University Maintenance Grant and Child Beneft

[ThemisA]

My son has been home educated for his entire life as he has aspergers and is gifted. He is now 18 and is taking his A-Levels this year (three) and is also taking a third of a degree with Open University and two step exams. A few months ago his child benefit was cut even though he is still very much in full time education. My friends with children of the same age in school still receive child benefit. Can anyone tell me whether this has happened to other home educating families and what, if anything I can do about it.

My son is hoping to read mathematics at university and as I am a single, very low income parent we cannot afford to pay. He should be entitled to a maintance grant that then automatically entitles him to the Cambridge bursary. However, the criteria for receipt of the maintenance grant is-'does the child get free school meals'. As my son is home educated he does not get free school meals. Is anyone else aware of this problem and is there going to be any flexibility in the system to accomodate home educating families on low incomes?

His child benefit should not have been cut if he was already home educated before reaching 16. Did you get a letter about it when he was reaching that age? We did for DS (though he's now in school) and it gave options to say if he was still in education or what.

Maintenance grants - I can only tell you that up here in Scotland you have to fill out a form with parents income to be considered for it, though the level may well be about the same as the "free school meals" income level, its not directlt connected. You'll need to check with the people who provide the grant directly I think, to see how they do it there. I would certainly hope it was flexible.

CHild benefit is paid to kids who are still in non-advanced (school/NC level or equivalent) education. The DWP or whoever deals with it may have decided that because he is working with the OU he is now in advanced/higher education and no longer entitled.

It's the level of education that counts, not age up until 19, so an HE kid who goes to college at 16 to do an HNC wouldn't get any, but an 18 year old doing A-levels or NCs would.

I don't know about the English system but up here you get a grant of up to 50% of the value of student loan (without fees) depending on parental income. Maximum grant is for incomes of less than around 20,00pounds and then it gradually decreases as parental income goes up. My DS1 gets full grant so his funding is something like. 2,500 grant and 2,500 loan a year. You have to fill in a form that details your income and submit evidence to back it up, you also have to give details of other siblings etc. Then the Student awards people assess your application. The university funding system is totally separate from school stuff because not everyone goes to uni straight from school.

Thank you both that is really helpful. We were sent a form from child benefit and i explained that he had always been home educated and why but they still cut it. I am furious because he is home educated because the LEA have no appropriate facilities not because I necessarily wanted to. I am now further penalised financially having only worked part time at low paid jobs which allowed me the flexibility to home educate, whereas wealthy friends whose children attend school continue to receive it. There are so many anomalies and injustices.

Unfortunately if he's working towards a degree (even part-time OU) that goes against the child benefit rules, as they have to be still in "non-advanced" education or training. But, typically, I don't suppose he's eligible for any student funding for it either.

For the university though, fairly good news link here - it's means tested, and he'll be considered automatically for it when he applies for a student loan. Its means tested, so the fact he hasn't actually had free school meals won't make any difference.

Thanks - he is taking the Ou in lieu of an A-Level because he is home educated and it is quite hard to study A-Levels alone (I am not good enough at mathematics to be of any help to him so he is having to do it totally on his own). He is not likely to complete the degree so we do not see it as advanced education but as points equivalent to an A-Level. However when systems are designed they do not have built in safeguards for the anomalies which means time and again we lose out. He could not get EMA because of the rigidity of the system. It would be so easy to assign a few people to deal with and judge the unusual cases.

Thanks for the link, at the moment it is means tested and so we would easily qualify but by the time my son applies in the summer it may have changed to the school meal approach and this is what worries me. I have informed my MP of the anomaly but have heard nothing back. I am also worried about other home educators in the future.

Thanks again, you have been very kind and helpful,

The ruling on HE and the OU has changed.

If the OU degree does not take up the majority of his home ed time, then Child Benefit CAN continue to be paid.
I know that many home educators use the OU instead of taking A levels.

There is a page on the Schoolhouse home education website about it.

"The new ruling is that an over 16 year old will remain eligible for Child Benefit even if registered for an Open University course provided the Open University course is supplementary to full time Further/Non Advanced education. (Remember, full time education consists of an average of more than 12 hours a week in term time spent on: tuition, practical work. supervised study, taking exams.)

For this ruling to apply to home educated young people, the home education provision must be full time at Non Advanced/ Further Education level adding up to more than 12 hours spent on tuition, practical work and supervised study and must be significantly more than the number of hours spent on the OU course."

Thank you - I really can't understand why it was stopped then because from what you say we are clearly well within the ruling. I shall copy what you have said when I appeal.

Many thanks

when you write to appeal , send it to the Full Time Education Dept at the CB offices. The front line staff at CB know nothing about HE.

If you still don't get anywhere, get back to me here and I'll try and help further.

Thank you that is very useful - I have noted it all down with the other information you have given me - now, I must prepare for battle!