Eligibility for Funding after Working/ Living Abroad

I’m a UK citizen and I’ve been living abroad for just over 3 years due to fixed-term teaching contracts. These have only given me temporary visas/residency permits, not permanent residency. I’m planning to move back to the UK next summer and start an MSc in Speech and Language Therapy in September 2026. My concern is that because I’ve been abroad for more than 3 years, I’m unsure whether I would still be classed as a UK student and be eligible for the Tuition Fee and Maintenance Loans from SFE and the NHS Learning Support Fund (yet to be confirmed for 2026).
One complication is that although I will physically return to the UK earlier, my current employment contract abroad officially ends in August 2026, just a month before the course would start. I’ve read that sometimes it’s possible to show “ordinary residence” through things like UK bank statements, evidence of regular returns, or proof that time abroad was temporary and for work only, but I’m not sure how this applies in practice.
Would I still be eligible for funding if I return to the UK before the course starts, even though I’ve been away for over 3 years? Any advice or recommendation on who I can speak to about this would be hugely appreciated. I really want to apply for this course, but I need to understand the funding side before I go ahead.
Thanks, Chloe