Did you want to be a teacher, nurse, social worker or AHP but couldn't due to finances? Please have your say!

[FarleyHatcherEsq]

Hi,
I'm trying to write a letter in response to the government's decision to not to treat students on full time workplace based courses to receive UC equivalent to wages.

This legislation has meant that I my £1,200 bursary is classed as other income rather than wages (so deducted pound for pound rather than 55p per pound). I also have no way of claiming for childcare costs whilst working full time on placement.
As a single parent of two, it would have been impossible for me to do this course and achieve my goal of becoming a social worker had I not had a good support network of family who could look after my children.
It cannot be fair that these fast track masters schemes disadvantage those on universal credit to the extent that many single parents will be unable to apply.
My goal is to persuade the government to reconsider this, especially as we are so short of nurses, social workers, probation officers and teachers.
When I speak to others who are interested in applying for similar schemes, many of them say that they would be unable to make ends meet if they didn't receive UC. Surely the point is that those retraining hope to do so in order to not need top ups from UC? However the current legislation means that it is more beneficial for the individual to stay in MW jobs for life, and receiving UC, rather than to retrain.
I'm interested in ANY perspectives on this topic.
Thanks

Write back to your MP with some statistics showing how dire the recruitment crisis is for these professions and ask them what their solution is. Current recruitment practices are not working and the government’s hostile immigration policy is making it harder to recruit workers from overseas too.

It goes against every sort of equality monitoring. If you look at the older social workers on my team, they are mostly working class women, lots who are mixed race or black British, who trained on the job. Many have been single parents, many are now financially in a position to help children on the property ladder or put them through uni through working their way up to management roles. This is the dream right? This is what any government should prioritise.
I was a ward clerk before this, now I'm trying to get a career which pays me enough to live, to get off benefits. Why should I be penalised for that?
You're going to end up with social work being a profession full of well off middle class white people.

I've had another think about this,

Local authorities have social work apprentice roles and pay for your degree. You would get this by working in a similar position such as being a social work assistant/early intervention support worker etc and you get the same wages during your training that you previously got.

If the gov have stopped funding it one way then, as much as I dislike the gov, they are funding it by having those funds for LAs to use another way.

I've also seen NHS based role degree apprenticeships, in fact lots of degree based jobs are now having the degree funded by the employer - which is better as then you won't be having the student loan payment.

Maybe it's a signpost issue to how to get into SW/NHS etc as the routes have changed?

And to the poster who said they did 2 years and couldn't afford the third. There are always early intervention and social work assistant posts, or personal advisors for care leavers going. Get in to one of them on the experience you have and then when the yearly call for apprenticeships comes up get your name down and get your degree. It can definitely be done!

@PlantsFallLikeDominoes but why would I do three or four years when I could just do a one year masters?

You can 100% get your masters in SW paid for in my LA for SW. Not sure about teaching or NHS. I'm sure they have the same sort of schemes.

I think it's the difference between going to actual university and being a FT student doing placement hours vs your job being your placement with a weekly day release for uni either BA or MA. The way you can get trained up in these professions has changed and it's obvious that it's not signposted enough. SW recruitment and retention is dire, LAs are going abroad to recruit, they'd much rather pay for your degree and make sure they tie you in to working for them for x amount of years after than pay resettlement and moving money.