Teacher to quit over student debts

A high-flying young teacher says she will be forced to leave her job at a challenging London comprehensive because she cannot afford to repay her student loan.

A high-flying young teacher says she will be forced to leave her job at a challenging London comprehensive because she cannot afford to repay her student loan.

Lucy Abbott, 28, earns less than £16,500 a year as a newly qualified teacher. But an extra allowance of just over£2,000 for teaching in the capital takes her above the threshold for repaying her loan.

If she taught outside London, Ms Abbott, who teaches dance and physical education at Willesden High School, would be able to defer repayment of the loan because her salary would be below the threshold.

The ruling by the Student Loans Company that she cannot defer repayments of £110 a month has been condemned as "ludicrous" by teachers' leaders who say the ruling penalises people taking jobs in the capital at a time when there is an acute shortage of teachers in London.

Ms Abbott, whose lessons have been praised by inspectors from Ofsted, the education standards office, started teaching at Willesden High in January. She chose the school, which has been failed by inspectors, because she wanted a challenge.

"Now, if the Student Loans Company insists that the London weighting is part of my basic salary and that I cannot defer my loan repayments, I shall have no option but to hand in my resignation," she said.

She added: "It is very sad that I shall be forced to work in a school that may not need me as much. It is unjust that I should be penalised just because I chose to work in London."

Barry Gardiner, Labour MP for Brent North, is now campaigning for a change in the rules, which apply to any teacher whose London allowance exceeds the repayment threshold and who took out a loan before 1998.

Mr Gardiner said he was contacting other London MPs to campaign for a change in the rules so that the London allowance would not be considered part of a teacher's basic salary.

"The allowance is given to teachers to recognise the fact that living in London costs more. It is not acceptable that London teachers, who should be encouraged to stay, have a disincentive to do so," he said.

The Student Loans Company requires repayments from anyone earning £1,516 a month or more. Ms Abbott's basic salary is £1,365 a month, but rises to £1,552 with the London allowance. She has been warned in a letter from the company that it may take court action against her unless she starts to make payments. She has offered £5 a month.

Doug McAvoy, general secretary of the National Union of Teachers, said: "Given the massive shortage of teachers in London, this is ludicrous. In some schools, half the staff are supply teachers... The starting salary for teachers is low enough as it is. This will damage the Government's efforts to overcome shortages."

A spokeswoman for the Department for Education said: "In 1998 we brought in a more progressive loan system, which links loan repayments directly to borrowers' income after graduation. There are no plans to change the rules for those who took out old-style loans."