Can I get money to help with college?

Students who meet the criteria below and who have a financial need can apply for the Vulnerable bursary. This bursary can pay up to £1,200 to a student studying a course lasting 30 weeks or more (pro-rata payments for less than 30 weeks). Students aged 19 or over are NOT eligible for the Vulnerable Bursary.

IMPORTANT NOTE: The full amount is not guaranteed, as in some cases, a young person might meet the eligibility criteria but not have an actual financial need in order to continue to participate in education. This might be because their financial needs are already met and/or they have little or no educational-related costs (eg. no travel costs or course related costs). In these cases, there may be a possibility of no award or only a partial award.

• Be aged 16-18 on 31^st August in the relevant academic year
• Be in care or a care leaver
• Or be in receipt of Income Support or Universal Credit in their own name because they are financially supporting themselves or someone who is dependent on them and living with them such as a child or partner
• Or be in receipt of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) AND either Employment & Support Allowance (ESA) or Universal Credit in their own name
• Or be in receipt of Personal Independence Payments (PIP) AND either Employment & Support Allowance (ESA) or Universal Credit in their own name

This bursary supports students with the additional costs of remaining in education e.g.: travel, some materials, course-related trips and travel to university open days. To be eligible for this funding, you need to:

• Be aged 16-18 on 31^st August in the year they start their learning programme and studying a course at Cirencester College funded by the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA)
• Be aged 19 and continuing a course you began aged 16-18 (19+ continuers) or you have a current Education, Health & Care Plan (EHCP)
• Have lived in the UK for 3 years prior to the start of your course
• Be living in a household where the total household income is under £45,000 (this includes earned income, benefit payments and Working & Child Tax Credits). Students who are NOT eligible for this funding are:
  • Students on Higher Education courses who receive support through Student Finance England
  • Students on an Apprenticeship training scheme
  • Students under the age of 16 on 31^st August in the year they start their learning programme

If you received free meals at school and are now aged 16-18 on 31^st August in the year you start your learning programme , you may be entitled to free meals at College as well. If your parent / carer is in receipt of one or more of the following benefits, you may be eligible for Free Meals in Further Education (FMFE):

• Income Support
• Income-based Jobseekers Allowance
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
• Support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
• The guaranteed element of State Pension Credit
• Child Tax Credit (provided you are not entitled to Working Tax Credit) with gross income of no more than £16,190 as assessed by Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs
• Universal Credit with net earnings not exceeding the equivalent of £7400 per annum

If you are eligible, an allocation would be loaded onto your College ID card to use in the catering outlets on site for each day that you are timetabled to be at College.

Applications are now open for financial support for the new academic year 2024/25. 

To apply, you can either:

• Complete the relevant PDF (you will need to have ‘Adobe Acrobat’ installed on your device)
• Print the relevant PDF at home and complete by hand
• Collect a paper version from the Student Hub reception desk
• Ask for a paper version to be posted out to your home

2024/25 Form for new applications

2024/25 Form for current students who were in receipt of a bursary in 2023/24

Please return the completed form and the supporting financial evidence as listed on the form:

• Email to CCLB@cirencester.ac.uk
• Post to ‘Student Journey Team, Cirencester College, Stroud Road, Cirencester, Glos, GL7 1XA’
• By hand (in a sealed envelope) to the Cashier in Reprographics

If you have any queries, please email CCLB@cirencester.ac.uk

• Be 19+ on the first day of your course
• Meet the nationality/residency status outlined here.
• Your course must qualify for the Advanced Learner Loan. To find out if your course qualifies please ask a member of our Student Journey Team by emailing student.journeyteam@cirencester.ac.uk

For the most recent and up to date information about fees for any of our adult courses, please email student.journeyteam@cirencester.ac.uk

Check with us that your course qualifies for the Advanced Learner Loan.

If it does you will be given a ‘Learning and Funding Information Letter’ (LAFIL) by Student Journey at enrolment, this will contain all the information you will need to make the loan application. Please go to the Student Finance England website to apply.

Depending on when you started your course this will dictate which repayment plan you are on. Follow this easy guide to determine which repayment plan you will follow. This will also explain what the interest rates are on your loans.

This funding is designed to help with the additional costs involved with attending College eg: transport to College, course materials and equipment.

To be eligible to apply for this funding, you must be:

• Aged 19 or over at the start of the course
• Applied and been approved for an Advanced Learner Loan
• UK resident or meet sufficient residency criteria
• Living in a household where the total income is under £20,817 per year

To apply you will need to send a completed application form along with the relevant supporting evidence listed on the form.

This scheme is available for young parents who need help with the cost of childcare while studying at College. This funding is not means tested and will pay for childcare with your chosen provider as long as they are registered with Ofsted.

For more information on the scheme and how to apply please visit their website https://www.gov.uk/care-to-learn

Please note that as part of the application process you will need to bring your child’s birth certificate into College for us to verify. This is important as your application cannot be finalised until this evidence has been provided.

https://www.gov.uk/advanced-learner-loan

https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/student-finance/

https://www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk/en

https://nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk/