Labour is to bring back maintenance grants for tens of thousands of students from low-income backgrounds who sign up to “priority” courses that support the government’s industrial strategy.
The education secretary, Bridget Phillipson, said the means-tested grants were aimed at “those who need them most” and would be funded by a new international student levy, as outlined in a recent immigration white paper.
Making the announcement at the Labour party conference, Phillipson said: “The Tories treated our universities as a political battleground, not a public good. Labour is putting them back in the service of working-class young people.”
Students’ time at college or university should be spent learning or training, “not working every hour God sends”, she told delegates.
The reintroduction of maintenance grants, which were scrapped in 2016 and replaced by maintenance loans, was welcomed by many in the sector, though there were calls for them to be extended to a wider range of courses.
There are also concerns among vice-chancellors about the proposed 6% international student levy that will pay for the grants. Recent research suggested the levy could cost universities in England more than £600m a year.
The government said the maintenance grants would be available to students in levels four to six, studying priority courses including university degrees and technical qualifications. Further details will be set out in the autumn statement.
Jo Grady, general secretary of the University and College Union, said: “Treating international students as cash cows to fund maintenance grants amounts to robbing Peter to pay Paul. Instead of attacking foreign students, the Labour government should be fixing our colleges and universities through huge public investment.”
Vivienne Stern, chief executive of Universities UK, the voice of the higher education sector, was also critical of how the move would be funded: “Extra money to support students from diverse backgrounds to study courses critical to economic growth is the right idea – but this would be executing it in the wrong way.
“A levy on international students will not help disadvantaged students, it will hinder them. As emerging evidence already shows, it would reduce the number of places available for domestic students and mean universities have even less of their scant resource to invest into expanding access and supporting students.”
Nick Harrison, CEO of the Sutton Trust, said it was a positive step in breaking down barriers to opportunity for students from the poorest backgrounds. “They have long been faced with the greatest debt burden, and have been hit hard by the rising cost of living, having to work excessive hours to make ends meet.
“The reintroduction of maintenance grants for these students on selected courses is a step in the right direction in equalising access to higher education.”
Dani Payne, head of education and social mobility at the Social Market Foundation thinktank, said: “Many students are struggling with the cost of living, and ensuring those from lower income families, with less family support, can afford to study both at university and for technical qualifications is a vital step for social mobility.”
