30 April 2001
A NEW ERA FOR STUDENTS - FARREN
"The completion of the student finance review has heralded a new era for students in Northern Ireland, which will benefit those most in need within our society," the Minister of Higher and Further Education, Training and Employment, Dr Sean Farren said today, as he addressed the NUS/USI conference in Belfast.
Minister Farren said that his recently announced package, which includes the reintroduction of bursaries targeted at those less well off, the abolition of tuition fees for certain students, the introduction of childcare grants, and the increase of student places is designed to remove barriers to accessible and quality education and will bring in many benefits, especially for those from socially disadvantaged backgrounds.
He continued: "As you are all aware my Department operates in a world of finite resources and many competing pressures for those resources; not only in higher and further education, but in other areas such as health, schools and transport.
"I have made no secret of the fact that I would have wished to go much further than I have. However, it is my duty as Minister to come forward with proposals which have careful regard to affordability and the need to ensure that any additional resources are targeted on clear and pressing priority areas. This has meant that options such as abolishing the loan based system or the complete abolishment of fees were not real options at this time.
"I want to record my view that the completion of the review is not the end of a process, but is in fact the beginning of a new period of partnership between Government and the student body. I welcome the response to the review of NUS / USI and the commitment they have given to working with me to implement the changes smoothly.
"It is my intention to monitor the impact of these changes to ensure that they are having the desired effect. My principal aim is to ensure that the student body reflects the wider community, and to achieve that we must increase participation from those communities that have been under-represented in the past.
"I am determined to promote the principle of access to education and to ensure that all barriers are removed. We must facilitate the entry, or re-entry into education market of everybody, and I believe that we must specifically single out for assistance people who have been denied such access in the past.
"The issue of access is a shared concern across the United Kingdom and Ireland. Much research is already underway on the barriers to access and initiatives to promote access are in place in Ireland and elsewhere. I will wish to explore these matters within this wider context.
"We are also working actively with the NUS/USI and our two local universities to explore means by which access can be promoted and I would welcome the views of interested parties, including those of the delegates here today.
"We face many challenges for the future. We must create flexibility within our institutions, which will enable us to meet the skills needs of our ever evolving economy. We must facilitate a worklife balance, accommodate those who wish to study part time and on-line, embrace new technologies and genuinely promote life long learning as a working and practical concept available to all.
"Meeting these challenges requires a genuine and equal partnership between government, the education sector, private business and the student body. I am convinced that we are now entering this new era of partnership and I hope that today’s conference will further promote the aims we all share – an enhanced system which benefits the students of today and tomorrow."
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