§ Mr. ClappisonTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will list the areas in respect of which universities will receive a 20 per cent. premium for admitting students therefrom; and if he will list the other criteria which will result in the payment of a premium for admitting students. [122817]
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§ Alan JohnsonFunds to help with the additional costs to higher education institutions (HEIs) of recruiting and retaining certain students are allocated by the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE). This Widening Participation allocation is determined partly by the neighbourhood classification of the student's home address. HEFCE uses four classifications related to average rate of participation in higher education
1. Neighbourhoods with below 50 per cent. of average participation2. Neighbourhoods with 50–75 per cent. average participation3. Neighbourhoods with 75–100 per cent. average participation4. Neighbourhoods with above average participationFunds are distributed to HEIs recruiting students from these neighbourhoods using a weighting system. Other funds to assist universities to recruit and support undergraduates from disadvantaged backgrounds are distributed according to formulae that recognise prior educational attainment and age, and mode of study.