The Education (European Institutions) and Student Support (Wales) Regulations 2013

Made: 27 March 2013

Laid before the National Assembly for Wales: 2 April 2013

Coming into force: 23 April 2013

The Welsh Ministers, in exercise of the powers conferred upon the Secretary of State by sections 22, 42(6) and 43(1) of the Teaching and Higher Education Act 1998[^f00001] and now exercisable by them[^f00002] make the following Regulations:

PART 1 — GENERAL

Title, commencement and application

1

The title of these Regulations is the Education (European Institutions) and Student Support (Wales) Regulations 2013.

2

These Regulations come into force on 23 April 2013 and apply in relation to Wales.

Interpretation

3

• (1) In these Regulations—

• “the 1998 Act” (“Deddf 1998”) means the Teaching and Higher Education Act 1998;

• “the 2011 Regulations” (“Rheoliadau 2011”) means the Assembly Learning Grants (European Institutions) (Wales) Regulations 2011[^f00003];

• “the 2012 Regulations” (“Rheoliadau 2012”) means the Education (Student Support) (Wales) Regulations 2012[^f00004];

• “academic authority” (“awdurdod academaidd”) means the governing body of a European institution or other body of a European institution having the functions of a governing body and includes a person acting with the authority of that body;

• “applicant” (“ceisydd”) means a person who applies for support in accordance with regulation 5;

• “Bologna Center” (“Canolfan Bologna”) means the graduate school for international relations established by Johns Hopkins University at Bologna;

• “Bologna Center student” (“myfyriwr yng Nghanolfan Bologna”) has the meaning given in regulation 14(1);

• “College of Europe” (“Coleg Ewrop”) means the university institute of postgraduate studies and training in European affairs at Bruges in Belgium and Natolin in Poland;

• “College of Europe student” (“myfyriwr yng Ngholeg Ewrop”) has the meaning given in regulation 14(2);

• “current course” (“cwrs cyfredol”) means the designated course in respect of which a person is applying for support;

• “designated course” (“cwrs dynodedig”) has the meaning given in paragraph (2);

• “eligible student” (“myfyriwr cymwys”) has the meaning given in regulation 7;

• “European institution” (“sefydliad Ewropeaidd”) means either the Bologna Center or the College of Europe;

• “European Union” (“Undeb Ewropeaidd”) means the territory comprised by the member states of the European Union as constituted from time to time;

• “grants for living and other costs” (“grantiau at gostau byw a chostau eraill”) means the grants specified and calculated in accordance with regulations 20 to 27;

• “parent” (“rhiant”) means a natural or adoptive parent or a guardian or any other person having parental responsibility for or care of a child;

• “person with leave to enter or remain” (“person sydd â chaniatâd i ddod i mewn neu i aros”) means a person (“P” in this definition)— who has— applied for refugee status but has as a result of that application been informed in writing by a person acting under the authority of the Secretary of State for the Home Department that, although P is considered not to qualify for recognition as a refugee, it is thought right to allow P to enter or remain in the United Kingdom on the grounds of humanitarian protection or discretionary leave; or not applied for refugee status but has been informed in writing by a person acting under the authority of the Secretary of State for the Home Department that it is thought right to allow P to enter or remain in the United Kingdom on the grounds of discretionary leave; who has been granted leave to enter or remain accordingly; whose period of leave to enter or remain has not expired or has been renewed and the period for which it was renewed has not expired or in respect of whose leave to enter or remain an appeal is pending (within the meaning of section 104 of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002[^f00005]); and who has been ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom and Islands throughout the period since P was granted leave to enter or remain;

• “qualifying course” (“cwrs cymhwysol”) means: a postgraduate or comparable course of at least two academic years' duration; in respect of which the applicant received a statutory award for at least two academic years (other than an award intended to assist with additional expenditure that the applicant was obliged to incur in connection with attendance on the course by reason of a disability to which the applicant is or was subject);

• “refugee” (“ffoadur”) means a person who is recognised by Her Majesty’s government as a refugee within the meaning of the United Nations Convention relating to the Status of Refugees done at Geneva on 28 July 1951[^f00006] as extended by the Protocol thereto which entered into force on 4 October 1967[^f00007];

• “relevant date” (“dyddiad perthnasol”) means the first day of the academic year of the designated course to which the application for support relates;

• “statutory award” (“dyfarniad statudol”) means any award bestowed, grant paid or other support provided by virtue of the 1998 Act or any comparable award, grant or other financial support in respect of undertaking a course which is paid out of public funds;

• “student loans legislation” (“y ddeddfwriaeth ar fenthyciadau i fyfyrwyr”) means the Education (Student Loans) Act 1990[^f00008], the Education (Student Loans) (Northern Ireland) Order 1990[^f00009], the Education (Scotland) Act 1980[^f00010] and regulations made under those Acts or that Order, the Education (Student Support) (Northern Ireland) Order 1998[^f00011] and regulations made under that Order or the 1998 Act and regulations made under the 1998 Act;

• “support” (“cymorth”) means financial assistance by way of grant given by the Welsh Ministers pursuant to these Regulations.

• (2) A course is designated for the purposes of section 22(1) of the 1998 Act and these Regulations if it—

• (a) begins on or after 1 September 2013;

• (b) is a full-time postgraduate or comparable course;

• (c) is of one academic year’s duration; and

• (d) is provided by a European institution.

Revocation and savings

4

• (1) Subject to paragraph (2) the 2011 Regulations are revoked.

• (2) The 2011 Regulations continue to apply to the provision of support to students in relation to an academic year which began on or after 1 September 2011 but before 1 September 2013.

PART 2 — APPLYING FOR SUPPORT AND ELIGIBILITY

Applications for support and time limits

5

• (1) An eligible student may apply for support for one academic year in connection with attendance on a designated course subject to and in accordance with these Regulations.

• (2) An applicant must submit an application to the Welsh Ministers to be considered as an eligible student and for support in such form as the Welsh Ministers may require.

• (3) Subject to paragraph (4), the application must reach the Welsh Ministers no later than 30 June immediately prior to the relevant date (“the application deadline”).

• (4) Paragraph (3) does not apply where the Welsh Ministers consider having regard to the circumstances of the particular case that the application deadline should be relaxed, in which case the application must reach the Welsh Ministers no later than such date as they may specify to the applicant concerned in writing.

Number of awards

6

The Welsh Ministers must ensure that the number of awards granted at any one time in an academic year under these Regulations do not exceed—

• (a) one, in the case of the Bologna Center;

• (b) one, in the case of the College of Europe.

Eligible students

7

• (1) An eligible student may be awarded support for one academic year in connection with undertaking a designated course subject to and in accordance with these Regulations.

• (2) Subject to paragraph (3) and regulation 8, a person is an eligible student in connection with a designated course if in assessing the person’s application for support, the Welsh Ministers determine that the person falls within one of the categories in Part 2 of Schedule 1 and either—

• (a) the academic authority of the College of Europe notifies the Welsh Ministers in writing that the person has a reasonable chance of being offered a place on that course by the College of Europe; or

• (b) the academic authority of the Bologna Center nominates that person for support in writing to the Welsh Ministers.

• (3) A person (“S”) is not an eligible student if—

• (a) subject to paragraph (4), S has attended a qualifying course;

• (b) S is in breach of an obligation to repay any loan;

• (c) S has reached the age of 18 and not ratified any agreement for a loan made with S when S was under the age of 18; or

• (d) S has, in the opinion of the Welsh Ministers, shown by S’s conduct that S is unfit to receive support.

• (4) Paragraph (3)(a) does not apply where the Welsh Ministers determine that having regard to the particular circumstances of S’s case it is appropriate to award S support in connection with the current course despite S having attended a qualifying course.

• (5) For the purposes of paragraph (3)(b) and (c), “loan” (“benthyciad”) means a loan made under the student loans legislation.

• (6) In a case where the agreement for a loan is subject to the law of Scotland, paragraph (3)(c) only applies if the agreement was made—

• (a) before 25 September 1991;

• (b) with the concurrence of S’s curator or at a time when S had no curator.

Student’s eligibility

8

• (1) A person’s status as an eligible student in connection with a designated course (“student’s eligibility”) terminates at the end of the academic year in respect of which support was awarded or sooner in accordance with paragraphs (2) to (6).

• (2) The student’s eligibility terminates when the student—

• (a) withdraws from the designated course in circumstances in which the Welsh Ministers are not required to transfer the student’s status as an eligible student in accordance with regulation 9(1); or

• (b) abandons or is expelled from the designated course.

• (3) A student’s eligibility terminates on the day before the relevant date where—

• (a) the Welsh Ministers determined that, by virtue of being a refugee or the spouse, civil partner, child or step-child of a refugee, a person (“T” in this paragraph) was an eligible student in connection with an application for support for a designated course at the same European institution from which T’s status as an eligible student has been transferred to the current course; and

• (b) the refugee status of T or of T’s spouse, civil partner, parent or step-parent, as the case may be, is due to expire before the relevant date and, as at the day before the relevant date, no further leave to remain has been granted and no appeal is pending (within the meaning of section 104 of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002).

• (4) A student’s eligibility terminates on the day before the relevant date where—

• (a) the Welsh Ministers determined that, by virtue of being a person with leave to enter or remain or the spouse, civil partner, child or step-child of such a person, a person (“U” in this paragraph) was an eligible student in connection with an application for support for a designated course at the same European institution from which U’s status as an eligible student has been transferred to the current course; and

• (b) the period for which the person with leave to enter or remain is allowed to stay in the United Kingdom is due to expire before the relevant date and, as at the day before the relevant date, no further leave to remain has been granted and no appeal is pending (within the meaning of section 104 of the Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002).

• (5) The Welsh Ministers may terminate the student’s eligibility if they are satisfied that the conduct of the student has shown that the student is unfit to receive support.

• (6) Where the Welsh Ministers are satisfied that an eligible student has failed to comply with any requirement to provide information under these Regulations or has provided information which is inaccurate or misleading in any material respect, the Welsh Ministers may do one or more of the following—

• (a) terminate the student’s eligibility;

• (b) determine that the student no longer qualifies for any particular type or amount of support;

• (c) treat any support already paid to the student as an overpayment which may be recovered in accordance with regulation 33.

Course transfers

9

• (1) Where an eligible student transfers during the academic year from a designated course to another designated course at the same European institution, the Welsh Ministers must transfer the student’s status as an eligible student to that other course where—

• (a) they receive a request from the student to do so;

• (b) they are satisfied that the student has begun to attend that other course on the recommendation of the academic authority; and

• (c) the student’s status as an eligible student has not otherwise terminated.

• (2) A student whose status as an eligible student is transferred under paragraph (1) is entitled to receive the remainder of the support assessed by the Welsh Ministers in respect of the course from which the student transfers.

• (3) Save as provided in paragraph (2) where an eligible student transfers from a designated course to another designated course, the student’s status as an eligible student is not transferred and the student is not entitled to receive the remainder of any support assessed by the Welsh Ministers in respect of the course from which the student transfers.

PART 3 — ENQUIRIES AND PROVISION OF INFORMATION

Making enquiries

10

The Welsh Ministers may take such steps and make such enquiries as they consider necessary to determine—

• (a) whether an applicant is an eligible student;

• (b) whether an eligible student qualifies for support;

• (c) the amount of support payable if any;

• (d) whether a student’s eligibility has terminated;

• (e) the amount of a College of Europe student’s contribution for the purposes of Part 5;

• (f) in the case of the Welsh Ministers receiving more than one application for support in respect of the same academic year and European institution whether an eligible student is most suitable to receive support.

Information from applicants

11

• (1) Every applicant and eligible student granted support, must, as soon as reasonably practicable after being requested to do so, provide the Welsh Ministers with such information and documentation as the Welsh Ministers require for the purposes of these Regulations.

• (2) Every applicant and eligible student granted support must where applicable immediately inform the Welsh Ministers and provide the Welsh Ministers with particulars if—

• (a) the person withdraws from, abandons or is expelled from the course;

• (b) the person transfers to another course at the same European institution;

• (c) the person ceases to attend the course and does not intend to or is not permitted to continue it for the remainder of the academic year;

• (d) the person is absent from the course for more than 60 days due to illness or for any period for any other reason;

• (e) the month for the start or completion of the course changes;

• (f) the person’s home or term-time address changes.

Format of information required

12

• (1) Information required to be provided pursuant to these Regulations must be provided to the Welsh Ministers in the format required by the Welsh Ministers.

• (2) If the Welsh Ministers require the information to be signed by the person providing it, an electronic signature in such form as the Welsh Ministers may specify satisfies this requirement.

• (3) An electronic signature (“llofnod electronig”) is so much of anything in electronic form as—

• (a) is incorporated into or otherwise logically associated with any electronic communication or electronic data; and

• (b) purports to be so incorporated or associated for the purpose of being used in establishing the authenticity of the communication or data, the integrity of the communication or data, or both.

Informing applicants

13

The Welsh Ministers must inform an applicant—

• (a) whether that applicant is considered an eligible student;

• (b) of the amount of support if any payable in respect of the academic year in question;

• (c) if the Welsh Ministers consider a student’s eligibility has terminated;

• (d) of the amount of any College of Europe student’s contribution calculated under Schedule 2.

PART 4 — FINANCIAL SUPPORT

CHAPTER 1 — GENERAL PROVISION

Number of awards

14

• (1) The Welsh Ministers may award support to one eligible student at any one time undertaking a designated course at the Bologna Center (“Bologna Center student”).

• (2) The Welsh Ministers may award support to one eligible student at any one time in an academic year undertaking a designated course at the College of Europe (“College of Europe student”).