Daphne Caine, the new Minister for Education, has adopted ten improvements on current law. We hope these changes will help us better support students in the Isle of Man. This announcement is a welcome and direct response to the increasing cost of living. Its intent is to provide meaningful relief to families with children facing exorbitant educational costs. The new measures, approved by Tynwald, widen eligibility for maintenance grants and increase tuition fee limits.
Families with an income of up to £90,000 can now apply for maintenance grants, broadening access to financial assistance for a larger segment of the population. Full grant caps will increase to £30,388, which will go a long way to ensure that it does. The reforms are making similar income limits available to remote learners, so they can benefit just like full-time students.
Caine stated that these changes aim to ensure that “financial barriers do not stand in the way of ambition,” emphasizing her commitment to investing in the education of young people on the island. The changes are a welcome sign of intent to address the mounting economic harms received by families.
Despite this, the reforms have already been criticized by Lawrie Hooper MHK, who has raised concerns about the decision. He argued that the changes effectively mean “giving means-tested money away to the wealthiest people on the island.” His comments serve as an important reminder of the continued struggle surrounding the fairness of racial inequity-fixing financial assistance.
Specifically, Caine’s proposals would raise tuition fee grant limits by several thousand dollars. These are in addition to the maintenance grants that are slated to increase from £46,500 to £112,000. On the surface, this development is a win. The counterpart tuition fee grant will in practice be cut by £750, effectively raising the cap to £6,000. Students can borrow up to £3,535 to cover the difference in tuition fees, providing further options for financing their education.
Paul Craine MLC applauded Caine’s reforms for claiming not all students “support the bulk of our students. This endorsement indicates the reality that there is support among a number of lawmakers for these vital changes during difficult economic times.
These policy changes couldn’t come at a better time. Starting in 2026, English universities will be allowed to increase their tuition fees annually in line with inflation. This expected steep rise only heightens the need for strong financial support systems for students.
