Important message for 2nd and 3rd year Health Science students

Are you a continuing student nurse, midwife or other health practitioner?

Have you receive a letter which looks like this?

We understand that there is a national issue affecting 600 students at approximately 20 universities who have been incorrectly assessed by SFE this academic year (September 2017). This issue affects only Health Science students who are eligible to receive a means tested NHS bursary, or Paramedic Practice allowance. It also only affects students continuing with their studies in September 2017, rather than any new 2017 starters.

Students in this situation are eligible to receive a means tested bursary from NHS plus a standard reduced rate of Maintenance Loan of either £2324 (2nd years) or £1811 (final years), less if you are living in the parental home. The error is that some students have been incorrectly assessed by SFE and have been awarded a significantly greater Maintenance Loan amount and in some cases a Maintenance Grant as well. This has resulted in an overpayment of roughly £3000 – £6000 per student, which SFE have been looking to recover in full immediately.

You may already be in contact with the Student Advice Service or you may have challenged any overpayment recovery with SFE, but we want to make you aware of how you can take this issue forward and minimise any impact it has had.

1. If this has left you in financial difficulty, you should apply for a non-repayable maintenance support payment from SLC. This is a flat rate of £1000 and is not means tested. If you haven’t already been sent a form, please email discretionary_payments@slc.co.uk
2. The SLC has also agreed to defer the recovery of the overpaid funds until affected students have finished their courses and can afford to repay
3. You can also apply to the university Student Support Fund, which is means tested

The government published this statement yesterday and we are therefore reaching out to all students potentially affected by this issue.

If you have any questions about this, or any other financial related issue please contact Student Advice without delay

Student Advice Service