We are joined by Lesley McDowell, Funding Information Services Manager from The Student Loans Company, who is here to share a number of important updates.
Post deadline applications
The deadline for new undergraduate student applications was at the end of May. The continuing student deadline is at the end of June. Please let your students know that if they’ve missed the undergraduate deadline they can still apply. Students can find information about getting their first payment when applying late on GOV.UK.
New resources available
We have created new resources aimed at helping students and sponsors resolve common Student Finance England (SFE) queries. These also help students use their online accounts to manage and track their applications without having to call us.
A ‘How To’ guidance page on GOV.UK includes essential messages on topics such as checking the status of an application, providing evidence, changing application details and resetting passwords.
To help illustrate these messages, we’ve created a range of short tutorial films. These form part of the ‘How To’ guidance but are also available to access either through the SFE Campaign Page or as a stand-alone playlist on the SFE YouTube channel. We’ll be publishing more tutorials soon, so please encourage students to keep an eye out on our social media channels.
Sharing these resource can help educate students to ensure they get their student finance right first time.
Student loan interest rates capped
A rise in the rate of RPI meant student loan borrowers faced a potential 12% interest rate in September. Following on from our previous bulletin, the government has capped interest rates at a maximum of 7.3% to protect graduates.
Please remind students, parents and carers that the interest rate on student loans does not affect monthly repayments. These will not increase for students as repayments are linked to income, not interest rates. More information is available on GOV.UK.
HE Short Courses trial
The week sees the launch of the HE Short Courses Loans application service. Starting in September 2022, students on HE Short Courses will be eligible for HE Short Course Loans at levels 4-6. The 3 year trial is part of the pathway towards the Lifelong Loan Entitlement (LLE). We plan to introduce LLE in 2025.
Full eligibility information and important messages about the application process are available on GOV.UK.
Prospective students can speak to an adviser at our contact centre on Higher Education Short Course Loans on 0300 100 0085 which is open between 9am-5pm Monday to Friday.
Ongoing support
If you have any questions or comments about this information – or anything else student finance related – please do not hesitate to get in touch. As well as ongoing virtual meetings and training sessions, we’re meeting partners face to face, so do reach out for any support.