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Bursary Fund Guide and Contract

2013-2014

Please read this booklet carefully If you need any further information please ask a member of staff in the Bursary Office located in the Duncan Lawton Building

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This guide has been produced to provide you and your parent(s)/carer(s) with a handy source of reference for any issues regarding the Bursary Fund. The information relates to students applying for the Bursary for the first time or students who have previously received a Bursary but whose circumstances have changed and new evidence is required. To start receiving Bursary payments you MUST: 1. Sign and hand in your Bursary Application Form to the Bursary Office. You will be notified by email whether or not your application has been successful. Provide a photocopy of supporting evidence as detailed on the application form. No other type of evidence will be accepted. Copies of all pages of the evidence must be provided.

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Please ensure that your parent(s) / carer(s) read this booklet and add their signature to the Bursary Application Form before you return it to College. BURSARIES The 16-19 Bursary Fund is designed to help support young people who face financial barriers to continuing in education after the age of 16. The fund has two elements: 1. Financial support for the most vulnerable learners, ie young people in care, care leavers, young people in receipt of income support and disabled young people in receipt of Employment and Support allowance who are also in receipt of Disability Living allowance. If you meet the criteria for a Vulnerable Learner Bursary you will receive 1,200 per year, paid in half termly instalments (200 per half term) directly into your bank account. A discretionary fund to help young people from families in receipt of a means tested benefit towards the costs related to attending college. The Discretionary Bursary will be either a Cash Bursary or Transport.

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NB Awards from the Bursary Fund are made at the discretion of the college therefore the amount and type of financial support provided at Oldham Sixth Form College may vary from other schools and colleges. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA Students applying for support from the 16-19 Bursary Fund must: be registered on a full-time course at Oldham Sixth Form College; be aged under 19 on 31 August in the academic year in which they start their programme of study; satisfy the residency criteria in the document EFA Funding Guidance 2013/14: Funding Regulations. Normally you will need to be resident in the UK 3 years prior to 1 September 2013 (full details of eligibility criteria are available on request); and be identified as a vulnerable learner in point i) above; or qualify on an assessment of family income, ie in receipt of a means tested benefit identified below (evidence must be provided): Education Benefits (Evidence letter from Benefits Agency/Local Council) Employment and Support Allowance (Evidence Dept for Work and Pensions letter) Income Support (Evidence Job Centre Plus letter/notification) Jobseekers Allowance (Evidence Job Centre Plus letter/notification) Universal Credits (Evidence HM Revenue & Customs Award Notice) Pension Credits (Evidence HM Revenue & Customs Award Notice) Child Tax Credits Income below 21,000 (excluding Child Tax Credits) (Evidence HM Revenue & Customs Tax Credit Award notice for the year April 2012 to April 2013). All 6 pages of this document need to
be copied and supplied.

Working Tax Credits income below 21,000 (excluding Child Tax Credits)
(Evidence HM Revenue & Customs Tax Credit Award notice for the year April 2012 to April 2013). All 6 pages of this document need to be copied and supplied.

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You must also meet the terms of your learning contract and have at least 90% attendance at College. Attendance will be assessed half termly for the following half term Bursary payment. For this purpose College organised trips and study leave will be recorded as present, however, notified sickness and unexplained absences will be recorded as absent. An exception may be made for students with on-going medical conditions who can provide medical evidence to explain multiple or long term absences from College. You should notify the college of all absences via the 24 hour telephone Absence Line (0161 287 8002) or on SPADD. PROOF OF ELIGIBILITY You will need to provide current evidence of your eligibility where you see the symbol on the 16-19 Bursary Fund Application Form. Please provide photocopies of evidence and write your name and College ID number on each page of evidence. 1. Vulnerable Learners should provide writt en proof/confirmation of: a. current or previous looked after status from the local authority; or b. receipt of income support; or c. receipt of both Employment Support allowance and Disability Living allowance. All other applicants should provide evidence (as detailed above) of their parents means tested benefit. Please make sure that the address on your evidence documents is your current address and is recorded with the college as your home address and that the name of your parent(s)/ guardian on the evidence are your named contacts which you have previously supplied to college.

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Unfortunately we cannot accept the following evidence: Bank Statements; Building Society Statements; Pay slips; Child Benefit Notice; P60 End of Year Notice; Redundancy Letters; Single Occupancy Council Tax reduction letters. Please Note: Evidence over 12 months old will not be accepted. HOW DOES THE BURSARY WORK? Once your application has been approved you will be notified by email and at that stage you must enter your bank details onto SPADD. Please note all bursary students should enter their bank details as, if funds allow, additional payments may be made throughout the year. If you have applied for a First Bus Pass you will need to provide a passport size photograph in order to receive your three month pass from the bursary office. You will be entitled to 3 passes in an academic year. Renewal passes will be subject to attendance and behaviour checks. If you apply for a refund of System One passes then you are required to purchase your pass and bring it along to the finance office (Room 44) to receive a refund. You are entitled to 9 refunds in an academic year. Refunds will be subject to attendance and behaviour checks. In addition to the standard payment, bursary students can apply for 50% support up to a maximum of 100 against trips organised by the College. If you are a maths student and are required to purchase a graphical calculator you will be entitled to a 50% discount on the cost price only providing this is purchased from college via the online payments system. Bursary students can apply for a 50% subsidy towards examination resit fees if they meet the criteria on attendance, punctuality and behaviour. Please note the College cannot support you with 50% of additional fees relating to late entry of exams.

In order to receive Bursary payments/bus passes you must attend a minimum of 90% of timetabled lessons for the relevant period of time and no referrals relating to behaviour or punctuality.

The attendance criteria apply to all timetabled sessions, including Personal Tutor sessions, enrichment activities and workshops. The following types of absences from the college will automatically be treated as present:
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college organised trips and visits; exam study leave; work experience organised by the college; university visits arranged by the college. **

** university interviews and visits that have not been arranged by the College can be authorised. Students will need to complete an authorisation form obtained from the careers department together with evidence supplied by the university. Please check your attendance carefully using SPADD. This will tell you your overall attendance to date. Please note that attendance checks will be carried out according to the dates listed below and overall attendance as at those dates will be used. No exceptions to these dates will be acceptable. Please speak with the appropriate subject tutor as soon as possible if you spot an error with the register marks.

Students with recurring chronic medical conditions, which result in regular absences, will be considered for exemption from this rule on evidence of a letter from your doctor or hospital.

The Finance Office will check your attendance for the relevant time period (see table below) and payments will be made directly into your bank account. If you are going to be absent from college you need to pre-notify the absence PRIOR to or ON THE DAY of absence. The absence line is available 24 hours (up to midnight each day). The full guidelines on absence recording are to be found on the College website and Ozone. THE INTEGRITY OF THE SCHEME College closely monitors all claims made. Any suspicions of fraud will be investigated fully. In such cases payments will be stopped immediately, disciplinary action and legal action will be taken as deemed necessary. College will seek to recover monies paid as a result of fraudulent claims. GUARANTEED BURSARY AND INCOME-ASSESSED BURSARY PAYMENT DATES Payments will be made half termly as per the schedule below and the minimum amount payable will be 50 per half term or a bus pass provided. Additional cash payments may be made but this will be dependent on the numbers of students applying against the bursary fund available. Attendance Checks Initial payment 2 September 2013 to 25 October 2013 4 November 2013 to 20 December 2013 6 January 2014 to 14 February 2014 24 February 2014 to 4 April 2014 22 April 2014 to 23 May 2014 Half Term 1 2 3 4 5 6 Payment date To be notified by email 15 November 2013 17 January 2014 7 March 2014 2 May 2014 13 June 2014 (Year 12 only)

Please Note: no back-dated payments will be made if you fail to enter your details on SPADD by the deadline notified to you by email or if you enter your bank details incorrectly. Remember to take care when entering your details on SPADD and if you are unsure of this procedure please call into the Finance Office for assistance. CONFIDENTIALITY The personal data contained in your 16-19 Bursary Fund Application Form will be treated confidentially and used along with other information you have provided to assess your eligibility for support from the Bursary Fund. From time to time it may be necessary for additional supporting information to be sought from other College staff in order
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for a decision about your application to be made. The evidence you provide in support of your application will be kept secure. Information regarding the Colleges Data Protection Policy can be found on the Colleges websi te. APPEALS AGAINST ASSESSMENT OF ELIGIBILITY Appeals in respect of the bursary award should be made in writing to the Director of Finance and Business Development within 10 days of the receipt of the email. Your letter must have full name and address and your student ID on it. Appeals can only be considered on the grounds of extenuating circumstances, which have not previously been disclosed, or new financial evidence that has not been considered. A photocopy of all pages of any additional evidence must be included with the appeal. Applicants will be informed of the result of the appeal within 5 days of the receipt of the appeal letter. APPEALS AGAINST BURSARY PAYMENTS Where a decision has been taken that students do not receive a Bursary payment, based on not meeting the eligibility criteria in terms of attendance and behaviour, then you have a right of appeal. Appeals must be made, in writing, using an Appeals Form available from the Bursary Office. The form includes your full name and address, Student ID and the reason for appeal, your parent/carers signature and a signature from your personal tutor. The form must be accompanied by any relevant additional evidence or information. Completed appeal forms should be handed in at the Bursary Office. Please note that a doctors note is required for periods of absence of 2 weeks or more and that sickness of less than 2 weeks will not qualify as a right to appeal unless they relate to a hospital procedure. All original letters for hospital appointments and hospital procedures must be given in support of your appeal. The Director of Finance and Business Development will review the appeal and students will be informed of the result of the appeal within 5 days of the receipt of the appeal form. College will provide only one appeal per instance and an appeal decision is final.

You will lose your Bursary payment if the Col leges absence procedures are not followed an d your attendance drops below 90%.

LATENESS You will be marked late (L in the register) if you arrive late for a lesson. Persistent lateness will count towards your absence and will result in your bursary payment being stopped.

HOLIDAYS IN TERM TIME You are not permitted to take holidays during term time. SATISFACTORY BEHAVIOUR AND EFFORT Bursary payment may be withheld if you do not maintain satisfactory standards of effort and behaviour. Poor effort and inappropriate behaviour will lead to loss of the bursary payment. Students who are on a Formal Disciplinary stage will have their bursary payments withheld. If you are not sure about a point made in this booklet, please ask at the Bursary Office before signing the application form.

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