Call for more help for poorer students
Colleges are calling for students who stay in education from 16 to 19 to receive a grant of £40 a week to persuade more to remain in education.
The calls come after analysis of various forms of Education Maintenance Allowances (EMA), a new fund introduced by the Government to increase the take up of post 16 education.
According to the Association of Colleges (AoC) the most popular scheme, piloted in Nottingham and Oldham, paid children from families earning less than £13,000 a year, £40 a week. Research found that in those areas 86% of those entitled to the grants claimed them.
In contrast other schemes designed to target funds to help with transport costs and the cost to parents were often ignored, while a scheme offering £30 a week was taken by 69% of those eligible.
Chief executive of the AoC, John Brennan, said that the figures show that both local and national government need to do more to make next year’s national rollout of EMAs a success.
‘The Government needs to think carefully about the value of the EMA and weigh the costs of keeping it to £30 a week against the potential benefits of a higher allowance on participation and staying-on rates,’ he stated.
Some EMA schemes are dependent on students attending classes and handing in homework.
