3. What is the Welsh Government doing to support post-16 learners in Carmarthen East and Dinefwr who are in receipt of education maintenance allowance? OQ58748

There is a range of additional support measures provided to post-16 learners in receipt of education maintenance allowance. These are measures provided by the Welsh Government through their college or school. These include free or subsidised travel, free meals, free period products, and access to hardship funding where available.

It is a cause of great pride for us in Wales that we have continued with the EMA, which isn't true of some other parts of the United Kingdom. But one thing that hasn't happened, of course, as the Minister is aware, is that we haven't increased the allowance in line with inflation since it was introduced in 2004. So, it has lost real-terms value over that time of almost two decades, and that has accelerated now with inflation increasing at such a rate over the past few months during the cost-of-living crisis.

The Bevan Foundation estimates that the EMA would now be £45 if it had kept pace with inflation. That increase would make such a difference to the 18,000 students across Wales who receive it. I know that money is tight, Minister. It would cost around £15 million, but it would be transformative in terms of its impact on students who are amongst those most deprived in our nation. 

Well, as the Member knows, and acknowledges, we do everything we can to ensure that the resources available are provided to help those who need them most in our education system. In terms of the commitment to maintain the EMA, that's part of our programme for government. And I'm proud that we have continued with that, as Scotland and Northern Ireland have done, but that's not the case in England. The level we have here in Wales is the same level as that of the Scottish and Northern Irish Governments. What we have endeavoured to do is to ensure that the reach of the EMA is enhanced. So, we've reformed the system, in order to expand the backdated payments available to individuals learners, and we've drawn that to the attention of colleges, so that they can inform their students of that, and, where there are particular circumstances for individual learners, those are taken into account in providing those enhanced payments. Also, in another area, we have expanded free school meals during school and college holidays and, as I mentioned to Jenny Rathbone a few moments ago, we've enhanced the funding available in the financial contingency fund. These are just some of our interventions in support of those individual learners who need most support in FE. 

In terms of the costs the Member mentioned, as it happens, because of inflation, since the Bevan Foundation report, the figure could now be closer to some £54 in order to maintain value in line with inflation. So, the figure of £15 million is even greater now, and I know he will accept that, without additional funding, which hasn't come to hand, the only way to pay for that is to look at the other innovative interventions that we have in place as part of our programme for government and through the co-operation agreement too. So, these challenges are very real, but we will do everything we can within the budget that we have. 

I'm grateful to be able to follow the Member's line of questioning with regard to EMA. Eighteen thousand, six hundred and fifty students accessed EMA support in the year 2020-21. As someone who was eligible for EMA as well, I know there are complexities in understanding how students are able to access this and which students are eligible, and, indeed, in talking to the Senedd research department in compiling this supplementary question, that complexity in finding out an accurate take-up number of those who are eligible for EMA and taking it up, and those, therefore, not taking it up, was hard to distinguish. Therefore, can I ask what the Minister and his Government are doing to ensure that all those who are eligible for EMA are able to access the support? 

As I was saying to Adam Price earlier—in response to Adam Price—although we've not been able to increase the value of it, we have been able to maximise the current offer. So, we've expanded the eligible cohort to include some of those most vulnerable young people in Wales, including some who are impacted by Brexit, family members of those with protected immigration status, for example, and, more recently, the expansion to include young people fleeing the war in Ukraine. So, we are looking always at ways in which we can make sure that the reach of the EMA, at its current level at least, is extended. We continue to allow learners to benefit from an extended period, as I was saying, of backdated EMA payments. We recently issued a notice to all schools and colleges reminding them of the mechanism by which that works, and highlighting the discretion in the scheme for learners with particular extenuating circumstances—caring responsibilities, for example—to make sure they are not disadvantaged in being able to access EMA. All young people can apply for EMA at any point in the academic year. Sometimes that isn't known; people aren't aware of that. And, where their family circumstances change, which may result in a drop in income, we encourage young people to apply for EMA with a current-year income assessment. So, we will continue to do everything we can as a Government, and I know that colleges are doing whatever they can to draw attention to the existing scheme to make sure the uptake is as great as it can be.