Union of Brunel Students
Union of Brunel Students
Welfare Loan Scheme
The Union of Brunel Students (UBS) offers a Welfare Loan Scheme to students facing emergency financial difficulty. The Scheme is administered by the Advice & representation Centre (ARC). This leaflet is designed to provide you with details and criteria of the scheme, as well as the application process. There is a very limited budget available for the Welfare Loan, and the UBS have to ensure that ALL loans will be repaid before they can be approved. UBS are under no obligation to approve a Welfare Loan application.
What is a Welfare Loan?
The UBS Welfare Loan is a fund to assist students facing emergency financial difficulty. If your application is approved you could receive between £5 and £150 which is repayable by you over a maximum term of 3 months. We may offer vouchers for food and essential toiletry items as an alternative to cash.
You will not be given money on the day you ask for it apart from exceptional circumstances when you can be awarded Emergency Loan of £20 (see section How do I apply).
You may be refused following full assessment by the adviser. There is no guarantee of an award.
Can I apply?
The Welfare Loan Scheme is for all students at Brunel facing emergency financial difficulty only who have exhausted all other means of income. If you still have money available through your overdraft and or credit cards you would be expected to use this first, before becoming eligible to apply to the Welfare Loan Scheme. The Welfare Loan Scheme can be used to assist you with living costs, such as rent (if the arrears mean you will be evicted), food, unpaid bills (if you are about to be cut off) or emergency travel. The Welfare Loan Scheme can not be used to pay for field trips, books and equipment, mobile phones, internet or other non-essential items. If money has run out simply because your expenditure has exceeded your income and you have not budgeted sufficiently, and you require a loan to tide you over until your next money is due, you are likely to be refused. If, for example, your income does not cover the expenditure of the first term, it is not helpful to you to further reduce the following term’s (already inadequate) income by approving a Welfare Loan, the repayment for which will be deducted from the following term’s loan. Where required, the ARC Advisers will, of course, assist you in managing budgets, finding alternative sources of income and negotiating with creditors
Please note that the fund is not available to final year students, who have completedtheir study at Brunel and are awaiting results.
How do I apply?
To apply to the Welfare Loan Scheme drop in to see an adviser during the ARC opening hours. There are two options. 1)Welfare Loan of between £20.00 and £150.00. This loan must be repaid within the time period agreed, and no more than 3 months. The Adviser can take you through whether you may be eligible to apply, and which option can be offered. They will also let you know what documents you will require to support your application. 2)Emergency Loan of between £5.00 and £20.00, which may be paid in vouchers which you can redeem at Costcutters on campus, or cash. This loan must be repaid the following day, and would be used in circumstances such as a lost or stolen wallet. We will require a form of security which we will keep until the loan is repaid – such as your student ID card. See below for more information on the application process.
What documents do I need to show to support my application?
If you are applying for the Welfare Loan the ARC need to see evidence of your income and expenditure.
If we decide to lend you the money, we will do so on “unsecured loan” basis, i.e. we will not hold anything of value that belongs to you. This is why we need to apply high level of scrutiny to your application. It is also a recommendation from our auditors who may suggest that the whole Welfare Loan scheme is closed if we do not follow strict rules about evidence. That’s why you must submit all documents which are required and must be able to respond to the advisers questions regarding your income and expenditure.
The following table indicates the type of income and expenditure you may have and the documents you should prepare for your application. You should note that without the relevant documentation your application will be refused. You will also need to complete a brief statement about why you need to apply for the loan.
The types of documents you will need to submit as evidence of your income and expenditure are:
Income / ExpenditureStudent Loan – Student Support Notification Letter & Payment Schedule / Rent – Tenancy Agreement or rent book
Grant/Bursaries – GSCC, NHS, sponsor letters, detailing the amount of financial support you get and when you will receive it. / Fees – Evidence of how much you pay and when payment is next due
Benefits – Letters detailing how much you get and when / Utility & Phone Bills – Evidence of any final reminder bills
Wages – Pay slips and evidence of when you get paid / Childcare – Evidence of how much you pay and when it is next due.
Partner/Parental Contribution– This can be more difficult to evidence, but if you partner works you could include pay slips. / Special Circumstances- documents supporting your statement about any special circumstances, for example funeral expenses, urgent travel, domestic emergency etc.
If you have children, we will need to see a copy of their birth certificate.
Other: Savings, Career Development Loan, Child Maintenance payments.
The ARC also requires evidence of how you will repay the loan such as debit card details or post dated cheques.
Bank statements - In addition the ARC also require the last 2 months bank statements of all accounts held and a mini statement, obtained within the 24 hours before submitting your application, showing the most up to date balance.
N.B. It has to be clear that these documents belong to you; they have to carry your name and address. If you share any of the bank accounts, bills etc with someone else, we will need evidence of other people’s involvement, for example if someone is using your account to pay money in and then pay their bills, we will need to see such bills. The adviser will explain in detail if we have any other queries regarding your document.
All documents have to be provided in original form. The adviser will take copies and return originals to you.
Document Check List - Before submitting your application you should complete the document check list.
I have completed my application for a Welfare Loan- what happens now?
Once your application is complete and you have gathered all the documents required you need to make an appointment with one of our Advisers. See below for our contact details. You must bring the completed form and related documents to the appointment. (N.B. You will not get confirmation of whether your application has been successful or not at that time). After the appointment the adviser will review your application and make a recommendation whether the loan should be approved or not. The application is then scrutinized by a senior member of UBS staff, and the final decision made whether an award will be made. You will be informed as soon as possible of the decision. Please note that failure to supply the requested documents will inevitably result in your application being delayed or refused.
If the award is approvedwe aim to get funds to you within 24 hours, although occasionally it could take longer. This means you will have to return at a later date to receive the loan.
If the award is refused there is no right of appeal, but you may make a new application at a later date.
How much money will I get and how do I pay it back?
The amount you get is dependant on what you need the loan for, when you will next be getting funds from another source, such as from working, or your student loan, and what you can afford to repay. UBS will only loan the minimum amount possible to assist you, you will not automatically receive £150 if you don’t really need it.If you receive a loan, you will be expected to pay back the loan, over a maximum term of 3 months, alternatively you can pay it back in one lump sum. The ARC adviser will collect from you either your debit card details or post dated cheques and will agree with you the repayment dates. Cash repayments will not be accepted.
What happens if I can’t pay?
UBS recognises that you may face further financial difficulty which means you are unable to pay on the date agreed. If this occurs please let us know and we will consider an alternative payment date.
Please note that failure to pay or contact the ARC could result in Small Claims Court action being taken against you. Non-payment would also result in any future application for a loan being refused.
I want to apply for an Emergency Loan of up to £20.00 – what do I need to do?
The Adviser at the Drop in session will give you the application form to complete and submit. You may be asked to go away and return later in the day for a decision, especially at our busy periods. (N.B. The ARC do not hold any cash, Emergency Loan applications received after 1pm cannot be guaranteed to be paid the same day) If the application is approved you will agree an item of security to be left against the loan (usually your student ID card), and the loan must be repaid within 24 hours. You will then receive the agreed amount in cash and a receipt for your property, which will be returned to you when you repay the loan the following day.
Can I apply again?
The Welfare loan scheme cannot be used as a top up to your finances when they are getting low, and we would therefore not expect more than 1 application from a student per year. We recognise however that emergencies can occur more than once and our decision to loan further funds is at our discretion. Please note that you will not be considered for a subsequent loan if you have not repaid the previous one.
For more information and ARC opening hours:
Contact the ARC:
01895 269 169
Advice & Representation Centre
Union of Brunel Students
Ground Floor, Hamilton Centre
Kingston Lane
UxbridgeUB8 3PH
THE WELFARE LOAN – CAN I APPLY?
117/12/2018