Glass school fails to attract | Manawatu-Wanganui News | Local News in Manawatu-Wanganui

Wanganui Mayor Annette Main is worried about the low number of students who have signed up for the Wanganui Glass School this year.

Just 15 students have enrolled for the glass school, which is set up to take 50 students for its three-year diploma course.

The Wanganui District Council resolved late last year to continue funding the glass school with an annual grant of $95,000, which looked after the operational aspects, she said.

"This was to recognise its contribution to the development of Wanganui as a community with a strong arts base ... because glass is seen as an important point of difference."

The council was concerned about the low student numbers and resolved to investigate other partnership models and funding opportunities for its future, she said.

Whanganui UCOL campus principal Julia Pedley said it was still too early for final numbers to be determined for the year.

But small numbers were the reason for the new mayoral accommodation scholarships announced last week, she said.

The new scholarships provided free accommodation for five first-year students in their first year of attendance.

"The initiative was to encourage more people to give it a go by reducing their financial pressure in their first year of study," Ms Pedley said.

"Student flat accommodation had been under-utilised in the past, and these accommodation scholarships are an opportunity to increase interest in the Diploma in Glass Design and Production programme," she said.

"Together with the Wanganui Glass School, we are looking at ways of boosting student numbers and we appreciate the mayor's support in these initiatives."

Basically, UCOL was foregoing the rent, Ms Pedley said.

Even though there were a variety of scholarships available to secondary school leavers interested in attending UCOL, UCOL did not underwrite scholarships.

The block of flats for student accommodation in the central city were owned by Corporation House and Polytech House, she said.

"UCOL has a long-term lease of the flats and offers them to students for renting during the academic year."