Payment Principals
Fees are payable upon enrolment. Depending on the value of the fee and the length of the course it may be possible to pay the fee in instalments by prior agreement.
Sponsored learners must provide a valid purchase order from their sponsoring organisation before their enrolment can be completed or in exceptional circumstances, a letter of sponsorship (on headed paper) may be accepted. Should the learner’s sponsor fail to pay all or part of the fees due, these will become the responsibility of the individual student.
Where an Advanced Learner Loan is being used to fund a course it is the responsibility of the learner to ensure that this is approved in a timely fashion and the application must be begun before the start of the course. Learners applying for a loan remain liable for the full cost of fees until the loan is fully approved by the Student Loan Company (SLC) and Paragon Skills, and payments have been authorised by the SLC.
Learners can choose to self-finance their courses, instead of taking out the loan with the SLC; Paragon Skills is able to offer instalments for these learners.
It should be noted that SLC payments stop being paid for a learner as soon as they withdraw, and the learner then becomes responsible for paying the remaining fees owed to Paragon Skills.
All fees and debts are collectable by Paragon Skills and Paragon Skills will issue reminders to pay. Paragon Skills reserves the right to engage debt collecting agencies to collect fees outstanding where all other recovery options have been exhausted, or to take legal action where all other attempts to collect outstanding debts have failed.
All fees must be settled prior to entry to an examination.
Fee Remission
Some groups of learners are entitled to free tuition and are not required to pay fees, based on individual circumstances and eligibility for example;
- 16-18 learners.
- Unemployed learners seeking employment in receipt of certain eligible benefits.
- Learners that meet eligibility rules studying on a Level 2 or 3 course with entitlement.
- 19-24 learners with an education health care plan (EHCP).
- Some 16-21 year old Apprentices or 22-24 year old Apprentices with an EHCP within small employers.
- 24+ learners without a level 3 qualification
- Learners who are unemployed, or on a low wage who already have a level 3 qualification
The above learners do not pay fees. Many training providers are able to receive the fully funded rate from the EFSA. For other groups of learners, the training provider is expected to charge a fee. For Apprenticeships, any fees due will be agreed with and paid by the Employer.
Refunds
Learners will only be eligible for a refund (or partial refund as appropriate) if Paragon Skills cancels the course and no suitable alternative course has been offered and accepted by the learner.
On an exceptional basis learners may apply for a full or partial refund if there are significant mitigating circumstances resulting in them being unable to continue with the course. Any such refunds will be entirely at the sole discretion of Paragon Skills and will take into account the length of time a learner has been on programme and the circumstances surrounding the reason for withdrawing.
Where a learner has taken out a loan from the Student Loan Company the SLC will clawback any appropriate fees.
It is Paragon Skills general principle not to offer refunds to employers in respect of Apprenticeships. Individual contracts with employers detail what happens in the event of a learner failing to complete their apprenticeship.