Higher Education: Part-Time Students

Lord Davies of Oldham Excerpts

Wednesday 11th November 2015 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Evans of Bowes Park]

My Lords, we have taken measures to continue to encourage part-time students. We have introduced loans for tuition fees and, compared with the year before, double the number of part-time undergraduates now have a student loan. We have enabled second-degree student funding support for specific subjects, and of course we have higher and degree apprenticeships, which are the fastest-growing part of the apprenticeship programme. We take these concerns seriously and are taking action.

[Lord Davies of Oldham (Lab)]

My Lords, the Minister must know that there has been a drop of 55% in the number of part-time undergraduates in our universities. That is a very worrying figure, and even more damage is being done to part-time education in our further education colleges, a third of which this Government look bent on closing. Would the Minister care to comment on those two points?

[Baroness Evans of Bowes Park]

As I said, we accept that the fall in part-time student numbers is concerning and that is why we are taking a range of measures. I will not repeat them because I know that noble Lords want me to be brief. However, we understand the concerns and are taking action. We consider the FE sector to be extremely important.