THE amount of financial support given to the poorest students in Scotland has been slashed over the past decade, according to new figures.
Official statistics show the level of grants and bursaries has fallen from £100 million in 2005/06 to just £64m in 2014/15 - a decline of 36 per cent.
Over the same period the number of students receiving grants and bursaries has fallen from around 60,000 to 52,000. Students now get an average of £1,220 in grants and bursaries.
As a result, the total amount authorised in loans was £468.8m at an average of £5,270 per student in 2014/15 - a five per cent increase from £5,020 in 2013/14.
The decline came under fire from opposition politicians who called for the Scottish Government to reverse the cuts.
Iain Gray, Scottish Labour's opportunity spokesman, said: “Since the SNP took office in 2007 the budget for bursaries and grants has been slashed by £40m and student debt has soared."
Iain Gray, Scottish Labour's opportunity spokesman.
Mr Gray continued: "That’s £40m less for students who have the talent and the drive, but need extra support to get on in life. Fewer students are getting bursaries, and those who do are getting less support.
“Thousands of young people from poorer families who have the grades to access the best courses can only get the extra support they need by borrowing more."
Liam McArthur, education spokesman for the Scottish Liberal Democrats said poorer students were now being "lumped" with more debt than ever.
“The SNP has slashed the average amount of bursary and grant support by £640 per student since 2012/13 and in the last year alone has cut £1.3m from bursary and grant support.
“The SNP promised they would abolish student debt, but the reality is clear."
Liam McArthur, education spokesman for the Scottish Liberal Democrats.
Despite promising to introduce more grants for students when they came to power in 2007 as part of a manifesto pledge to "dump the debt" the SNP has instead increased the availability of loans.
Cuts in bursaries for the poorest students were first announced in 2012 by Michael Russell, the former Education Secretary.
He replaced some grants as part of an expansion of loans to cover living costs, arguing that the biggest deterrent to students was the cost of living rather than debt.
The move was supported by national student body NUS Scotland, but opposition politicians accused the Government of heaping debt on the most vulnerable students.
Vonnie Sandlan, president of NUS Scotland, said the organisation had worked hard to see increased student support.
She said: "Clearly we would have preferred increases to come through grants, rather than loans, but worst of all would have been to see no increases at all.
"However, as these figures back up, we need to start looking at how we can get increased grants for the poorest students."
Vonnie Sandlan, president of NUS Scotland.
Mary Senior, Scotland official for the UCU lecturers' union, said: "We would rather see students who need support receiving bursaries rather than loans and that’s why the decrease in non-repayable bursaries and grants is disappointing.
"Leaving our poorest students to take on debt to support themselves is unlikely to help Scotland’s poor record on widening access."
Mary Senior, Scottish official for the UCU lecturers' union.
The figures also reveal how much the Scottish taxpayer is subsiding the tuition fees of students from the European Union (EU).
Under EU law European students have to be treated in the same way as Scottish students who have their tuition fees paid for them. The SAAS figures show there were 14,440 EU students supported in 2014/15 at a cost of £27m.
A Scottish Government spokeswoman said ministers had worked with NUS Scotland to develop the current student support package, which offers a minimum income guarantee of £7,625 for students from the poorest backgrounds.
She also stressed that average student loan debt in Scotland was the lowest in the UK because students here do not pay tuition fees.
She added: "From academic year 2016/17, we are raising the household income threshold for the maximum bursary from £17,000 to £19,000, whereas the UK government has announced that it will replace the current mix of bursaries and loans for student maintenance in England with a loans-only model for new students from 2016/17.”
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