Student Support Centre

shayaan1

anyone who has signed up to this crap..please send me any information on how to cancel ssc and my son is preparing for his GCSE's and i do not have the means to support him for a one to one tutor which i had before and ssc are robbing me..and will not cancel my contract.

broke_but_smiling

Having experienced the student support centre myself:

Salesmen are paid commision which you would expect, and only when sale is made
Schools do receive commission
People do cancel

I think it is a hard sell that plays on your emotions-if your son or daughter aren't in the top grade or set you feel bad as a parent and want to support them

The content is dated, there is better and more up to date material available at WHSmith

The salesman will try lots of ways to get you to sign up on the night

So take your time and talk to your children's teachers to see if they need the support

4 years is a long time both for children to stick at a learning course and for parents to pay for it, who knows what is around the corner?

The short answer is to stand up for yourself, both at the first meeting-ask lots of questions-and if you want to cancel

If you aren't happy with the school's letter, then complain to them-I did-I thought it was free and was very upset to find that after the children had done their tests and the salesman had spoken non-stop for nearly 2 hours that he wanted £0000's from me, he did offer me an interest free payment scheme but that turned out to be a bank loan-which I didn't want either

Good luck!

70sfreak

I am consoidering SSC, but for my daughter to give her extra stimulation (she was, I was told by her school in the "Gifted and Talented" scheme and was asking me for extra maths work - she sounded bored).

We have had a sales visit. She was tested by the SSC salesman (think it was an old SATS paper, not sure) in English and Maths and came out well in Maths, but I was told she did really badly in her English (cash register sounds !!)

I doubt she is that bad in English (although I know it is the grammar they are testing on and she's not used to doing tests).

I feel that the feedback from the salesman test was done very badly - not at all sensitively and in front of her!!

I was impressed by the idea that there is a teacher helpline if they get stuck and my daughter did like the Maths DVD she saw (she really remembered the lesson and was helping other chiuldren in her class with that particular sublect.

I was ready to sign up and decided to look online.

So fsr I've looked at Mumsnt and your website.

I'll keep looking at other websotes too.

My quesion is:

Do other peope recommend other online Education programmes?

Where do you find old DVDS of SSC on Ebay ?

Thanlks very much xxx

jasper61

I have read some of the posts on this forum about the above company, and I think a little balance wouldn't go amiss..... I am a Parent Governor of a school who has promoted Simply Maths/English more than once to its parents, and - by lucky co-incidence - I have a personal friend who is one of their 'Course Advisors' (sales people!)

Okay, this is the way it is:- Yes, SSC IS a direct sales company. Yes, they do pay their 'Advisors'/sales people commission and yes they do - in the majority of cases - sell their product/programme (call it what you will) on a finance package.

Why does that make it bad? Are we all getting sanctimonious just 'cos our 'little cherubs' are involved? Would you moan if you were paying £24/hr each week for a qualified teacher/tutor for your kids? Probably not. Well, do the math(s)! That's £4,800 of anybodys money over 4 years! And that is for ONE subject! And yet people are on this and other sites/forums complaining about the cost?

If someone comes to your home to sell you something you have a RIGHT to 1) say NO, 2) cancel within 7 days and 3) withdraw from ANY finance agreement within 14 days - that's the LAW.

Now, is it a good product? The teaching staff at the school at which I am a Governor were VERY sceptical about this and SSC came in to present the whole thing to them. Their reaction was VERY favourable, and they could see GENUINE benefits in it for children who are under performing with the proviso that THE PARENTS TOOK RESPONSIBILITY FOR MAKING SURE IT WAS DONE. As for above average kids - well, caveat emptor is all I will say on that...

The SSC 'Script' - my friend (who will remain nameless!) says it is there to ensure that the advisors (salespeople) do NOT oversell the product (!!!), BUT..... when you have sales people in the field, you cannot control what they say or do so..........

As for what the school gets out of it, yes they DO get a small (and it is small) contribution to funds. This seems to annoy a load of parents on these forums, but I don't hear any bleating about the 15-20% the school gets out of School Photos every time they are sent home, making you feel guilty if you don't buy what is often a second-rate, poorly posed 'mugshot'! If there are 400 pupils in the school, and the avg package of photos is £25, I don't hear the parents moaning about the £1500-£2000 the school gets out of it? So where's the honesty in that?

At the end of the day, if you are serious about getting help for your children and can AFFORD it, the SSC product is one way of doing it. Home tutor is another, Kumon is yet another, They ALL cost money. It is NO GOOD having sour grapes about paying for any of them - specially the SSC one where the poor parent actually has to 'mark the exercises!' (oh, soooo much work to do!!!) - things in this world COST, and if you want your kids to do better at school and in SATS/GCSE's (not become overnight geniuses) you had better understand that and FAST!

Does wind me up sometimes! No doubt I will attract a barrage of complaints about this!

broke_but_smiling

Just came across a job ad which some posters here may wish to comment on:

"Sales Consultant
The Student Support Centre, the UK Market leader in providing Home Study Tuition Courses in Maths & English, are looking to expand their team of Self-Employed Sales Consultants.
Sales Consultants visit families in their own home on pre-qualified appointments to demonstrate our unique home study courses. Appointments are on weekday evenings between 4.00pm and 7.00pm, and between 10.00am and 4.00pm on Saturdays and Sundays. You would need to be available for a minimum of 13 appointments per week.
We have an excellent conversion rate due to the strength of our programme, with the majority of our enquiries generated either by liaison with local schools or by referrals.
Many of our Sales Consultants have worked with us for many years, receiving unbeatable job satisfaction gained from contributing to children's educational progress and by working within an ethical sales company.
Successful Consultants generally come from a Direct Sales, B2B Sales or Senior General Management .
Previous Sales experience is unecessary as full training is given. After the initial training course you will receive personal in-depth support for your first three months to enable you to become fully effective in this role as quickly as possible.
Our Maths, English & Reading Programmes support the school curriculum from the age of 4 years through to GCSE. Enrolled families are also able to access individual support via tutors and on-line assessments to support their use of the programme."

Salary: £35k-£60k OTE...that's really what you're paying for as part of a franchised business...
Read and weep...or do something else?

jillmc_2

Two years ago I received a letter from school about the student support centre. I was a governor at the time and presumed the school supported this organisation.

My children are above average intelligence - grade A/A* students but as a single mum I'm always conscious that I can't afford to support them outside of the school offering. My brightest son was already getting bored and I didn't want them to be switched off to education. I enquired if this package was at all suitable and the sales lady said it was. She came out one Saturday and spent over 3 hours with us. She used similar wording to previous comments about a parent doing what they can to support their children by investing in their education, giving them the best chance in life etc. Even though they were above average she said the package would ensure they received the support and stimulation they needed to continue achieving and not getting bored.

I'm 2 years through paying for a package which cost £2729. It costs me £56.85 per month which I struggle to continue to pay. They boys tried the first 2 or 3 DVDs and I worked with them. By the time we all identified it was not suitable or appropriate for them we were too late. Apart from the low level content, the presentation is primary school level in both graphics and verbal content - insulting to a young teenager.

We have had two letters in the first couple of weeks welcoming us and not a single contact since and no replies to letters. The only contact in the 2 years since was when I got a survey emailed a few months ago and I completed it telling them yet again exactly what I thought of their product and they had the cheek to send a £5 M&S voucher to thank me for contributing. They obviously knew I had completed it and yet didn't even follow up the complaints then either.

I am an intelligent person. I am not stupid and in fact at work I am an astute perceptive manager who is not easily taken in at all. Yet here I am, embarassed and angry at myself for being conned and hugely financially worse off.

vivax74

Thank you MSE for saving me from an financial mess. Had I not read the reviews on your website and on mumsnet.com, I would have definitely signed the contract. I personally feel that teaching and learning is a face to face interaction if not one to one. This concept of DVD/web based learning only makes children averse to mix with other people. I think we already have enough aversion to other people here in Britain. We hardly have any interaction with others. You walk on the street, city centre, people are busy talking/texting on their phones or listening to their iPod. Being a migrant and from Asian background, I find this attitude pathetic. Like the way they have replaced humans with self check outs at supermarkets, soon we will have machines teaching at our schools.

cynic13

Hi my friends, I had student account-passport account of HSBC and had debit card. In December 2010 my account was closed due to non-payment of monthly fee £8.Since that date I regularly went to HSBC branch and request the detail of my account. I was told that my account is closed and was forwarded to call their debt collector (Metropolitan) upon my payment request./
For 6 months, I have been calling the metrop. and I was told that they have no debt-file as to my account. Once I went to HSBC BRANCH, they always tell should I call their debt agency. and also they told me that they anymore no concern with my closed account. I am bit confused..BECAuse I tried to request to pay my debt many times and I was not able to pay it in the branch. and so far for 6 months, I haven't received any letter from Metropolitan debt collectors as to paying debt.

2 days ago, I called the telephone banking again, I learnt that my account is WRITTEN OFF, and I called metropolitan again to ask if any file about my debt. nothing in Mtropolitan database.

on phone call, I requested a letter from HSBC which states that my account is written off, at the moment I am waiting to receive it. As an addition , my debt is 43.78. the other point is : I will leave from UK in end of august , won't be back to UK (INTERNATIONAL STUDENT)..

SO GUYS, WHAT SHOULD I DO AT THE MOMENT? I assume that I worry too much. Please help me I am so confused. and another thing must be said is, the woman adviser from Metropolitan on the phone, told me that sometimes HSBC Does not care debt less than 50..is it needed to consider seriously. I wonder your comments.

ComputingData

You all should really try Khan Academy. It's free and has been supported by Bill Gates's foundation.

I haven't posted that much here, so I can't provide a link, but do a search on google for 'Khan Academy' and you should find it.

It goes from very basic (1 + 1) to very advanced material in loads of subjects. You can even get apps for your phone.

I haven't seen any bad press about it nor any complaints on websites.

- Anthony

MummyC_3

Avoid these gangsters!