- accelerated course
means a course which persons undertaking it are normally required by the institution providing it to attend (whether at premises of the institution or elsewhere) for a period of at least 40 weeks in the final year, being a course of two academic years' duration or a course for the degree of BA (Honours) with Qualified Teacher Status awarded by St Martin’s College, Lancaster;
- APR
means the annual percentage rate of charge calculated under the Consumer Credit (Total Charge for Credit) Regulations 1980;
- borrower
means a person to whom a loan has been made;
- course
means the course of study on which the borrower was registered when his eligibility for the loan was confirmed by the HEI and includes a different course at the same HEI if the borrower would have been eligible for a loan on that course and he transfers to it without a break in study;
- deferment level
means 85% of the lender’s estimate of average monthly earnings of all full-time employees in Great Britain for the January when the level will apply based on figures published by the Office for National Statistics, or if that Office ceases to publish relevant figures, any other published figures;
- disability related benefits
means long term incapacity benefit or short term incapacity benefit at the higher rate, severe disablement allowance, disability living allowance, industrial injuries benefit and disability working allowance, all payable under the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992, or the amount of any disability premium and severe disability premium included in the applicable amount in calculating the income support payable under the Income Support (General) Regulations 1987, or any other statutory disability related benefit which replaces any of those benefits and which the lender gives the borrower details of;
- disability related costs
means one twelfth of any expenditure which the lender accepts that a borrower who is in receipt of a disability related benefit will have to pay because of his disability during the 12 months following the relevant month;
- eligibility form
means a form requesting particulars from a student relevant to his eligibility for a loan and of his bank or building society account;
- eligible
means eligible for the purposes of section 1 of the Act;
- European Community
means the territory comprised by the member States of the European Community as constituted from time to time;
- European Economic Area
means the European Community and subject to the conditions laid down in the EEA Agreement the area comprised by the Republic of Iceland, the Kingdom of Norway and the Principality of Liechtenstein;
- full-time course
has the meaning assigned to it in paragraph (3);
- gross income
means income from all sources before deduction for or relief from tax or other statutory charge, but not including any disability related benefits, and less any disability related costs;
- HEI
means the Higher Education Institution which the borrower is attending for his course;
- lender
means the Student Loans Company Limited and any person to whom that Company may transfer its rights and obligations under the loan agreement;
- loan
means a loan (whether made before or after the coming into force of these Regulations) towards a student’s maintenance out of money made available by the Secretary of State for that purpose pursuant to arrangements made by the Secretary of State by virtue of section 1 of the Act, including the interest accrued on the loan and the amount of the loan from time to time outstanding;
- parent
includes a guardian, any other person having parental responsibility for a child and any person having care of a child, and “child” shall be construed accordingly.
- periods of work experience
means periods of industrial, professional or commercial experience associated with full-time study at an institution but at a place outside the institution;
- refugee
means a person who is recognised by Her Majesty’s Government as a refugee within the meaning of the United Nations Convention relating to the Status of Refugees done at Geneva on 28th July 1951 as extended by the Protocol thereto which entered into force on 4th October 1967;
- relevant month
means the month before the month in which the borrower asks for deferment;
- responsible person
means a consular officer, minister of religion, medical or legal practitioner, established civil servant, teacher or police officer.
- sandwich course
means a course consisting of alternate periods of full-time study in an institution and periods of work experience so organised that, taking the course as a whole, the student attends the periods of full-time study for an average of not less than 19 weeks in each year;
- student loan
means a loan made by the Student Loans Company under the Student Loans Act 1990 or the Education (Student Loans) (Northern Ireland) Order 1990;
- the Act
means the Education (Student Loans) Act 1990;
- the Islands
means the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man;