§ Mr. Andrew SmithTo ask the Secretary of Slate for Education and Science if he will publish a table on student grants updating his answer of 12 December 1988,Official Report, column 389, for the latest year for which figures are available.
Mr. JacksonThe data requested are as follows:
Mandatory Awards (England and Wales) 1987–88 (Provisional) Student Numbers 1Percentage of award holders Full maintenance 2153,000 37.7 Maintenance reduced by assessment: (i)Numbers of dependent students with parental contributions of: Under £200 22,800 5.6 £201 to £400 21,900 5.4 £401 to £600 17,100 4.2 £601 to £800 15,800 3.9 £801 to £1,000 14,500 3.6 £1,001 to £1,200 13,600 3.4 £1,201 to £1,400 11,800 2.9 £1,401 to £1,600 10,000 2.5 £1,601 to £1,800 7,700 1.9 £1,801 to £2,000 5,800 1.4 Over £2,001 5,300 1.3 (ii)Dependent students who contribute to grant from their own income 600 01 (iii)Independent students 5,900 1.4 Nil maintenance3 2100,000 24.7 1 Percentages calculated on unrounded figures. 2 Includes dependent and independent students. 3 For these students only the course fees are paid.
§ Mr. Andrew SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will list the scales of parental contribution to the student grant, specifying what contribution parents should he making according to their income in the current year.
Mr. JacksonThe scales for the current academic year are as follows:
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Residual income1 2Scale 1 3Scale 2 9,900 50 37 10,000 64 48 11,000 207 155 12,000 350 262 12,600 435 326 13,000 515 386 14,000 715 536 15,000 915 686 16,000 1,115 836 17,000 1,315 986 18,000 1,515 1,136 18,400 1,595 1,196 19,000 1,745 1,309 20,000 1,995 1,496 21,000 2,245 1,684 22,000 2,495 1,871
Residual income1 2Scale 1 3Scale 2 23,000 2,745 2,059 24,000 2,995 2,246 25,000 3,245 2,434 26,000 3,495 2,621 27,000 3,745 2,809 28,000 3,995 2,996 29,000 4,245 3,184 30,000 4,495 3,371 31,000 4,745 3,559 31,620 max 4,900 3,675 32,000 3,746 33,000 3,934 34,000 4,121 35,000 4,309 36,000 4,496 37,000 4,684 38,000 4,871 38,153 max 4,900 1 The starting point in calculating the residual income is the gross income of the parents as computed for tax purposes in the financial year immediately preceding the academic year for which the grant is being assessed. From this gross figure some deductions are allowed—notably those made in parallel with the tax reliefs based on interest payments, including mortgage interest, life insurance premiums (on policies taken out before March 1984) and superannuation payments. 2 Scale 1 is applied to those students whose courses began before 1 April 1988 and who had attained the age of 18 by 16 March 1988, or to those who had within two years of starting their present course attended another designated course. Scale 2 is applied to all other dependent students. 3 The contribution payable may be less than the amounts shown on the scale, particularly at its top end and where the contribution is in respect of one award holder only. This will depend on the amount of grant against which the contribution has to be set and whether any of the assessed contribution is offest by allowances for other dependent children.
§ Mr. Andrew SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he will give the figures, for his best available estimate, for the numbers of parents paying the parental contribution towards the student grant, specifying how many parents and how much they are paying in respect of each different level of contribution; and if he will also estimate what proportion of parents pay the full parental contribution at each different level.
Mr. JacksonAlthough the parents of two out of three mandatory award holders are assessed for a contribution towards the maintenance element of the award, they are under no legal obligation to pay it. Evidence of payment or non-payment is indirect, from surveys of students' income and expenditure, and needs to be treated with caution. Such evidence suggests that the average student receives financial help from parents in excess of their assessed contribution, but that one student in three of those whose parents are assessed for an award may receive less.