, and Tower Hamlets. For many of our students, of all ages, of all groups, we are the most powerful force for economic justice that they will encounter in their lives.

"Funding initiatives such as the EMA and fee-remission for poor residents have a proven track record of improving retention and attainment in FE and increasing progression to HE. To remove these entitlements will serve only to redistribute public funds away from young people and second-chance learners who already have comparatively few opportunities. In my mind this will devastate East London just as we are beginning to see clear returns on investment in the area.

"We also know that Black and Minority Ethnic (BAME) students are more likely to access the EMA than their white classmates. I have already raised concerns about how the HE fees and funding proposals will disproportionately affect these learners. It is clear such inequalities extend into the proposed FE funding settlement”.

Cathy Walsh, Principal of Barking and Dagenham College, said: “Barking & Dagenham College offers over 10,000 young and adult learners, some from the most disadvantaged communities across the East London region, the opportunity to achieve their career aspirations through high quality learning and training, to secure better jobs for a better life. For many they are the first in their family to be able to progress to college and university.

"Withdrawal of one of the most successful initiatives to keep youngsters in learning and training - EMA's - in addition to the removal of the entitlement to fee remission for genuinely disadvantaged adult learners, will have a doubly disastrous effect. There will be significantly fewer people able to stay in learning to develop their skill levels. Plus, there will be fewer skilled workers available to fill the local economy’s job market.

"Instead, and though not the planned intention of the Coalition Government, this will have the unintended consequence of preventing thousands of motivated students from disadvantaged backgrounds becoming economically independent because they cannot afford to pay for their studies."

Ian Ashman, Principal at Hackney Community College, said: “Our colleges have a proud tradition of widening participation, helping those most disadvantaged in society to enter education and make positive life changes. Working with universities such as UEL, many go on to higher education. Students need their EMA and subsidised tuition to get the qualifications that they and the London economy needs. These changes will adversely affect local communities and will prevent the Government achieving its objectives of increasing employment and skills in the capital."

Michael Farley, Principal of Tower Hamlets College, said: “The scraping of the Education Maintenance Allowance will have a significant impact on many Tower Hamlets residents and on the College’s ability to increase the number of young people participating in full time education. For those who do stay on post-16, it may impact on an attendance and eventually on the ability of some to stay to the end of the course.

“Tower Hamlets is a most exciting and vibrant borough. However, it is also a borough with huge social challenges. 50% of children come from benefit-dependent families, and 33% of families live on less than £20,000 per year. Tower Hamlets also has the highest free school meals entitlement in the UK.

“Financial support for young people is a valuable investment towards a sustainable and strong economy for all of us. If, as promised, savings from EMA are focussed on “the most disadvantaged children” then the Government would be wise to pay attention to the impact this may have in areas such as East London.”

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For further information please contact:

• Abe Atchia, University of East London Press Office, 020 8223 6239/07872 422 270

• Anne Vessey/Susie Dullard, Barking and Dagenham College Press Office, 020 8090 3020 extn 7210/ 07940 479 019

• Elvie-Jo Shergold, Head of Marketing & Communications, Tower Hamlets College, 020 7510 7531

• Ruth Lomax, Assistant Director Marketing and Communications, Hackney Community College, 020 7613 9090/07815 881 063