[24
MAY 00] COVENTRY UNIVERSITY NEWS
Students Protest At Fees Exclusion Threat
Students
at Coventry University staged a protest in the Vice Chancellor’s
office yesterday after being warned that they faced expulsion unless
they pay their tuition fees.
Around
100 students have been sent letters threatening them with exclusion
unless they pay the outstanding debt of around £1,000.
If
they do not pay they will be barred from taking exams, using the
library and the university's other facilities.
Coventry
University bosses say they are owed around £4 million by students in
unpaid fees, fines, and accommodation.
They
say unless they can recoup that money the education of the majority
who have paid will suffer.
But
many
claim that they cannot afford it. Since tuition fees were introduced
in 1998 students have been means tested for the payment.
People
whose family income is under £17,000 are exempted from the charge,
and others have to pay a proportion on a sliding scale.
Caroline
Campbell, Vice President for Education and Welfare in Coventry
University Students’ Union said some people fared badly under the
system and had to pay the full amount but had very little money.
Loans
have fully replaced the old grants system and the payment is expected
to come from this.
Other
students have refused to pay the fee for ideological reasons. They
argue that education should be free to all.
Students’
union leaders are trying to arrange a meeting with University Vice
Chancellor Mike Goldstein to discuss the issue.
Ms
Campbell said:
“Some
people want to protest by shouting about it but we prefer to try and
discuss sitting round a table.
”There
have been marches in the past to raise attention to the problem.
“The
students’ union is 100 per cent behind the people affected by
this, and we want to try and discuss a way of helping them.”
University
spokesperson Cyrrhian Macrae said students can pay in five installments and
this action is only taken in extreme circumstances to stop the quality
of education suffering.
She
said:
"We
are sympathetic to those that cannot pay and there are hardship
funds to help them.
"But
we are a business and we cannot afford not to have that money."
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