Student Support Act 2011

PART 1 Preliminary and General

1. Short title and commencement.

1.— (1) This Act may be cited as the Student Support Act 2011.

(2) This Act shall come into operation on such day or days as the Minister may appoint by order or orders either generally or with reference to any particular purpose or provision and different days may be so appointed for different purposes or different provisions.

2. Interpretation.

2.— In this Act—

“Appeals Board” shall be construed in accordance with section 25 (2);

“appeals officer” means a person designated under section 20 (1);

“applicant” means a student who applies for a grant;

“appointed awarding authority” shall be construed in accordance with section 9;

“approved course” has the meaning given to it by section 8;

“approved institution” has the meaning given to it by section 7;

“awarding authority” means—

F1[(a) an education and training board,]

(b) a local authority, or

(c) an appointed awarding authority;

F2[“bursary”means money paid by an awarding authority to a student, or to an approved institution on behalf of the student, for the purpose of assisting the student to pursue an approved course at the approved institution, where the money is provided from a fund established pursuant to a bursary scheme;

“bursary scheme”means a scheme established, by way of a trust or other instrument, for the purposes of providing financial support to students falling into all or any of the following groups to assist them to participate in further education or higher education:

(a) students who are economically or socially disadvantaged;

(b) students who have a disability;

(c) students who are from sections of society significantly under-represented in the student body;]

“civil partner” shall be construed in accordance with the Civil Partnership and Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act 2010;

“cohabitant” shall be construed in accordance with section 172(1) of the Civil Partnership and Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act 2010;

“course” means a course of study or training;

“dependent child” shall be construed in accordance with section 16 (7);

“dependent student” means an applicant or class of applicant specified as a dependent student in a scheme made by the Minister under section 16;

“educational disadvantage” means the impediments to education arising from social or economic disadvantage which prevent students from deriving appropriate benefit from education;

“EEA Agreement” means the Agreement on the European Economic Area signed at Oporto on 2 May 1992 as amended for the time being;

“enactment” has the meaning given to it by section 2 of the Interpretation Act 2005;

“grant” means money paid by an awarding authority to a student or to an approved institution on behalf of the student for the purpose of assisting the student to pursue an approved course at the approved institution;

“independent student” means an applicant or class of applicant specified as an independent student in a scheme made by the Minister under section 16;

“inquiry officer” means a person appointed pursuant to section 22;

F3["local authority" means a local authority for the purposes of theLocal Government Act 2001(as amended by the Local Government Reform Act 2014);]

“Minister” means the Minister for Education and Skills;

“parent” includes a F4[guardian appointed under theGuardianship of Infants Act 1964, other than a temporary guardian appointed under section 6E of that Act], and, in the case of a child who has been adopted under the Adoption Act 2010 or, where the child has been adopted outside of the State, means the adopter or adopters or the surviving adopter;

“prescribed” means prescribed by regulations made by the Minister under this Act;

“progression” means—

(a) the process by which learners may progress from year to year within a course following the successful completion of part of the course as required during the previous year, or

(b) the process by which learners may transfer from one course to another course where the award that may be made on the successful completion of the second mentioned course is of a higher level than the award that may be made on the successful completion of the first mentioned course;

“reckonable income” shall be construed in accordance with section 16(4)(a)(iv);

“relevant Minister” shall be construed in accordance with section 9(8);

F5["relevant specified jurisdiction" means—

(a) a country that, as respects a class of person standing prescribed undersection 14A(1) for the purposes ofsection 14(1)(aa), is specified in the regulations concerned undersection 14A(1)prescribing that class, or

(b) where a class of person stands prescribed undersection 14A(3)for the purposes ofsection 14(1)(aa), Northern Ireland;]

F2[“scholarship”means money paid by an awarding authority to a student, or to an approved institution on behalf of the student, for the purpose of assisting the student to pursue an approved course at the approved institution, where the money is provided from a fund established pursuant to a scholarship scheme;

“scholarship scheme”means a scheme established, by way of a trust or other instrument, for the purposes of providing financial support to students who demonstrate the level of educational attainment (if any) required by the scheme and who fall into all or any of the following groups to assist them to participate in further education or higher education:

(a) students who are economically or socially disadvantaged;

(b) students who have a disability;

(c) students who are from sections of society significantly under-represented in the student body;]

“student” shall be construed in accordance with section 14(1);

“transferring awarding authority” shall be construed in accordance with section 9(1);

“tuition fees” means fees and charges that a student is required to pay in order to participate in and complete a course and includes examination fees, student service charges, registration fees and lecture fees;

“tuition student” has the meaning given to it by section 14 (7);

F6[…]

3. Expenses.

3.— The expenses incurred by the Minister in the administration of this Act shall, to such extent as may be sanctioned by the Minister for Finance, be paid out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.

4. Regulations.

4.— (1) Subject to this Act, the Minister may make regulations prescribing any matter or thing referred to in this Act as prescribed or to be prescribed.

(2) Regulations under this section may contain such incidental, supplementary and consequential provisions as appear to the Minister to be necessary or expedient for the purposes of the regulations or for giving effect to this Act.

5. Laying of instruments before Houses of Oireachtas.

5.— Every order, regulation or scheme under this Act (other than an order under section 1(2) or 25(1)) shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as may be after it is made and, if a resolution annulling the order, regulation or scheme is passed by either such House within the next 21 days on which that House has sat after the order, regulation or scheme is laid before it, the order, regulation or scheme shall be annulled accordingly, but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done thereunder.

6. Repeals and transitional arrangements.

6.— (1) The enactments specified in column (2) of Schedule 1 are repealed.

(2) A person attending a course who was, prior to the coming into operation of this section, awarded a grant to attend the course pursuant to—

(a) the enactments referred to in subsection (1), or

(b) schemes administered by a vocational education committee whereby grants were provided to students to assist them in attending courses in higher or further education,

shall, subject to the terms of the enactments or schemes, continue to receive the grant concerned until the person has completed that course and he or she shall not apply for a grant other than the grant of which he or she is in receipt.

(3) The enactments referred to in subsection (1) and schemes referred to in subsection (2)(b) shall continue in force and apply to grants made pursuant to those enactments and schemes before the coming into operation of this section to the same extent as if this Act had not been passed.

7. Approved institution.

7.— (1) In this Act, “approved institution” means—

(a) an educational institution to which, pursuant to section 4 of the Universities Act 1997, that Act applies,

(b) an educational institution established under section 3 of the Regional Technical Colleges Act 1992 as a regional technical college to which the Institutes of Technology Acts 1992 to 2006 apply,

F8[(ba) a technological university within the meaning of the Technological Universities Act 2018,]

(c) the Dublin Institute of Technology,

(d) an educational institution in the State that receives a grant out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas F9[…] for the provision of courses of education and training known for the time being as post-leaving certificate courses,

(e) an educational institution that provides higher education and training which is situated in a Member State other than the State which is maintained or assisted by recurrent grants from public funds of that or any other Member State F7[including the State,]

(f) an educational institution in the State that provides higher education and training and which stands prescribed for the time being pursuant to F7[subsection (2), or]

F10[(g) an educational institution that provides higher education and training and which—

(i) is situated in a relevant specified jurisdiction, and

(ii) is maintained or assisted by recurrent grants from public funds of that jurisdiction or of any Member State including the State.]

(2) Where the Minister is satisfied to do so, having—

(a) regard to any of the matters specified in subsection (3),

(b) consulted with the F11[An tÚdarás um Ard-Oideachas], and

(c) obtained the consent of the Minister for Finance,

he or she may prescribe an educational institution as being an approved institution for the purposes of this section.

(3) Each of the following are the matters mentioned in subsection (2):

(a) whether the institution receives one or more than one payment out of moneys made available by the Oireachtas and the amount of the payment;

(b) the policy of the institution in relation to access to education in the institution by economically or socially disadvantaged persons, by persons who have a disability and by persons from sections of society significantly under represented in the student body;

(c) the courses and facilities offered or intended to be offered to students by the institution;

(d) whether prior to the commencement of this section, the institution was an institution which, in respect of its courses, grants were made available pursuant to a scheme administered by a local authority or a vocational education committee whereby grants were provided to students to assist them in attending those courses;

(e) whether the institution is established for the principal purposes of higher education, training and research and operated and managed on a basis other than for financial gain;

(f) the requirement for the development of skills and knowledge in sectors of the economy or employment identified as requiring such development of skills and knowledge following advice received by the Minister from such person who has an interest or expertise in educational matters or the development of skills and knowledge as the Minister considers appropriate to consult for that advice;

(g) resources available for the provision of student support;

(h) any other matters which in the opinion of the Minister are proper matters to be taken into account having regard to the objective of enabling persons to attend courses of higher or further education, the need to maintain educational standards and the contribution that the institution is making to higher education in the State.

8. Approved course.

8.— (1) In this Act “approved course” means a course which—

(a) is provided by an approved institution,

(b) subject to subsection (3), requires attendance by a student on a full-time basis, and

(c) has been prescribed as an approved course.

(2) The following matters or any of them are the matters to which the Minister shall have regard for the purposes of prescribing a course pursuant to subsection (1)(c):

(a) the nature and level of the qualification to be awarded to the student on the successful completion by him or her of the course;

(b) whether prior to the coming into operation of this Act the course was a course in respect of which, pursuant to a scheme administered by a local authority or a vocational education committee, grants were provided to students to assist them in attending the course;

(c) the requirement for the development of skills and knowledge in sectors of the economy or employment identified as requiring such development of skills and knowledge following advice received by the Minister from such person who has an interest or expertise in educational matters or the development of skills and knowledge as the Minister considers appropriate to consult for that advice;

(d) the educational institution which provides the course;

(e) the duration of the course;

(f) whether the course is an undergraduate or postgraduate course;

(g) whether publicly funded moneys are being used by that educational institution to provide the course;

(h) whether the course leads to a higher education and training award or further education and training award;

(i) resources available for the provision of student support;

(j) the number of hours that a student is required to spend attending the course;

(k) whether the course leads to a qualification that is recognised—

(i) in the case of a qualification awarded following the successful completion of a course at an institution other than an institution mentioned at section 7(1)(e) F12[or (g)], pursuant to arrangements, procedures and systems that constitute for the time being the framework of qualifications established and maintained pursuant to section 7 of the Qualifications (Education and Training) Act 1999,

(ii) in the case of a qualification awarded following the successful completion of a course at an institution mentioned at section 7(1)(e) F12[or (g)]—

(I) if such recognition is provided for by those laws in that manner, in a manner provided for by the laws of that Member State that corresponds to the arrangements, procedures and systems referred to in subparagraph (i), or

(II) if such recognition is not provided for by those laws in that manner, then otherwise in accordance with the laws of that F13[Member State, or]

F14[(iii) in the case of a qualification awarded following the successful completion of a course at an institution mentioned atsection 7(1)(g)—

(I) if such recognition is provided for by those laws in the following manner, in a manner provided for by the laws of a relevant specified jurisdiction that correspond to the arrangements, procedures and systems referred to insubparagraph (i), or

(II) if such recognition is not provided for by those laws in that manner, then otherwise in accordance with the laws of the relevant specified jurisdiction;]

(l) any other matters which in the opinion of the Minister are proper matters to be taken into account having regard to the objective of enabling persons to attend courses of higher or further education, the need to maintain educational standards and the contribution that provision of the course would make to higher education in the State.

(3) (a) Notwithstanding subsection (1)(b), the Minister, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, may prescribe a course that does not require attendance by a student on a full-time basis to be an approved course.

(b) A course prescribed pursuant to this subsection shall be a course that—

(i) is provided in the State, and

(ii) is an undergraduate course.

(c) The Minister, in prescribing a course pursuant to paragraph (a), shall have regard to the following matters:

(i) the matters referred to in subsection (2) (other than paragraph (k)(ii) F15[or (iii)] of that subsection);

(ii) the extent to which the prescribing of the course would assist in addressing educational disadvantage;

(iii) the extent to which the prescribing of the course would assist and encourage participation by persons from sections of society significantly under-represented in the student body availing of higher education;

(iv) the number of modules that may be completed and the extent of educational attainment in each academic year of the course;

(v) the amount of work and contact with teachers and tutors in relation to the course required of a student;

(vi) the period of time required to complete the course when compared to a course that requires attendance by a student on a full-time basis;

(vii) whether the course takes place on the premises of the approved institution;

(viii) any other matters which in the opinion of the Minister are proper matters to be taken into account having regard to available resources and the need to promote access to higher education by persons who suffer educational disadvantage.

(4) For the purposes of this Act, and subject to subsection (5), any postgraduate course that may be prescribed pursuant to subsection (1) shall only be a postgraduate course that is provided in the State.

(5) Notwithstanding subsection (4), where the Minister is satisfied to do so because he or she considers that it is necessary having regard to any of the relevant purposes mentioned in subsection (9), he or she may prescribe a postgraduate course that is provided in Northern Ireland as an approved course.

(6) Where a grant is awarded to attend a postgraduate course prescribed pursuant to subsection (5), the grant awarded may include a grant in respect of tuition fees arising in respect of the course.