The financial support system for students could be improved simply by finding better ways to tell learners about what cash is available, a leading banking executive has said.
Jayne-Anne Gadhia, chief executive of Virgin Money - who was appointed chair of a major government review of student support in October - said that improving communication with students was an “easy win”.
The NUS Scotland students’ union has long called for a wholesale review of the system, which it says is undermining efforts on fair access to higher education.
In her first interview since being appointed, Ms Gadhia told TESS that she had spoken to students at Forth Valley College who had found it difficult to find out what money was available to them. “Communication is as much of an issue as the actual funding,” she said.
Improving communication was therefore one way in which the review could “make quite a lot of progress” even before increasing the money available or changing the way it is distributed.
Mystery benefits
This was not restricted to student support funding, Ms Gadhia added, explaining that at the first meeting of the review group, it had become “very clear that a number of people, particularly in households which are less well-off, don’t have access to what other benefits are available”.
At the meeting, issues were also raised around the perceptions of college versus university education, she said.
“We spent a lot of time talking about the difference between college and university,” she said. “There was definitely a feeling that university was a higher-level achievement than college education. At this time, I am mindful of it. All education is valuable and should be seen as such.”
Talking about the purpose of the review group, she said that there had never previously been an all-encompassing “back-to-back” review of how funding was delivered.
‘I am not afraid to ask the stupid questions and it has served me well’
Her goal, she explained, was to be confident that students in Scotland who wanted to access higher education all had an equal opportunity to do so.
The first female chief executive of a publicly listed UK Bank, Ms Gadhia is also a member of the Scottish government’s International Council of Education Advisers.
Her background in finance, she said, would stand her in good stead leading the review, but this was not the only thing she brought to the role of chair: “I have a child who is 14, who is in the Scottish education system. That always focuses the mind. I also have a very clear view that closing the attainment gap is the right thing to do.”
“I am not afraid to ask the stupid questions, and it has served me quite well in my career. That is something that can be useful.”
‘Bold and radical’
Review group member and NUS Scotland president Vonnie Sandlan said it was exciting to see progress being made on the issue of student support. The first meeting had shown a “clear commitment” from the chair and everyone around the table “to not shy away from the bold and radical review we always wanted to see”, she added.
“If we were starting from scratch, we wouldn’t aspire to the system we have now - and this review gives us the chance to actually start from scratch. We need a system that meets the diverse requirements of the student body and allows for a more flexible journey through education.”
