Financial Help
Skills and qualifications can help to open up new options for work and further study - so you'll reap the benefits in the long term!
Getting started
All students aged 19 years or over on 1 September in the year they start their course are expected to pay for tuition, registration, exam fees and all other course related costs.
Financial Help
Types of financial help available to adults include:
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Tuition and exam fee remission
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Level 2/3 Entitlement
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Adult Learning Grant
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Care to Learn
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Free childcare for training and learning at work
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Learner Support Fund
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Professional and Career Development Loan
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Accommodation and the Residential Bursary Scheme
Level 2/3 Entitlement
Level 2 – If you are over 19 and studying your FIRST FULL Level 2 qualification that is Government funded you may be eligible for a reduction in your tuition fees. Examples of Level 2 courses are:
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NVQ 2
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5 GCSEs A-C
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Level 2 BTEC Diploma
Level 3 – If you are between 19-25 and studying your FIRST FULL Level 3 qualification that is Government funded you may be eligible for a reduction in your tuition fees. Examples of Level 3 courses are:
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NVQ 3
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2 or more A Levels
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Level 3 BTEC Diploma
Note: If you are aged over 25 you may still be eligible for Level 3 entitlement if you do not already hold a qualification higher than a Level 1 and your course is not available at a Level 2 or this is deemed as the appropriate route of study for you.
Care to Learn
If you are a young parent, Care to Learn can help pay for your childcare and travel costs while you're studying a College course funded by the Learning and Skills Council.
Care to Learn will pay for:
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Childcare costs while you learn, including while you are on placement
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Childcare costs for extra home/private study
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A childcare deposit (up to £250) if one is charged
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Any necessary childcare fees payable during holidays in order to retain your child's place
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Necessary travel costs to and from your childcare provider
In order to apply for the Care to Learn scheme you must be:
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A parent under the age of 20 at the start of your college course
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Caring for your own children (whether you are a father or a mother)
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Living in England
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Using a registered childcare provider
Please note that childcare payments can only be backdated to the start of the young parent’s course or learning programme if their application is received within 28 days of the course start date. For applications received outside of this timeframe, payments will begin from the Monday of the week the application was received.
For more information on the Care to Learn scheme see the website|.
To apply for the Care to Learn scheme visit the Care to Learn website|.
If you have any queries about the Care to Learn scheme please call the Provider Helpline on 0845 600 7979.
The Department for Education have confirmed that there will be no changes to the Care to Learn childcare support scheme for the academic year 2012/13.
Free Childcare for Training and Learning for Work
You may be eligible for FREE childcare if:
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You are a parent of a child aged 14 or under
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You are not in any type of paid employment
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Your household income is £20,000 or under in the previous tax year
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You are in a family where your partner works full time or over 16 hours per week
NB: If you are not eligible for the Free Childcare for Training and Learning for Work scheme you may still be eligible for childcare from the College Learner Support Fund (see below).
Learner Support Fund
The Learner Support Fund is designed to help support students with costs that arise when starting or taking a government-funded course. Awards can be made in addition to most grants like Fee Remission and Level 2 or 3 Entitlement. These funds are limited and are prioritised for students that are facing extreme financial hardship.
To apply you must be:
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Enrolled on a government-funded course
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A resident in England or Wales for the last 3 years.
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On a low household income or receiving means tested benefits
Awards are made towards ESSENTIAL course costs (identified by your Faculty as being required to complete the course) and calculated at rates we consider to be reasonable. This could be for books, visits, materials, equipment, uniform and travel expenses.
You can also apply for a contribution towards childcare support, you childcare provider needs to be Ofsted registered and if you are awarded assistance the funds will be paid directly to the provider. Funds are very limited and we are not able to help every student.
Professional and Career Development Loan
A Career Development Loan is a bank loan designed to help you pay for work-related learning. The loans are available to learners aged 18+ and can be used to support full-time, part-time or distance learning courses for up to two years, as long as the course leads to a trade, occupation or profession. You don't have to start paying your loan back until one month after you stop training. You then repay the loan to the bank over an agreed period at a fixed rate of interest.
You can apply to borrow anything between £300 and £10,000 to help you fund up to two years of learning (or up to three years if the course includes one year of relevant practical work experience).
For further details about CDLs please visit the Government website| or Tel: 0800 585 505 to speak to an advisor.
Accommodation and the Residential Bursary Scheme
The College has up to 100 places available to live on-site at Merrist Wood College and we offer a Residential Bursary scheme to assist students with their accommodation costs at the Merrist Wood Halls of Residence. The College has up to 100 places available to live on-site at Merrist Wood College and we offer a Residential Bursary scheme to assist students with their costs at the Merrist Wood Halls of Residence.
The College has up to 100 places available to live on-site at Merrist Wood College and we offer a Residential Bursary scheme to assist students with their costs at the Merrist Wood Halls of Residence.
In order to be eligible for the Residential Bursary you must be:
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Studying your first full level 2 or 3 full time vocational course
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Ordinarily resident in England for the three years prior to the start of your course
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Unable to find a similar course locally to your home (within reasonable travelling distance)
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On a Government funded course
If you would like further details about the Merrist Wood Halls of Residence Tel: 01483 88 40 93.
More Information
For more information about fees and financial support please contact the Information, Advice and Careers Team Tel: 01483 88 40 40 or Email: mwinfo@guildford.ac.uk|