New treatment for NHS degree funding

For most undergraduates a loan is part and parcel of student life. And from September 2017, those starting a degree in nursing, midwifery and allied health professions like physiotherapy, occupational therapy, radiotherapy and oncology, and diagnostic imaging look set to join the mainstream when NHS bursaries become a thing of the past.

The UK Government is currently consulting on proposals outlined in the Chancellor’s 2015 comprehensive spending review. However, first impressions indicate that the withdrawal of NHS funding for tuition fees and income-assessed living costs could well put up to 25 per cent more cash in students’ pockets while they’re training – a move that would be particularly good news for those paying for childcare.

Under the current system – which remains valid for applicants embarking on NHS-funded courses in 2016/17 – students get their tuition fees paid by the NHS directly to their chosen university. They can also apply for a bursary and grant to help with living costs and a reduced rate student finance loan. This needs to be repaid once they graduate and are earning over £21,000 a year, and equates to just over £5.00 per month

Fast forward to 2017/18 entry and the landscape looks like changing to one of fully repayable funding via student loans for both tuition fees and living costs (although details will not be confirmed until the regulations are passed by parliament).

“The current NHS bursary funding has not seen an increase in line with inflation for the past eight years so something needs to change,” says Kate White, head of money advice and funds service at The University of the West of England, Bristol (UWE Bristol).

“The amounts students are likely to be borrowing to fund their NHS degrees from 2017 are going to look very different to the current model because they will mirror those of their peers on other courses for the first time. The headline figures will be higher but, it seems, so will the amount of money these students have to live on and that’s really important.”

At UWE Bristol more than 50 per cent of applicants for degree courses in nursing, midwifery, occupational therapy, physiotherapy, radiotherapy, oncology and diagnostic imaging are over 21 and almost all have to give up existing jobs in order to pursue their studies. Real world experience is a crucial part of their training and placements often require full-time shift work in an NHS Trust setting, making it challenging to find regular part-time employment and juggle childcare.

“Employability is built into these degree programmes, which makes them an amazing long-term investment,” Kate explains. “Under the proposed new system NHS course graduates will have to repay their loans but, like everyone else, the actual amount they pay will depend on how much they earn.

“For example, a health professional earning £26,000 will pay back about a quarter of the maximum possible loan at current rates. The percentage rises for higher salaries, but any outstanding amount will still be written off after 30 years.”

Once the government shares its detailed plans, universities will be in a position to pass on the full facts to prospective students together with information about their own financial support programmes such as the UWE Bristol Bursary. Things will change – but for many that could open up a world of opportunity.