SLC Advisors Are Telling Weekend Students the Wrong Thing. Their Own Employer Disagrees.
SLC Advisors Are Telling Weekend Students the Wrong Thing. Their Own Employer Disagrees.
Students calling the Student Loans Company for answers are getting bad ones. Some are being told that a Friday-Saturday teaching pattern still counts as weekend-only. That will not fix their maintenance problem. That they will still lose funding.
The Student Loans Company itself says otherwise.
What happened?
On 25 March 2026, SLC froze maintenance payments for thousands of weekend students across the UK. The Department for Education had decided that studying on weekends counts as distance learning. Even if you attend in person. Even if you sit in a classroom.
Universities scrambled. GBS offered affected students a move to a split pattern. One day during the week, one day at the weekend. Friday-Saturday or Sunday-Monday.
Many students did exactly that. They picked their new group. They confirmed by email. Then they called SLC to check.
What SLC advisors told students
Students who called the SLC helpline got a shock. Advisors told them the Friday-Saturday option would not work. That Saturday still counts as a weekend day. That their maintenance would stay blocked.
One student raised this in a town hall on 9 April 2026. GBS CEO James Kennedy was taking questions. He had called SLC, explained the move to Friday-Saturday, and asked if maintenance would be restored. The answer he got was no.
What SLC actually confirmed in writing
Kennedy's response was clear. GBS and its partner universities had already raised this problem with SLC. They had heard the same thing from multiple students.
"We have it in writing from the student loan company that one day weekend, one day week is acceptable. And we have gone back to the student loan company and said can you please educate your student finance advisors to give the correct advice."
So SLC's own written position says the split pattern works. But SLC's own phone advisors say it does not.
Why this matters
Students are making life decisions based on these calls. Some have children in childcare. Others work shifts. Choosing a new study pattern means rearranging jobs, childcare, transport.
A student who hears "Friday-Saturday won't work" might push for a full weekday move instead. That could mean quitting a job. Or giving up studying altogether.
The wrong information makes a bad situation worse.
What should you do?
If SLC told you a split pattern won't work, that advice may be wrong.
GBS says they hold written confirmation from SLC that one weekday plus one weekend day qualifies. Ask your university to confirm this in writing for your specific case.
If you get different answers from SLC by phone, note the date, time, and what was said. Keep a record. This may matter later if legal action determines who gave what information and when.
Do not make permanent changes to your work or childcare based on a single phone call. The written position and the phone advice do not match. Trust the written version.
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