(L-R)Yemi Makinde (from Union of Brunel Students), Lizzie Swarbrick (President of Courtauld Institute of Art Students' Union), Vice President (Education) Wes Streeting and NUS President Gemma Tumelty.
"Universities have failed to deliver and, this morning, we went to demand that money for students." Vice President (Education) Wes Streeting.
University vice chancellors and principals were this week (11 February) asked, by NUS, for the £24m universities owe to students in bursary funds.
Vice President (Education) Wes Streeting presented UUK with an invoice for the huge sum at the Guardian’s higher education conference in London, and called on institutions to ensure that the money reaches those students who need it.
“NUS is deeply concerned that universities have spent £24m less on bursaries and outreach activities than they had originally planned,” said Wes. “We expect these institutions to reinvest this money in their widening participation activities.
“They must begin urgent discussions with students' unions about the design and promotion of their bursary packages, and to implement OFFA's recommendation to retrospectively award bursaries to those students who were entitled to them.
“NUS believes that these problems would not exist if a national bursary scheme were in place. It would reduce bureaucracy and ensure that financial support is based on what students need, not where they study. This case becomes more compelling with each passing year, and we will make that case forcefully when the 2009 review begins its work."
Courtauld Students’ Union now has an agreement with its institution to make sure that the allocation of funds for outreach goes ahead as planned. The union, under Lizzie Swarbrick (pictured above) is also working with Courtauld to strengthen the system used to find out which students are eligible for bursaries as well as back-dating all bursaries unpaid to eligible students.
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