President's blog

Schools Minister Iain Wright relieved the fears of many this week by confirming that the Education Maintenance Allowance would be continued after the school leaving age is raised to 18. MPs are meeting in Westminster this week to discuss the future for EMA payments. It is four years since the scheme was first introduced; during which time it has not been without controversy or criticism. A review conducted in 2008 revealed that 65 per cent of participants on the highest EMA rate of £30 believed that they could not continue to study without the EMA.

The government has made much of the need to aim higher, introducing a target of 50pc of people going into higher education. The justification has always been that Britain needs better educated employees with higher skill levels, in order to trade blows with our rival nations on an increasingly competitive world stage.