Questions and answers

Question reference: S3W-14039

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 09 June 2008
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 17 June 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive what efforts it is making to increase higher and further education provision for people with cerebral palsy.

Colleges and universities in Scotland are continuing to work towards becoming more inclusive for all students including those with a disability.

The Scottish Government continues to encourage further and higher education institutions to offer flexible provision which responds to the needs of the learner while continuing to offer a high quality and relevant learning experience.

Institutions have a statutory duty under the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (as amended in 2005) to publish their Disability Equality Schemes. Within many of these published schemes institutions have stated that they are aiming to provide inclusive learning environments and accessible curriculum for disabled students.

The Scottish Government and the Scottish Funding Council, in partnership with colleges and universities, are also undertaking two pilot schemes, one for students undertaking further education and one for students in higher education. The aims of these pilots are to improve the assessment processes involved in identifying a student’s additional support needs for their particular course.

Question reference: S3W-13910

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 June 2008
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 16 June 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive how many full-time students will receive full financial support from government in each of the next three years if earnings rise as it anticipates.

Question reference: S3W-13904

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 June 2008
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 16 June 2008

The following table shows the number of students receiving full support from the Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS) in academic years 2004-05 to 2006-07. This number is also shown as a percentage of all students who receive any support from SAAS and as a percentage of all higher education students at Scottish higher education institutions and colleges.

Academic Year	Students Receiving Full Support from SAAS	% of Students Receiving Any Support from SAAS [1]	% All Higher Education Students at Scottish Institutions [2]
2004-05	28,370	24	10
2005-06	35,460	29	12
2006-07	35,310	29	12

Source: Student receiving support SAAS, higher education students Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) and Scottish Funding Council (SFC). Student numbers are rounded to the nearest five and percentages to the nearest whole number.

Notes:

[1] “Students receiving any support” includes Scottish students studying at institutions elsewhere in the UK and EU domiciled students. “Any support” refers to tuition fees, tuition fee loans, awards or maintenance loans.

[2] “All Higher Education students at Scottish institutions” include part-time students, international students and all postgraduate students studying in Scotland, not all of whom are eligible for funding from SAAS.

Students receiving full support have been defined as those who are:

1. Receiving the maximum Young Students bursary,

2. The maximum Young Students Outside Scotland bursary,

3. The maximum Students Outside Scotland bursary,

4. Aged 25 or over and are receiving maximum maintenance loan, or

5. Aged less than 25, are exempt from parental or spousal contribution to their support and are receiving maximum maintenance loan.

Nursing and Midwifery bursary scheme students are not included in the numbers receiving support from SAAS. Figures for academic year 2007-08 are not yet available.

Question reference: S3W-13909

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 June 2008
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 16 June 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive how many students will receive any financial support from government in each of the next three years if earnings rise at the average rate for 2007-08, broken down by household income.

The latest year for which data are available for students receiving some form of support is for 2006-07. Similarly, 2006-07 is the latest year for which data are available for average earnings. The data show that median weekly earnings rose by 3.1% in the year to April 2007.

Irrespective of how earnings may rise in the next three years, the number of Scottish students receiving support would be unaffected as under current funding rules all eligible students are entitled to at least a non-means tested loan. The table below provides data on the number of Scottish students receiving SAAS support in 2006-07 by parental/spousal residual income after allowable deductions. The table also shows how these data would look if average earnings rose by 3.1% (figure based on growth in average median weekly earnings in the year to April 2007) in each of the subsequent three years. In 2006-07, 114,610 Scottish students received some form of support.

Income Band	2006-07	2007-08	2008-09	2009-10
Income not Declared/Required	34,300	34,300	34,300	34,300
< £10,000	11,180	10,635	10,140	9,755
£10,000 - £19,999	13,735	13,390	13,170	12,940
£20,000 - £29,999	12,115	11,815	11,255	10,820
£30,000 - £39,999	10,005	10,030	10,270	10,220
£40,000 - £49,999	7,160	7,250	7,365	7,565
£50,000 - £59,999	3,865	4,285	4,640	5,005
£60,000 - £69,999	2,075	2,240	2,450	2,545
£70,000 - £79,999	940	1,115	1,310	1,485
£80,000 - £89,999	485	540	555	710
£90,000 - £99,998	270	305	375	385
£99,999+	655	880	945	1,050
Exempt from Parental Contribution	17,830	17,830	17,830	17,830
Total	114,610	114,610 =SUM(ABOVE)	114,610	114,610

Source: SAAS

Notes:

Constant Student Numbers are assumed.

The total number of students in the system has not changed.

Student numbers have been rounded to the nearest five.

Question reference: S3W-13908

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 June 2008
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 16 June 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive how many students will receive any financial support from government in each of the next three years if earnings rise as it anticipates, broken down by household income.

The Scottish Government does not produce estimates/forecasts on earnings growth with respect to student support. However, irrespective of how earnings may rise in the next three years, the number of Scottish students receiving support would be unaffected as under current funding rules all eligible students are entitled to at least a non-means tested loan.

The latest year for which data are available for students receiving some form of support is for 2006-07. The table below provides data on the number of Scottish students receiving support from Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS) in 2006-07 by parental/spousal residual income after allowable deductions. In 2006-07, 114,610 Scottish students received some form of support.

Income Band	2006-07
Income Not Declared/Required	34,300
< £10,000	11,180
£10,000 - £19,999	13,735
£20,000 - £29,999	12,115
£30,000 - £39,999	10,005
£40,000 - £49,999	7,160
£50,000 - £59,999	3,865
£60,000 - £69,999	2,075
£70,000 - £79,999	940
£80,000 - £89,999	485
£90,000 - £99,998	270
£99,999 and Above	655
Exempt from Parental/Spousal Contribution	17,830
Total	114,610

Source: SAAS.

Note: Student numbers have been rounded to the nearest five and monetary amounts to the nearest 1,000.

Question reference: S3W-13921

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 June 2008
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 16 June 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive how many student places were unfilled in (a) universities and (b) colleges in (i) 2007-08, (ii) 2006-07, (iii) 2005-06 and (iv) 2004-05.

(a) Higher Education Institutions:

Each year the Scottish Funding Council funds a number of places, expressed as full-time equivalents (FTE), in universities and other higher education institutions (HEIs), these are generally available to UK and other EU residents. HEIs are independent bodies who are free to recruit further students, from outside the EU when they can charge the full cost of providing the course, or, within certain limits, from within the EU when they would still be able to claim fees from the Student Awards Agency for full time students.

The following table shows the number of funded places for undergraduates and taught postgraduates at Scottish HEIs, and the number of students eligible for funding for the last four academic years.

	Funded Places	Students Eligible for Funding
Academic Year	(FTEs)	(FTEs)
2007-08	127,788	139,060
2006-07	124,826	135,099
2005-06	121,778	132,254
2004-05	120,653	131,788

Source: Scottish Funding Council; funded places includes places funded by the Scottish Government.

For all HEIs in Scotland taken as a whole there were therefore in each year more places taken up than funded. Within the overall funding framework institutions have some flexibility in the courses they provide, in response to demand. The total number of any places that remain unfilled at course level is not held centrally.

(b) Colleges

Colleges are not funded for a specific number of student places. Funding is allocated on the basis of activity delivered – a weighted number of teaching hours (WSUMs).

The total number of WSUMs targeted and delivered is shown in the following table.

	Teaching Activity Target	Teaching Activity Delivered
Academic Year	(WSUMs)	(WSUMs)
2007-08	2,301,703	Not Yet Available
2006-07	2,274,409	2,322,054
2005-06	2,172,311	2,215,861
2004-05	2,213,710	2,306,176

Source: Scottish Funding Council; the measurement method changed between 2004-05 and 2005-06; strategic growth target of 20,000 WSUMs from 2006-07 not included.

In all the above years delivery across Scotland exceeded targets. As there is not a fixed number of student places set for colleges it is not possible to say how many places were unfilled.

Question reference: S3W-13905

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 June 2008
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 16 June 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive how much financial support was provided to students in (a) 2007-08, (b) 2006-07, (c) 2005-06 and (d) 2004-05, broken down by (i) household income and (ii) numbers of students in each income band.

The following table shows a breakdown of the number of higher education students receiving any form of support from the Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS) and the amount of support received by parental/spousal income for academic years 2004-05 to 2006-07.

Academic Year	2004-05		2005-06		2006-07
Income Band	Number of Students	Amount £000	Number of Students	Amount £000	Number of Students	Amount £000
Income not Declared/Required	37,740	68,494	39,200	70,822	40,135	77,415
< £10,000	12,105	60,897	11,690	59,535	11,180	58,768
£10,000-£19,999	14,360	69,137	14,160	70,713	13,735	71,754
£20,000-£29,999	13,200	54,555	12,700	54,251	12,115	54,262
£30,000-£39,999	10,740	36,499	10,345	36,215	10,005	37,234
£40,000-£49,999	7,050	18,831	7,305	20,460	7,160	21,696
£50,000-£59,999	3,555	8,034	3,700	8,421	3,865	9,604
£60,000-£69,999	1,635	3,332	1,905	4,026	2,075	4,854
£70,000-£79,999	740	1,490	810	1,582	940	2,092
£80,000-£89,999	290	561	400	771	485	1,032
£90,000-£99,998	180	347	215	414	270	587
£99,999 and above	455	884	570	1,128	655	1,408
Exempt from Parental/Spousal Contribution	18,475	94,451	18,240	95,310	19,365	100,123
Total	120,525	417,511	121,235	423,648	121,990	440,829

Source: SAAS. Student numbers have been rounded to the nearest five and monetary amounts to the nearest 1,000.

Student are included in the table if they receive any form of support i.e. tuition fees, (or tuition fee loans if they study outside Scotland) and/or awards and/or maintenance loans. Income bands are based on residual parental or, in the case of students who are married or in a civil partnership, spousal income. This is income after deductions allowed by SAAS have been subtracted.

This table does not include students on the nursing and midwifery bursary scheme. Academic year 2006-07 is the latest for which figures are available.

Question reference: S3W-13916

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 June 2008
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 16 June 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Student Loans New Lending budget line represents a direct cost to the Scottish Government.

Question reference: S3W-13906

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 June 2008
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 16 June 2008

The table below shows the total number of higher education students receiving any support from the Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS) in academic years 2004-05 to 2006-07.

Academic Year	Number of Students Receiving Any Support
2004-05	120,525
2005-06	121,235
2006-07	121,990

Source: Student Awards Agency for Scotland.

Student numbers have been rounded to the nearest five.

In the table “any support” is defined as tuition fees (or tuition fee loans if they study outside Scotland) and/or awards and/or maintenance loans.

These figures do not include nursing and midwifery bursary scheme students. Academic year 2006-07 is the latest for which figures are available.

Question reference: S3W-13911

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 June 2008
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 16 June 2008

To ask the Scottish Executive how many full-time students will receive full financial support from government in each of the next three years if earnings rise at the average rate for 2007-08.

The following table shows the number of students receiving full support from the Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS) in academic year 2006-07. It also shows the approximate number of students in both 2007-08 and 2008-09 who would receive full support if earnings rose by the 2006-7 average of 3.1% (based on the Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, ASHE).

Academic Year	Students Receiving Full Support from SAAS
2006-07	35,310
2007-08	35,267
2008-09	35,154

Source: Students receiving support, SAAS, higher education students, Higher Education Statistics Agency and Scottish Funding Council. Student numbers are rounded to the nearest five and percentages to the nearest whole number.

Notes:

1. “Students receiving any support” includes Scottish students studying at institutions elsewhere in the UK and EU domiciled students. “Any support” refers to tuition fees, tuition fee loans, awards or maintenance loans.

2. Constant student numbers are assumed from one year to the next.

Students receiving full support have been defined as those who are:

1. Receiving the maximum Young Students bursary,

2. The maximum Young Students Outside Scotland bursary,

3. The maximum Students Outside Scotland bursary,

4. Aged 25 or over and are receiving maximum maintenance loan, or

5. Aged less than 25, are exempt from parental or spousal contribution to their support and are receiving maximum maintenance loan.

Nursing and midwifery bursary scheme students are not included in the numbers receiving support from SAAS. Figures on student numbers for academic year 2007-08 are not yet available. Similarly, earnings data beyond 2006-07 are not yet available. Also, income thresholds for 2009-10 have yet to be determined.

Chamber and committees