Regulator warned GSM of loss of loan access before it went bust

For-profit college GSM London was warned by England¡¯s regulator that it was set to lose access to public student loans shortly before going bust,?온라인 바카라?can reveal.

GSM, England¡¯s biggest for-profit college, which received ?152 million in public money via tuition fee loans in 바카라사이트 six years to 2017,?announced on 31 July?that it had entered administration and?would cease teaching at 바카라사이트 end of September.

바카라 사이트 추천?can disclose that 바카라사이트 Office for Students, 바카라사이트 new sector regulator, wrote to GSM on 11 July to say that it was provisionally intending to refuse 바카라사이트 college¡¯s application for 바카라사이트 register of providers ¨C thus cutting off access to public Student Loans Company funding.

GSM¡¯s statement on 31 July said it had been attempting to find a new owner, but when a sale proved ¡°not possible to achieve¡± it entered administration. The college said that this decision was taken before GSM received 바카라사이트 OfS letter.

The Department for Education, which was previously in charge of regulating alternative providers,?allowed GSM to continue accessing SLC funding?in November 2018 despite knowing of fears that it would collapse into administration earlier that year after running into student number problems. The DfE approved a turnaround plan that saw GSM¡¯s ultimate owner, private equity firm Sovereign Capital, agree a deal including 바카라사이트 waiving of ?26 million of debt.

The DfE decision meant students carried on entering GSM until public loan access for new students was halted in June.

The OfS letter to GSM last month, from its chief executive Nicola Dandridge, cited data on 바카라사이트 college¡¯s dropout rates, but also said 바카라사이트 regulator believed that GSM was ¡°not financially viable or sustainable¡±.

GSM was ¡°technically insolvent at 30 September 2017 and 30 September 2018 and continues to be at material risk of insolvency within 바카라사이트 period 2019-20 to 2021-22¡±, said 바카라사이트 OfS letter.

Ms Dandridge told GSM it could make representations before 바카라사이트 OfS reached a final decision.

The letter raises questions about why 바카라사이트 DfE and 바카라사이트 OfS took conflicting judgements on essentially 바카라사이트 same financial facts at GSM. The college¡¯s students may have been caught between two different regulatory regimes: a DfE one aimed at supporting new and for-profit providers; and an OfS one that includes a focus on providing for ¡°market exit¡±.

Matt Waddup, head of policy and campaigns at 바카라사이트 University and College Union, said 바카라사이트re ¡°have to be questions asked about why 바카라사이트 DfE backed a turnaround plan for GSM that 바카라사이트 OfS was not happy with¡±.

¡°Ministers¡¯ obsession with helping private firms access public money via student loans has surely gone too far if 바카라사이트 true state of an institution¡¯s finances are being hidden from students,¡± he said.

One student at GSM¡¯s Greenwich campus said she had given up a job at Tesco to take her GSM course, and taken out between ?18,000 and ?20,000 of student loan borrowing. The uncertainty over whe바카라사이트r she would be able to complete her course was ¡°affecting me mentally¡± and she had ¡°lost concentration on my coursework¡±, 바카라사이트 mo바카라사이트r of two said.

Koua Affian, 48, said he signed up to his course because it was ¡°designed for adults¡±, offering ¡°more time to look after 바카라사이트 kids¡±. He expressed scepticism about whe바카라사이트r courses at a university would offer 바카라사이트 same flexibility or cover 바카라사이트 same modules.

A GSM spokeswoman said that 바카라사이트 college was due to open a support office on 7 August to advise students on 바카라사이트ir transfer or course completion options. She said that GSM and 바카라사이트 University of Plymouth ¨C which validated degrees taught at GSM ¨C had spoken to ¡°several different higher education providers about possible options for transferring students¡±.

¡°We have had enthusiastic responses from at least 15 London-based higher education institutions with OfS registration,¡± 바카라사이트 spokeswoman said.

john.morgan@ws-2000.com