How must I provide evidence to claim for learner support funding?
Students must submit evidence clearly which shows the name and address of the person receiving support by logging onto Pay my Student
Evidence must be seen in full, with all pages of the benefits attached to assess your claim for support.
If the evidence is not in the student's name, you must provide evidence of child benefit or birth certificate showing parental link or the name of the student must appear clearly on the evidence provided.
If you are an asylum seeker and have an ARC card, you must be provide the original paperwork the ARC card came with.
What if I don’t have a bank account in my own name?
The College is only able to make payments directly to a students bank account. Students are encouraged to open a bank account to receive payments.
If you are unable to open a bank account the College can make payments in kind (such as paying for your lunch in the college canteen, topping up your Oyster Card, but only in exceptional circumstances.
If you apply for childcare, payments are made directly to the child care provider, so you won't need an account to receive this support type.
Students are advised to speak to a personal development advisor for advice and support.
How will I find out if my application has been assessed?
Students will receive a letter by email to confirm whether they have been successful in their application for support.
Email learnerfunding@barnetsouthgate.ac.uk if you have any queries about your application.
What do I need to do to receive my weekly payments?
Students are expected to have 100% attendance to lessons every week to receive payments, unless there are exceptional circumstances (see Learner Support Fund Information & Guidance booklet for further details).
What happens if I provide incorrect or false information on my application for learner support funding?
The College will reclaim money paid to student where information given on the application form is found to be false.
Deliberately providing false or incomplete information that leads to incorrect/overpayment may result in future payments being stopped and any incorrectly paid funds being recovered. This might result in a referral to the police with the possibility of the student and/or their family facing prosecution.
What happens if I am withdrawn from my course?
The College will reclaim monies paid to students where they have been withdrawn before the end of the course. Future applications to the Learner Support Fund will be refused if previous awards have not been repaid after withdrawal from the course.
How are childcare payments arranged and paid for?
Childcare payments made by the college is paid directly to the Ofsted registered childcare provider.
The College will only communicate with the childcare provider to request details of the child/ren who are attending the childcare provider, confirmation of their bank details and the costs of childcare payments to be made.
All other arrangements and details of the childcare support must be agreed and arranged between the student and childcare provider.
Students must ensure they update the College of any changes are made to the childcare provider. For example, if future payments must be cancelled or decreased.
For students in receipt of care to learn, students must communicate changes directly with Care to Learn.
Go to https://studentbursary.education.gov.uk/w/webpage/student-bursary for more information.
What information do I need to provide to the college to complete my application for Care to Learn?
Students must provide proof of the following for the college to support an application for Care to Learn support:
- a copy of the child’s birth certificate or,
- a letter confirming receipt of Child Benefit for that child
If I am an asylum seeker can I get funding?
If you are an asylum seeker who is 16-18 and looked after by the local authority you may be eligible for Vulnerable Bursary. Refer to Vulnerable bursary eligibility criteria for more information.
Unfortunately, students who are an asylum seeker who are 19+ are not eligible for ESFA funding.
However, the College can provide support in kind such based on exceptional circumstances.
In kind (one off) support can include:
College meals, pre-paid Oyster cards, buying books, equipment, materials, laptop loan, course kits, uniform to help you engage in education.
Payments will only be awarded if a referral for support is made from a Personal Development Advisor (PDA) or a member of the Safeguarding Team based in Student Services.
Email welfare@barnetsouthgate.ac.uk to speak to a Personal Development Advisor
Email Safeguarding@barnetsouthgate.ac.uk to speak to a member of the safeguarding team.
Read the Learner Support Policy
