Questions and answers

Question reference: S5W-04249

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 November 2016
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 16 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what the (a) mean and (b) median debt for students on completion of a (a) first full-time undergraduate degree and (b) full-time postgraduate degree was in each of the last five years, broken down by Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) quintile.

Information on student loan debt is held and published by the Student Loans Company (SLC).

http://www.slc.co.uk/official-statistics/student-loans-debt-and-repayment/scotland.aspx

The latest publication, covering financial year 2015-16, showed that the average student loan debt for the 2016 cohort, which just entered repayment, was £10,500. The publication does not contain the other information requested.

Average Loan Balance on entry into repayment by repayment cohort

Average balance on entry to repayment (£)

	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016
Scotland	6,470	6,860	7,440	9,410	10,500

Source: Student Loans Company

Question reference: S5W-04244

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 November 2016
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 16 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government how many students (a) began and (b) completed an undergraduate degree in primary school teaching in each of the last five years, broken down by university.

The number of a) entrants and b) qualifiers to first-degree primary education courses at Scottish Higher Education Institutions is included in the following tables:

Entrants in degree-level Primary Education courses in Scottish HEIs by institution


	2010-2011	2011-2012	2012-2013	2013-2014	2014-2015
All	760	775	745	795	750
University of Aberdeen	155	150	110	110	110
University of Dundee	65	70	70	70	70
University of Edinburgh	130	120	120	120	115
University of Glasgow	150	165	155	220	180
University of Stirling	30	45	50	45	45
University of Strathclyde	150	155	165	155	150
University of the West of Scotland	85	75	80	90	75

Qualifiers in degree-level Primary Education courses in Scottish HEIs by institution

	2010-2011	2011-2012	2012-2013	2013-2014	2014-2015
All	615	705	785	655	675
University of Aberdeen	80	110	115	115	125
University of Dundee	60	75	70	65	70
University of Edinburgh	115	155	150	120	115
University of Glasgow	150	125	170	150	165
University of Stirling	0	15	45	35	40
University of Strathclyde	145	150	165	115	105
University of the West of Scotland	60	70	75	50	60

Source: Higher Education Statistics Authority (HESA)

Notes:

Numbers have been rounded to the nearest multiple of 5. Values of 0,1,2 are all rounded to zero.

Totals may not add up due to rounding.

Figures are not weighted for Full-Person-Equivalent (FPE) - that is, individuals studying combined degrees of which a Primary education course is only a part of, are counted equally to those studying a Primary education course only.

Primary Education courses are defined in HESA data as those assigned JACS 3.0 code 'X120 - Training teachers - primary'.

Question reference: S5W-04255

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 November 2016
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 16 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government how many people claimed (a) the maximum and (b) below the maximum level of higher education student (i) bursary and (ii) loan in each of the last five years, also broken down by how many claims were approved, and what information it has regarding how many eligible people did not claim.

The following table shows the number of students, who received the maximum amount of bursary in the last five academic years, and the number who received less than the maximum.

Number of Students Receiving Bursary
	2011-12	2012-13	2013-14	2014-15	2015-16
Total	51,275	50,055	50,465	49,230	46,560
Maximum	32,470	32,065	30,550	30,180	29,020
Less than maximum	18,805	17,990	19,915	19,050	17,540

The following table shows the number of students that were assessed by Student Awards Agency Scotland (SAAS) for the maximum loan available and those that were assessed for an amount less than the maximum.

This information is only available for the last three academic years. Analysis for 2011-12 and 2012-13 is not available because there were a large number of fluctuations on the maximum loan available, with amounts being based on the actual term dates for each course.

Number of Students Receiving Loan
	2013-14	2014-15	2015-16
Total	85,655	88,985	92,005
Maximum	37,405	37,230	35,690
Less than maximum	48,250	51,755	56,315

Source: SAAS

Note: Analysis is based on those receiving the exact maximum amounts – there may be some who initially would have been entitled to the maximum, though what they actually received may have been adjusted to account for issues such as overpayments from previous sessions being recovered. Loans are based on what SAAS authorised, what the student actually took out through the Student Loans Company (SLC) may be different. The analysis does not cover those who “claimed”, only those who received support. We do not hold information on those who “claimed” a loan but did not receive one.

Information on the number of eligible students who did not apply for a loan or bursary is not available.

Question reference: S5W-04253

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 November 2016
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 16 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what maximum level of (a) bursary and (b) loan has been available to higher education students in each of the last five years.

The following table shows the maximum amount of bursary available in the last five academic years.

	2011-12	2012-13	2013-14	2014-15	2015-16
Young Students' Bursary	£2,640	£2,640	£1,750	£1,750	£1,875
Independent Students' Bursary	£1,000	£1,000	£750	£750	£875
Students' Outside Scotland Bursary	£2,150	£2,150	-	-	-

The following table shows the maximum amount of living cost loan available in the last three academic years.

Analysis for 2011-12 and 2012-13 is not available because there were a large number of fluctuations on the maximum loan available, with amounts being based on the actual term length of each course and the location of study for students.

Maximum loan level
	2013-14	2014-15	2015-16
Young students	£5,500	£5,750	£5,750
Independent students	£6,500	£6,750	£6,750

Source: SAAS

Question reference: S5W-04254

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 November 2016
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 16 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government how many students from poor backgrounds were eligible for the additional £125 payment in 2015-16; how many claimed it, broken down by (a) income and (b) Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) quintile, and what plans it has to incorporate similar payments in the future through bursaries or grants, rather than on an ad-hoc basis.

A total of 37,820 students received the additional £125 bursary in 2015-16. The bursary was payable to eligible students who were already in receipt of a bursary and were from a household with an income below £24,000. 30,930 students who received the bursary were from households with an annual income below £16,999.

The £125 additional bursary was embedded in the student support rates for 2016-17 which means all eligible students will receive this additional payment going forward.

The following table shows the students who received the additional bursary in 2015-16 by Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD) 2012.

SIMD 2012	BURSARY RECIPIENTS
1 - 20% most deprived	10,520
2	8,560
3	7,430
4	6,205
5 - 20% least deprived	4,790
TOTAL	37,820

Source: Student Awards Agency Scotland

Note: SIMD 2012 identifies small area concentrations of multiple deprivation across all of Scotland in a consistent way. The SIMD ranks small areas (called datazones) from most deprived (ranked 1) to least deprived (ranked 6,505). Analysis here is based on quintiles which split the ranks in to five equal sized groups, such as the 20% most deprived areas in Scotland.

Question reference: S5W-04245

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 November 2016
Current Status: Answered by Mark McDonald on 16 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government how many students (a) began and (b) completed a Childhood Practice (BA) degree in each of the last five years, broken down by institution.

ADMISSIONS

Institution

2010-11

2011-12

2012-13

2013-14

2014-15

Total

Aberdeen University

15

28

25

19

47

134

Ayrshire College

10

Dundee University

82

56

39

35

67

279

Edinburgh College

24

0

48

72

Edinburgh University

24

25

121

Experiential Play

4

Glasgow Clyde College

20

14

12

46

Glasgow University

56

60

88

97

131

432

Hamilton School

0

12

North East Scotland College

8

Stirling Council

14

15

35

64

Strathclyde University

46

24

33

169

University of the Highlands & Islands

18

29

43

140

370

University of the West of Scotland (UWS)

61

26

30

5

148

West Lothian College

14

3

17

TOTAL

302

247

362

424

551

1886

COMPLETIONS

Institution

2010-11

2011-12

2012-13

2013-14

2014-15

Total

Aberdeen University

23

2

6

15

16

62

Ayrshire College

13

Dundee University

17

57

39

51

32

196

Edinburgh College

20

23

43

Edinburgh University

18

19

20

97

Experiential Play

4

Glasgow Clyde College

18

Glasgow University

63

48

31

46

121

309

Hamilton School

0

North East Scotland College

0

Stirling Council

12

Strathclyde University

44

84

40

37

205

University of the Highlands & Islands

36

55

91

University of the West of Scotland (UWS)

45

70

9

15

148

West Lothian College

9

TOTAL

210

280

154

283

280

1207

Question reference: S5W-04248

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 November 2016
Current Status: Answered by Mark McDonald on 16 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what the average annual cost of childcare has been for parents and carers in each of the last five years, and how it calculates this.

Question reference: S5W-04252

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 November 2016
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 16 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government further to the publication of Higher Education Student Support in Scotland 2015-16, what the reason is for the reduction in the number of bursary recipients (a) since 2014-15 and (b) over the longer term.

The publication does not identify a reason for the reduction in the number of students accessing bursaries. However, the Scottish Government will investigate this further, in consultation with stakeholders, as part of the recently announced review of student support.

The Scottish Government is committed to doing more to ensure support is equitable and fair for all students, particularly the most vulnerable, which is why we have announced a comprehensive review of student support with an independent chair. The review will examine a range of issues including the current split between bursaries and loans.

Question reference: S5W-04251

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 November 2016
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 16 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government what the total accumulated level of higher education-student debt has been in each of the last five years.

Information on student loan debt is held and published by the Student Loans Company (SLC).

http://www.slc.co.uk/official-statistics/student-loans-debt-and-repayment/scotland.aspx

The latest publication, covering financial year 2015-16, showed that the total balance outstanding (including loans not yet due for repayment) was £4.0 billion.

Total loan balance at the end of financial years 2011-12 to 2015-16

Outstanding Student Loans Debt (£ billions)

	2011-12	2012-13	2013-14	2014-15	2015-16
Scotland	2.6	2.7	3.1	3.5	4.0

Source: Student Loans Company

Question reference: S5W-04243

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 November 2016
Current Status: Answered by Mark McDonald on 16 November 2016

To ask the Scottish Government further to the publication, A Blueprint for 2020: the Expansion of Early Learning and Childcare in Scotland, (a) where and (b) when each delivery model trial will (i) take place and (ii) conclude; how much funding will be provided; what the focus of each trial will be, and which early learning and childcare settings will be involved.

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