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 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, , 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.
