Leeds Trinity University seeks legal action over course classification dispute

Leeds Trinity is among five universities seeking legal action against the Student Loans Company (SLC) and Department for Education (DfE) after students studying weekend courses were informed they were not eligible to receive maintenance loans or childcare grants. The SLC  officially classes these courses as distance learning – a designation that the legal case aims to challenge.

Back in April, over 22,000 students across 15 universities received letters from the SLC informing them their courses had never been eligible for maintenance loans or childcare grants. All of the affected students were studying weekend courses, which are considered to be distance learning. Those who had been issued this funding were told that it had been given to them in error and now needed to be repaid in full.

While the students have since been granted a temporary payment reprieve, they are still expected to eventually repay the money to the SLC through the normal student finance route. They have also had their funding abruptly halted, leaving some struggling to cover the costs of continuing their university education.

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Leeds Trinity- alongside Bath Spa University, Buckinghamshire New University, London Metropolitan University and Southampton Solent University- has now begun the process of mounting a legal challenge against this decision.

Yesterday, the five universities announced that they had initiated judicial review proceedings against the SLC and DfE. At the core of the legal case is the argument that weekend courses constitute in-person learning, and therefore students on these programmes should be entitled to full maintenance loans and grants.

Professor Charles Egbu, Vice-Chancellor of Leeds Trinity University, said: “In-person weekend study should not be treated as equivalent to distance learning simply because it takes place on Saturdays and Sundays rather than weekdays,” adding that he believes this idea to be “irrational, outdated and inconsistent with the direction of travel towards flexible lifelong learning.”

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The legal dispute comes as the DfE prepares introduce the Lifelong Learning Entitlement. This major reform to the current student finance system in England aims to make higher education more flexible and accessible to people balancing higher education with other life commitments.

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However, the universities argue that the SLC and DfE’s refusal to issue loans and grants to students studying weekend courses sends precisely the opposite message. This is because universities often offer weekend courses as a way to enable students to balance their studies with commitments such as childcare and work.

Buckinghamshire New University’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor Damien Page, emphasised the additional financial stresses now being placed on these students, saying:

“The steps taken have eased some anxiety, but we must not forget the individuals and families who rely on grants to support their studies around paid work. We’ve ramped up hardship support to help our students cope but the fact remains that many people continue to face significant uncertainty. The government is encouraging people to boost their skills through flexible access to education and must now ensure this endeavour is backed up in reality.”

Despite the ongoing legal challenge, the universities have reiterated that their immediate priority remains supporting affected students and minimising further disruption to their education.

The issue is now also receiving parliamentary scrutiny, with The Education Select Committee submitting detailed questions to the DfE, SLC and the Office for Students regarding the handling of the matter and the impact on students.

The Student Loans Company and the Department for Education have been contacted for comment.

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