From July 13 2015, new rules extending work restrictions to international students have been introduced to parliament. It is reported as an attempt by Theresa May to reduce annual net migration. 

These restrictions have been in operation since August 2015 with other changes scheduled for this autumn.This will put the most vulnerable people in our society at risk - international students who have paid 00 000s for HE vocational courses.

The majority of international students in the UK study HE courses traditionally known as vocational qualifications. These courses require practical training within the industries/professions they prepare students for. Without this training, international students cannot finish their studies and gain the full professional qualification they have spent significant time and hundreds of thousands of pounds studying towards.

The experiential learning elements of these courses which international students pay significantly over the odds for is accessible to British or EU students. However, although vocational learning is a known educational model. It is a model that is respected as key to successfully teach students how to master the skills needed to enter a trade or highly specialist profession such as architecture/engineering.

The Home Office has now decided that international students paying for this type of learning is “visa fraud”. Yet experts in recent press, say British students on these same courses must be given quality work placements and apprenticeships as part of their studies now home students pay full tuition fees. If not the university certificate students receive when they graduate "will not be worth the paper they're printed on".

How can we, as a fair and democratic country, be seeking to increase our national productivity by making sure our young people get access to quality SKILLs training to give them the best possible career and professional opportunities. Yet deny international students access to the same benefits as a British student? Especially when international students pay significantly, disporportionately, artificially more for the same courses.

Please sign this petition, so that the various stakeholders are persuaded to work together to allow international students to stay to complete their courses.