fees and funding
All full-time Further Education (FE) courses are free to UK and EU residents aged 16-18 on 31 August in the first year of study.
If you are 16-18, there are no tuition or examination fees to pay, although you may need to make payments for exam/coursework re-sits.
If you are 19 or older on 31 August in the first year of your course, you may be required to pay tuition and exam fees.
If you need more information you can speak to the Admissions team, please call 020 8686 5700.
Financial support
You may be able to apply for financial support from the 16-18 Bursary Fund or the 19+ Discretionary Learner Support Fund which are designed to help those who face financial hardship. Payments can be used to meet the costs of things like essential course equipment, materials, field trips and travel. Please note that these funds cannot be used to help with the cost of fees or accommodation.
To view our Financial Support Guidelines click here
Advanced Learning Loans
The Government has introduced Advanced Learning Loans for students aged 19 and over to help pay for Level 3, 4 and 5 course fees. Advanced Learning Loans are funded and administered by the Student Loans Company.
If you apply for an Advanced Learning Loan you will not need to pay anything back until you are earning over £21,000.
The Advanced Learning Loans are not means tested or credit checked and you can apply whether you are in employment or in receipt of Job Seekers Allowance (JSA) or Employment Support Allowance (ESA). The loan will be paid directly to Croydon College on your behalf.
You can apply online and our finance team can help you with your application form and answer any questions you may have. Please call our Finance Team on 020 8686 5700.
To qualify for an Advanced Learning Loan you need to be:
- Aged 19 or over on the date that you start your course
- You must usually be permanently resident in the UK for three years prior to the start of the course
- Enrolling on an eligible Level 3, Level 4 or Level 5 course including: Vocational courses and Access to HE Diploma.
- Please follow link https://www.gov.uk/advanced-learning-loans/eligibility for full eligibility guidance.
Access to University Courses
Student Finance England will ‘write off’ any outstanding Advanced Learning Loans you owe for an Access to University course once you complete a higher education course, such as those offered at our Croydon University Centre. For more information see www.gov.uk/advancedlearningloans.
Frequently asked questions
| What courses are covered by the Advanced Learning Loan? | All eligible Level 3 and 4 Vocational courses and Access to University Diplomas. |
| How much will it cost if I do an Access to University Diploma and then go straight on to a degree level course? |
Student Finance England will ‘write off’ any outstanding Advanced Learning Loans you owe for an Access to University course once you complete a higher education course. This means you don’t have to repay it. Please note if you do not enter directly onto a higher education course, and have started re-paying your 24+ ALL Student Finance England will only write off any outstanding balance from your loan; they will not refund any repayments you have already made. |
| When can I apply for my Advanced Learning Loan? | Once you have been accepted on to a course with Croydon College a Learning and Funding Information Letter, when available, will be sent to you. This letter is required in order to apply for your loan. If you need help call our Finance Team on 020 8686 5700 or you can apply online at https://www.gov.uk/advanced-learner-loan |
| How much will my loan be for? |
This will depend on the course you choose and the tuition fees charged by the College. Please feel free to call our Finance Team on 020 8686 5700 if you have any questions. You can take out a loan for the maximum amount of your tuition fee or you can pay all or part of the tuition fee yourself. There is no loan to cover living or maintenance expenses. |
| Who will pay my tuition fees? |
Student Finance England (SFE) will pay your tuition fees to Croydon College once the course has started and we have confirmed your attendance. No loan payments will be made by them to us until you have attended the course for at least two weeks. |
|
When will I start re-paying my loan? |
You will only start to repay your loan when your annual income exceeds £21,000 per year. Interest on the loan will be lower than anything available on the high street and is linked to inflation. |
Tuition Fund statement
This funding is to support small group tuition for students aged 16-18 in English, Maths and other subjects that have been disrupted. The fund will also support additional tuition for students that have an EHC plan in place. All students accessing this support must be on a 16-19 study programme. Those undertaking English and Maths qualifications will be offered additional support via this fund for these as well as for other components of their study programme. Eligible students across both Croydon and Coulsdon campus will be identified as follows:
- Have not achieved a grade 4 or above in GCSE English and/or Maths
- Have achieved a grade 4 or above in English/Maths, are from economically disadvantaged backgrounds and would need catch up support
Students eligible for this support will be offered at least 10 hours of specialist tuition in classes that are no larger than 5 students so that personalised support can be provided. In addition, students who also have identified needs, and those in the vulnerable category, can access further additional learning support. Each of these small groups will be clearly defined in the student’s timetable and will be allocated their own tuition fund tutor. In GCSE there will be targeted sessions to focus on development of English and Math skills, building confidence and exam technique with at least 10 hours of tuition offered. With Functional skills English and Maths there will be an extension to the timetabled sessions to include a minimum of 10 hours additional tuition.
Further support will be offered across the college in Vocational and Academic areas with the addition of workshop and study skills sessions. In accordance with ESFA guidance this additional tutorial will be offered on the basis that:
- Students have had disrupted learning, for example on vocational courses where assessment has been deferred because of lockdown
- Students who may benefit from small group tuition to reach their full potential
All of these sessions will be timetabled and tracked.
Further information can be found using the link below:
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/16-to-19-funding-16-to-19-tuition-fund
Every effort has been made to ensure that the information contained in this website is correct and accurately reflects the College community’s experience and achievements. However Croydon College reserves the right to change or amend, at any time, any of the course details, including content, dates, times, venues, fees payable, concessions available, terms and conditions.
The College also reserves the right to close, or not to start any published course. Please note that fees may change each year – so before deciding on a course to study, you should contact us for the latest information.
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