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Money & Support for Looked after Children, Care Leavers & Young People Living Alone

College of North West London has a dedicated Learner Services team who are here to ensure you have the best chance of success and are there to support you every step of the way. The Student Advisors are the single point of contact for Looked after Children/Care Leavers and their Social Worker/Virtual schools.

If you are 16, 17 or 18 on 31st August 2022 and

  • In Local authority care or a care leaver,
  • Estranged from family and receiving Income Support in your own name,
  • In receipt of disability living allowance and Employment Support Allowance in your own name.

You may be entitled to a Nominated Bursary of up to £1,200 for the academic year 2022-23.  You will also be offered a free meal up to the value of £2.50 per day from the canteen or Costa cafe.

Our team can offer you

  • Contact with a Student Advisor prior to enrolment to support your transition to college
  • Pre-application & on course support from our Student Advisers and Careers Advisers on a personalised 1:1 basis.
  • 1:1 careers appointment to discuss progression options for each young person
  • Support in applying for university scholarships and bursaries
  • Emergency support in the form of emergency travel support for unseen events that may affect your ability to study.
  • Personal/emotional support and referral to other professional agencies where appropriate.
  • Support and assistance in applying for financial support;
  • Support in applying for Care to Learn for young parents aged under 20 at the start of the course

So how does the Nominated bursary work?

The bursary is paid to you every 2 weeks and is dependent on you reaching 87% attendance at college per week. This means that you need to attend all your timetabled classes including English & Maths to receive your nominated bursary of up to £34.28 per week.  We assess your attendance every week so in each 2 week period, you have the possibility of receiving £0.00, £34.28 or £68.56.  As you can see it really pays to attend!

What about financial support for Care leavers/estranged young people aged over 19?

If you are aged 19 or over when you start your course you may be eligible for financial support from the discretionary Learner Support Fund.  If you are in receipt of an Advanced Learning Loan you may be eligible for a 19+ Advanced Learning Loan bursary to assist you towards the cost of books, travel and equipment. 

If you would like more information and would like to speak to a Student Adviser please email studentadvice@ucg.ac.uk