Adult apprenticeship and financial aid.

muddyl

Can anyone point me in the right direction to finding out what financial support I may be entitle to if I go back into education?
Im married with children so it's a big step to take and want to ensure I won't be making things too hard for my family to survive. I'. like to retrain to provide a better life for my family in the future.

Any help is appreciated.

Thanks.

saintjammyswine

Are you currently employed?
How old are you?
What is your highest previous qualification?
What subject are are you looking at?

muddyl

saintjammyswine wrote: »

Are you currently employed?
How old are you?
What is your highest previous qualification?
What subject are are you looking at?

Yes i am currently employed full time.

Im 32

Highest is probably an NVQ level 3 (AutoCAD, not that ive used it in 10 years).

Im looking into becoming an electrician, mechanic or welder. (I know it sounds strange not knowing exactly which i want to do, but at my age im trying to keep an open mind and see whats available).

saintjammyswine

Your best option for funding would be the 24+ Advanced Learning Loan. This can pay for courses at Level 3 and above, is not credit checked and adminstered by the Student Loans Company through Colleges. information here https://www.gov.uk/advanced-learning-loans/overview
Speak to your local FE College about your options and what is available locally.

National_Careers_Service

Hello Muddyl,

Starting to think about training towards a career can feel pretty overwhelming at first but hopefully breaking things down a bit and giving yourself the time to work through your ideas will help you to feel more focused when it comes to figuring out what’s best for you and your family.

Have you had any thoughts yet about what you might like to train in? This could help you to focus your attention on the type of funding that might be available to you. You mentioned apprenticeships in the title of your post, is this something in particular that you’ve been looking into? You may find the Apprenticeships website useful if you’ve not seen it already.

It’s understandable that, because you need to take into account your family’s needs, some of your main concerns about changing career are financial ones.

The funding you could be eligible for usually depends on a number of different factors such as:

• Your age
• Your existing level of qualifications
• What you would intend to study
• Who you intend to study with (state funded college or private course provider)
• How many hours you intend to study for
• What level of course you're looking to study.

To help to get you started with your research here’s an overview of possible sources of financial help:

Apprenticeships
Maybe we should start with these, as you’ve mentioned them as something that you’re interested in.

Did you know that employed apprentices are paid a wage by their employer? You can expect a minimum apprentice wage of £2.65 per hour for apprentices under 19, or first-year apprentices of any age. This is the minimum and any other apprentices should get the normal minimum wage for their age – for example if you are 19 or over and in your second year of the apprenticeship.


How it works is the Skills Funding Agency provides funding towards the cost of the apprentice's training. The employer provides the rest. The amount of funding available depends on various factors, including age. For example:

• If you are 19 - 65, the employer is expected to contribute at least 50%, depending on the sector
• If you are 19 - 24 and have been unable to start the Apprenticeship before their 19th birthday due to exceptional circumstances (pregnancy, caring duties, illness etc), the Skills Funding Agency will cover 100% of the cost of the training.

Free courses
Some colleges and adult education centres offer free or discounted courses, depending on your personal circumstances. You’ll need to check this with course providers to find out if they offer any discounts.

Discretionary Support Fund (DSF)
The DSF helps students who may find it hard to make ends meet whilst at college. You can use it to pay for the cost of books, equipment, transport, accommodation, childcare and other course-related costs. If you’re thinking about going to a college you can apply through the Student Support or Welfare Officer.

About 24+ Advanced Learning Loan
The 24+ Advanced Learning Loan is for those who are 24 years old and over. It can be used to cover further education course fees for Level 3 or Level 4 courses including A-levels, Access to HE Diplomas, other Diplomas and Certificates, Advanced Apprenticeships or Higher Apprenticeships.

Repayments won’t start until you have left the course and are earning over £21,000.

You can apply online or download an application form from the Student Finance website.

Professional and Career Development Loan (PCDL)
With the PCDL you can apply to borrow any amount between £300 and £10,000. You can use the money to pay for up to two years of work-related education or training, and up to one year’s practical work experience where this is part of your course. The Skills Funding Agency (SFA) pays the interest on the loan while you study.

For further information on the PCDL scheme, and an application pack, you can call 0800 585 505 or visit the PCDL website.

Funding for higher education
If you’re thinking about studying in higher education for the first time you may qualify for financial help from your local authority, the Student Loans Company, or your chosen university.

As a full-time degree student you could qualify for a tuition fee loan. You may also be eligible for a maintenance grant, maintenance loan and a bursary. How much you get will depend on your household income.

If you plan to study for a part-time degree that's at least 25% of the equivalent of a full-time course, you may qualify for a tuition fee grant and a course grant. Again, how much you receive will depend on your household income.

You can find out more at: www.direct.gov.uk/studentfinance.

Family Action
Family Action is a charity and they maintain a database of trusts and charities that can assist students by providing funding for further and higher education (they cannot offer advice on non-charitable education funding such as statutory funding).

Family Action’s services include:

· Educational Grants Search - the Educational Grants Search can identify charitable funding for education or training. Searches can be used for enquiries about full time, part time and distance learning courses.
· Educational Grants Programme - the Educational Grants Programme administers funds from over 30 educational trusts. It offers small grants to students who study at institutions affiliated to their service. Grants are primarily targeted at families and individuals with low incomes, particularly those living on benefits.

Turn2Us
The Turn2Us organisation is part of the Elizabeth Finn Care charity and helps people who are in financial hardship access the money through welfare benefits, grants and explores other options that maybe available.

Features on the site include:

• A Benefits Checker that helps you ensure that they are receiving all the welfare benefits you are entitled to.
• A Grants Search section containing the details of hundreds of grant-giving charities (national, regional and local) that may be able to provide financial support and other services
• A ‘My Turn2us’ account facility that can be used to make online enquiries and applications to grant-giving charities
• An Information and interactive tools covering a wide range of subjects on welfare benefits, grants and managing money.

Turn2Us can be contacted by telephone on 0808 802 2000 or you can take a look at their website - www.turn2us.org.uk.

I know this is an awful lot to take in but hopefully it will help you to get started. You might also find it useful to speak with Careers Advisers at the National Careers Service in more depth about funding options and your ideas about what you’d like to train towards.

Good luck with it all, and please let us know which route you decide to take.

allofushere

Hi

i hope you don't mind me jumping in on the discussion...

I'm 47, have a BA Hons degree 2:2 in 3D Design (from 1988) and would love to get into teaching in some sort or another. At present I am an administrator but hold no formal qualifications for this. I want to do a level 4 Business Admin course with the OU, then a teaching qualification (maybe PTLLS?) and an assessor A1 certificate. If I obtain a 24+ Adult Learning Loan for the first course ie the NVQ Level 4, would I be able to then apply for further loans to do the teaching and assessor qualifications? Or is it a one off deal? In which case, would I be better trying for a full time PGCE?
Confused.com.

muddyl

@ NCS representative:
Thank you very much for all of the great information. There is a lot to digest and a lot to think about, so I'll give it all some serious consideration and possibly be intouch after I have decided which route I would like to take.

Thanks again, greatly appreciated.

Mark