A Petition to Enable Full Tuition Fee Funding for Undergraduates at BPP by Student Finance England

You are probably aware that students studying the LLB at BPP over two years pay exactly the same fees as those studying over three years, a figure just shy of £10,000. As we all receive the same amount of teaching, the same materials and use the same facilities, this is quite fair.

You may not be aware that those students who need government funding (from Student Finance England) to pay BPP’s fees, the majority of us, can only get financial funding for the equivalent number of traditional academic years. So if the LLB is studied over two years, only two traditional years’ worth of funding is given, ie only two-thirds of the fees can be paid for through the tuition fee loan. The remaining third must be paid for out of the student’s own pocket. For the majority of students taking out a tuition fee loan, a sum of circa £3,250, the remaining third, is not easy to come by.

You will not be aware that a small change by BPP to the central course database held by Student Finance England, which links to tuition fee loans, maintenance loans and grants and the UCAS website, would enable students studying the LLB over two years to get a tuition fee loan to cover all of the fees. The small change would be to the term/semester dates, thus showing when a ‘BPP year’ begins and ends.

I was, until last week, due to finish the LLB at the end of August, having taken just two years to complete the course. I have spent many hours on the phone to Student Finance England and unsuccessfully appealed a decision denying me full tuition fee funding by Student Finance England (the government). I have learned, from a senior manager, after this arduous process, that Student Finance England cannot give us full tuition fee funding without being told when BPP’s academic years are and therefore proving our three years’ equivalent fee. I have been given a phone number, specifically for institutions to call, for Student Finance England. I gave this number to the Head of Finance, Steven Wallace, at BPP, in November 2010. I also informed our recent Chief Executive of Students, Madeline Power. To date, the change has not been made.

On Saturday 30th July 2011, a post appeared on the BPP page on Facebook regarding a concession for students taking consecutive courses at BPP - the GDL and the LPC/BPTC. This was a final straw moment. BPP are actively finding ways to help those on the GDL, LPC and BPTC fund their courses while ignoring the huge problem we undergraduates are facing. I engaged the social media team through a comment and the full extent of their, and BPP’s, ignorance was revealed. I am now having to defer some modules, thus changing my two year degree into a three year one, to enable me to pay the remainder of my fees. I am not alone in doing this. I am petitioning BPP to make the small change mentioned, so that others do not have to do the same.

I implore you to sign this petition as a show of your support, enabling all of us to afford a degree at this private university. You will see that others have already done so. Join them.

Best wishes
Samantha Brown