Funding and Grants Available
It may be possible for you to receive funding or a grant towards your training
with us, especially if you have recently been made redundant or are unemployed.
The following information is not an exhaustive list of help available, but is a
good starting point.
Financial Assistance
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 Learning
and Skills Council 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.
Jobcentre Plus
Jobcentre Plus is a part of the Department for Work and Pensions:
www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk
Jobcentre Plus Grants
You may be eligable for a training grant through Jobcentre Plus. Grants may also
be available if you set up your own business.
Read more about the New Deal 50 Plus in this PDF : New Deal 50 plus
General help
A good website for general help and advice is:
www.businesslink.gov.uk
Learning and Skills council
The LSC are currently providing funding under:
RESPONSE TO REDUNDANCY
Is your organisation making staff redundant?
Are you unemployed or currently under notice of redundancy?
Support available under ‘Response to Redundancy’ includes:
An analysis of your training needs.
Training covering topics such as:
CV writing
Getting yourself job ready
Interview techniques
Coping with change
IT
Business/Administration
Project Management
Starting your own business
Team Leading
Training based on individual training needs
For help and support please contact
www.lsc.gov.uk/
ReAct Wales
Offers training grants to help people back into work
www.elwa.ac.uk/ElwaWeb/elwa.aspx?pageid=4836
Royal British Legion
Offers service leavers and ex-service people free business advice and
interest free loans of up to £5,000
www.britishlegion.org.uk
Govenment Training schemes
Work Based Learning for young people (aged 16-18)
Work Based Learning (WBL) for young people is a general name for government
funded schemes which give work-based training to 16-18 year old people. It is
made up of:
- apprenticeship programmes
- National Vocational Qualification (NVQ) training in England
- Scottish Vocational Qualification (SVQ) in Scotland
- Entry to employment (e2e) in England
- Get Ready for Work Programme in Scotland
- preparatory training
- the right to time off for study or training
- Skillseekers in Scotland.
As most 16- and 17-year-olds are not entitled to Jobseeker's Allowance or Income
Support, WBL may be their only means of getting any income, because they will be
paid a training allowance (or a wage if they are an employee).
Training programmes might be a mix of work experience, on-the-job training or
off-the-job training. There is no minimum or maximum length of time that a
programme runs and it can be full time or part time. However, a young person on
a WBL programme must be given the opportunity to get a qualification at, or the
same as, National Vocational Qualification or Scottish National Vocational
Qualification level 2.
In England, WBL is run by the Learning and Skills Councils. In Wales it is run
by the Welsh Assembly Government and in Scotland by Scottish Enterprise and
Highlands and Islands Enterprise.
For more information in England about WBL, see
Financial help for students aged 16-19.
Apprenticeship programmes
Apprenticeships provide work-based training to young people and adults who want
to learn new skills and gain qualifications while working.
For more about apprenticeship programmes in England, go to:
www.apprenticeships.org.uk.
For more about apprenticeship programmes in Wales, go to
www.careerswales.com,
or phone Learn Direct on 0800 100 900.
For more about apprenticeships in Scotland, go to
www.scottish-enterprise.com,
or phone the helpline on 0845 607 8787 (from within Scotland), or 0141 228 2000
(from anywhere in the UK).
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