The Secretary of State for Education has seen first-hand how the Student Loans Company (SLC) is supporting the development of the UK Government’s Lifelong Loan Entitlement (LLE) initiative.
Visiting its head office in Glasgow this morning (Friday, 17 June), the Rt Hon Nadhim Zahawi met with technology colleagues who are in the process of building the systems that will be needed to deliver LLE when it launches in 2025. LLE supports the Government’s vision to support learners to train, upskill or retrain over the course of their lifetime.
As part of the visit, the Secretary of State discussed an outline of a design prototype LLE account and participated in a design workshop which focussed on the further development of the personal account. He also met with SLC technology apprentices and hosted a Q&A session with colleagues from across the business.
Stephen Campbell, Chief Information Officer at SLC, said: “LLE is an entirely new system of student finance for England and, as the administrators of student finance, we are playing an important part in co-designing the service. This system will have the customer experience at its heart and is a fundamental change to our product-centred business model, moving to a service that is based around a customer’s personal account.
“It was fantastic to have the Secretary of State involved in today’s sessions and introduce him to the expertise we have within the team at SLC. This is a significant technology project and is a great endorsement for SLC’s ability to deliver complex solutions to support Government policy.”
SLC has been based in Bothwell Street, in Glasgow, since its inception more than 30 years ago and also has sites in the North East of England and North Wales. The Glasgow office will move into a new purpose-built space in Buchanan Wharf next year.
Secretary of State for Education, Nadhim Zahawi, said: “At the heart of our vision to level-up opportunity across the country is the Lifelong Loan Entitlement; a fairer, more sustainable student finance system, which will help people access education throughout their lifetime – to upskill, retrain and reskill – so they can boost their own life chances and meet the ever-changing needs of our dynamic economy.
“The Student Loans Company is co-designing and delivering this radical approach and I was pleased to visit and see some of the innovation going into the new system for myself.”
SLC has 17 technology apprentices and 19 technology graduates, with more than 100 across all four of its Emerging Talent programmes.
Callum Campbell, a Software Engineering apprentice, was part of the group that took part in this morning’s visit. He said: “The apprenticeship programme at SLC has given me an opportunity to grow and develop my skills, so to be able to share our experiences with the Secretary of State was really important. Our technology transformation will completely change the way we serve our customers and with this qualification I feel I can contribute to the future of SLC, and even lead the way.”
LLE is a loan entitlement to the equivalent of four years of post-18 education, which can be used flexibly throughout a learner’s life – both for full years of study or to complete individual modules.
ENDS
For further information contact the Student Loans Company press office:
Notes to Editors
The Student Loans Company:
- administers student finance on behalf of the UK Government and the devolved administrations of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
- has 8.5 million customers and manages a loan book of £200 billion
- processes almost 2 million applications for student finance every year
- paid out £10.5 billion in loans and grants to new and existing students, as well as £11 billion in tuition fees to higher and further education providers in the last year
- employs over 3,300 staff across sites in Glasgow, Darlington and Llandudno Junction
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