STAKEHOLDER & PARTNER BULLETIN

FEBRUARY 2011

Returning customers who applied for student finance that did depend on their household income last year (means tested) will now re-apply online for student finance.

Student Finance England - Returning full-time students should apply NOW for student finance for AY 2011/2012.

Our service for returning customers is now open, with a deadline for submitting applications by 30 June 2011.

What’s new for returning customers in AY 2011/2012?We have introduced several changes to the SFE service for returning customers which will make it quicker and easier for them to re-apply for student finance.

Returning customers who applied for student finance that did not depend on their household income last year (non means tested) will be processed automatically.

This bulletin gives you an update on the Student Finance England, Student Finance Northern Ireland and Student Finance Wales services for 2011/2012. There are also updates on the transfer of customers from Local Authorities in England to SFE and the activities of the stakeholder working groups.

• SFE will send these customers a student finance entitlement letter, which includes a declaration form. They need to sign the declaration form and return it to SFE to complete their application.

• If their circumstances have changed since last year, for example their course, their university or their loan amounts, customers need to sign the declaration form, return it to SFE then go online to make the changes to their online account. SFE will then send customers a revised student finance entitlement letter.

• If their circumstances have changed since last year, for example their course, their university or their loan amounts; they will complete the online application and give details of these changes. SFE will send them a student finance entitlement letter which includes a declaration form. Customers need to sign the declaration form and return it to SFE to complete their application.

• The majority of returning customers who re-apply for student finance which does depend on their household income will not need to supply financial evidence with their application. If we do ask for financial evidence, we will only ask for copies of documents and not originals.

• We are encouraging these returning customers to apply online as early as possible so that they can be sure to get all the money they are entitled to at the start of term in the autumn.

Student Finance England – new full-time students

We will open the SFE service for new full-time students on 16 March, with a deadline for submitting applications of 31 May.

We are introducing changes to the SFE service which will make it quicker and easier for new customers. These changes include:

IAG materials for SFE 2011/12

Our Student Finance England student guides are now all available online at www.direct.gov.uk/studentfinance.

You can download and order paper copies of the Practitioner Pack and a ‘Guide to Financial Support for Higher Educations Students 2011/2012’ by completing the order form on the SFE practitioners’ website –www.practitioners.studentfinanceengland.co.uk

• They will complete a short online application and SFE will send them a student finance entitlement letter which includes a declaration form. Customers need to sign the declaration form and return it to SFE to complete their application.

• We will process the majority of new applications for student finance which depends on household income (means-tested) without asking customers to send in financial evidence.

• When we do ask customers to send financial evidence, we will only ask for copies of documents and not originals.

Feedback:If you have any feedback or suggestions on this bulletin please email us at: stakeholder_enquiries@slc.co.uk

Update on the stakeholder working groups

Disabled Student Stakeholder GroupThe Disabled Student Stakeholder Group met on 4 February they;

Student Finance Northern Ireland service now open for applications

Our Student Finance Northern Ireland service for AY 2011/2012 is now open, with a deadline for submitting applications from new customers of 4 May and from returning customers of 30 June.

Student Finance Wales service for 2011/2012

Our Student Finance Wales service will open on 21 February, with a deadline for submitting applications from new customers of 15 April and from returning customers of 27 May.

Transfer of student finance responsibilities from Local Authorities to Student Finance England

Between January 2011 and March 2011 Local Authorities in England are transferring their student finance responsibilities to us. By the end of March, we will be fully responsible for all student finance applications for customers in England.

Who is affected?This affects students who started university or college in academic year 2008/2009 or before.

How is the transfer going?As of 14 February, 48 Local Authorities have successfully transferred their customers to Student Finance England. The remaining 81 Local Authorities will transfer over the coming weeks and all transfers will be complete by 31 March 2011.

More information on the local authority transferThe timetable with the dates for when each Local Authority is transferring to us is available on our SFE Practitioners website www.practitioners.studentfinanceengland.co.uk

Further information about the transfer is also available at: www.direct.gov.uk/latransfer

• Discussed the forthcoming DSA Partners Seminars and gave input to workshop content.

• Were satisfied the processing of DSA applications was going well and looked at an analysis of DSA applications still being processed.

• Are assisting with various initiatives including developing procurement guidance for non-medical helper suppliers to address current issues of quality and value for money.

Vulnerable Students Stakeholder Group The Vulnerable Students Stakeholder Group met on 25 January they;

Stakeholder Operations GroupThe Stakeholder Operations Group met on 21 January they;

IAG and Customer Insight Stakeholder GroupThe IAG and Customer Insight Stakeholder Group met on 14 December, they;

• As part of continuing monitoring of customer service and application processing offered to vulnerable students, the group discussed the service offered to estranged students. The group are helping to develop better customer communications and SFE staff training to provide improved customer service.

• Agreed the format of training videos of case studies of care leavers, student parents and estranged students to be led by stakeholders with expertise in each area.

• Discussed the service objectives and enhancements of the Student Finance England service for academic year 2011/2012, and the phased launch with returning customers applying from 14 February and new customers from 16 March.

• Discussed how SFE will give customers a better quality of service during 2011/2012 with increased customer numbers and how the planned service improvements will achieve this.

• Discussed how they will be involved in the review of IAG materials for 2011/2012 and the review of the Directgov website.

• The group were also consulted on proposals for the IAG seminar programme.

Our peopleWe are pleased to confirm the full management team has now been appointed : Chairman, Ed SmithChief Executive, Ed Lester Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Strategic Development, David Wallace Director of Operational Delivery, Derek Ross Director of Finance & Administration, Les Campbell Director of Marketing & Communications, Jenifer StirtonDirector of People and Change, Taroub Zahran, Chief Information Officer, Gordon Simpson Company Secretary and Director of Assurance Services, Chris Andrew

Clarification of the role of the Independent Assessor in our customer complaints and appeals processThe Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Student Loans Company have issued clarification on the role of the Independent Assessor in our customer complaints and appeals processes. To read the full clarification, please see our corporate site.