Grant from British council to do a course but cant find one to do.

top_drawer_2

hello,

I need another perspective on a problem I am having...

I have been awarded a grant from the British Council which will pay 50% of the fees towards a CELTA/TESOL course; they stated that the course must complete before the end of March. I did some research into it before Christmas and that seemed to be easy enough as there seemed to be loads of organisation/uni's offering the courses.

I was awarded the grant but now I cant seem to find course which fits:

My first choice was anywhere in Lancashire as I live in Preston, however UCLAN decided (after Christmas) to run their CELTA course late summer and their TESOL is only available to students at the uni as an additional modules. Bolton College cancelled their early January course which was my second choice, but are running another at Easter.

Blackburn College faffed around for an age; one minute implying that there was likely to be a course early January or Febuary and have recently emailed me to state their dates - September and on a part-time basis. Wigan and Leigh havent run a course for several years due to a lack of demand.

So Manchester: Educational First say they have never run a course there nor do they intend too. Manchester Academy of Teacher Training course starts (06/02) which isnt ideal as I have guarenteed work and they said sometime ago their course was full but then when I rang again last week they didnt seem so sure ...... so application sent but not holding my breath. Manchester Uni offered all the places out last week without offering me an interview and have said I could apply for the next round ... but they only offer 8 places and the next course doesnt finish until after the end of March.

So Liverpool: Application sent to Liverpool International (start date 6/02) while Uni of Liverpool and City of Liverpool Community College seem to be the same thing and nothing until the summer.

So I guess what I'm asking is doesnt anyone else have any further ideas? Anything I havent thought of?

I could never afford to do this course without this grant (especially with travel costs/time off work etc) so I NEED TO DO IT NOW.

I have spoken to the British Council and they have not been helpful at all; she said they cant extend the dates as its the end of their financial year but can add me to the list for the next round of grants for the next period - no guarentee I would get it and I suspect a similar problem will occur as the organisations are recruiting for these courses NOW.

As you can tell I'm really keen not to lose this grant.

Thanks for listening,

TD

p.s ignore my rubbish grammer/spelling.

Oldernotwiser

Do you have any friends or family you could stay with in a different area which would broaden your scope?

top_drawer_2

I've considered that but I have pets, who I would have to find care for plus no-one comes to mind.

Tonight I've been through the entire cambridge/trinity listings of courses and check every single one .... there really arent that many courses available.

Oldernotwiser

If you could get the pets looked after, what about a college with residential facilities?

top_drawer_2

I would consider it but I am already paying rent on a shared house in Preston, the rent on anywhere else would need to be very cheap. The places I have looked at have all mention homestays/uni flats etc (these tend to be aimed at international students) begining at around £100 a week.

Jen