FUNDING IDEAS

In some circumstances, grant assistance may be available form your Local Enterprise Council. Please contact our student advisors on +44 (0) 1397 703786 for details of your local LEC.

Have you ever been made redundant? In some instances, previous employers have been given financial assistance towards a retraining programme, i.e. BT, HM Armed Forces.

Professional and Career Development Loans are bank loans that can be used to help pay for work related learning. You can borrow between £300 and £10,000 to help support the cost of up to two years of learning (or three years if it includes one year’s relevant unpaid practical work). The Young People’s Learning Agency will pay the interest on the loan while you are learning and for one month afterwards. The loan can be used to pay course fees or other costs such as travel and living expenses. You can also use the loan to supplement other forms of support such as grants or bursaries. Because the Professional and Career Development Loan is a commercial loan product, they should only be considered as an option once all other student funding options have been investigated.

For further information on financial assistance to support your learning, please visit www.direct.gov.uk/adultlearning or contact Careers Advice on 0800 100 900. Our learning provider registration number is: 11798.

Standard Learning Credits/ Enhanced Learning Credits & Individual Resettlement Training Costs are all schemes run to help service men and women obtain grants through their unit towards training to support their personal development. The Underwater Centre is now on the preferred suppliers list for any resettlement grants. Our ELC learning provider number is 1593.

You may be able to reclaim VAT from the Inland Revenue if you are registered for business purposes, for example if you are self-employed. This applies to both European Community and non-European Community residents. For overseas students, The Underwater Centre holds the paperwork necessary to complete for requesting VAT back, which you are required to pay on courses taken in the United Kingdom.