Student loans Simplified

04 July 2006

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From 2009, all student loans in the UK will be integrated with university applications.

The new system, announced by the Department for Education and Skills, aims to simplify student finances, leading to faster descisions and payments. This will mean that the Universities and Colleges Admissions service (UCAS) and the Student loans company will be working together.

The review said the arrangements must offer students clear information about their entitlement to support.

It called for faster decisions once applications had been made, timely payments when students started a course and accurate repayments when these came to be made.

Higher education minister Bill Rammell said: "Going to university can be exciting and life changing as well as academically and socially rewarding. We want to continue with our work to widening access to everyone academic potential,"

NUS president, Gemma Tulley said "Navigating the plethora of forms and applications can make for a very confusing and stressful time and we welcome this initiative to simplify the system."

But, she added that the announcement "cannot disguise the fact that with the introduction of top-up fees, student debt is set to rocket,"

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