Policy statement regarding students choosing not to take up student loans for religious reasons:

Where a student is undertaking a programme of undergraduate or postgraduate study, that would normally attract Student Loans Company (SLC) loans, but cannot take on student loans for either tuition fees or maintenance support due to religious reasons (be they Muslim and due to their interpretation of Islamic Sharia law, or of another faith where usury is prohibited), the College will enforce the following for those students wishing to apply to scholarships, bursaries, travel/elective funds or hardship funds.

The College has agreed that these students may still be able to apply to the relevant scheme, but must submit a signed declaration confirming the reason for declining the loan is due to their religious beliefs. This is to ensure the College is not denying access to this fund due to the ‘protected characteristics’ (as stated within the Equality Act 2010) of this group of students.

The student must also provide evidence to demonstrate that alternative sources of funding have been sought to make reasonable provision to cover the cost of their course and living expenses. This funding could be from parental support or other loans which are compliant with Islamic Sharia Law, or are otherwise non-interest bearing.

If the student has been able to secure alternative funding, the level of funds included in any fund application assessment will still reflect the level of Maintenance Loan and/or Grant the student would have received if they were able to accept the Maintenance Loan. If the student has been denied access to other sources of funding, they will need to provide evidence to confirm this decline of support before an application will be accepted. The assessment will still need to include a provision of income and this will reflect the level of Maintenance Loan and Grant the student would have received if they were able to accept the Maintenance Loan.

The declaration form can be downloaded.

If you feel you are unable to pay your tuition and/or accomodation fees by the deadline, please click here.

If you are experiencing problems with your funding or are worried that you will not have enough money to cover all your costs Advice & Guidance in Student Services can assist you, help you to manage your money and review your budget.

The Advice team run weekly drop-in sessions, can be contacted via email and have a dedicated Advice telephone line. Full information about the Student Advice service can be found on their webpage.

You may find these external alternative funding providers useful, some of which offer sharia-compliant banking for students:

• Al Rayan Bank

• The National Zakat Foundation (NZF)

• United Bank UK

• Ansar Finance

Disclaimer

The College has tried to give students an early opportunity to begin their research of student funding. Although every effort has been made to ensure that information provided is both helpful to prospective candidates and accurate at the time of its publication, it is possible that some information may be outdated or superseded before the start of the 2021-22 academic year.