Written question asked by Lord Grayling (Conservative) on Thursday, 29 January 2004, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 5 February 2004. It was answered by Alan Johnson (Labour) on Thursday, 5 February 2004 on behalf of the Department for Education and Skills.

Dept for Education and Skills

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills, under what circumstances his Department will ignore parental income in deciding eligibility for a student grant; at what age his Department will cease to take into account family income when assessing a student's right to receive a student grant under his new proposals for student support.

Answer: Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) under what circumstances his Department will ignore parental income in deciding eligibility for a student grant; [152734] (2) at what age his Department will cease to take into account family income when assessing a student's right to receive a student grant under his new proposals for student support. [152735] Alan Johnson: The income of a student's parents is not taken into account when assessing entitlement to student support in a number of circumstances. The most commonly applied are: the student is aged 25 or over; is currently or has been married; parents are deceased or cannot be found; the student is irreconcilably estranged from their parents; has been self-supporting either through earnings, benefits or training allowances for three years before the start of the course. These arrangements have been in place throughout the existing student support package which was introduced in 1999.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 417 c1032W; 152734;152735
Session: 2003-04
Subjects: Assessments Finance Grants Income Higher education Parents Students
Link: View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk