For Higher Education Students

Whilst studying, Sophie received (based on 2018/19 funding allowances):

• A tuition fee loan to cover the full cost of her fees
• £1,669 a year Parents’ Learning Allowance (increased to £1863 a year for 2022/23)
• £2,925 a year Adult Dependants’ Grant because her partner earns below a certain amount (increased to £3,263 for 2022/23)
• £282.36 a week to cover childcare costs for her three children - nursery, breakfast and after school clubs (increased to £315.03 a week for 2022/23)
• specialist 1-2-1 support to help with her dyslexia
• £8,700 maintenance loan (increased to £9706)
• £500 Advantage Bursary
• 25% discount on Council Tax
• FREE healthy breakfast every morning

Fees

3-year full-time undergraduate courses

Our tuition fees for full-time undergraduate courses offer great value for money.

• Starting September 2023 Tuition fees for undergraduate courses are £9,000 per year. 

Top-up degree courses

If you successfully complete one of our Foundation Degrees and you progress immediately to the relevant top-up degree course, the top-up fee will be the same as the annual fee for your Foundation Degree (in the same way as it is for students who pay the same annual fee for a 3-year honours degree).

Progress to the top-up course in September 2023 and your annual fee will be £8,335 - the same as your Foundation Degree.

Part-time, or part of an undergraduate qualification

Students studying part-time degree courses, or part of a higher education qualification (for example, a proportion of the modules), will be charged on a pro-rata basis. 

Therefore students undertaking a standard higher education course on a part-time basis must pay in full the equivalent part-time annual tuition fee. It may however be possible to pay the fee in instalments rather than the full cost upfront.

Higher National Certificate (HNC), Higher National Diploma (HND) and Certificate of Higher Education (Cert HE)

• Starting September 2023, fees for HNC and HND programmes are £7,000
• Starting September 2023, fees for Cert HE programmes are £9,000
• HNCs and HNDs may be studied over multiple years - so payment can be staggered:
• For autumn starts running over 2 full academic years, payment is 50% per year at the start of each year.
• For HNCs starting in January/February that run over 3 academic years, payment is 50% per year for the first 2 years - and nothing in year 3. 

PGCE

• Starting September 2023 Fees for PGCE courses are £9,000 per year.

Funding between programmes

(e.g. from HNC to HND, from Cert HE to Yr 2 of a Foundation Degree, from Foundation Degree to Topup Degree)

It should be noted that financial support and exemptions are only applicable whilst enrolled on a programme of study. For example, you will not be able to apply for childcare support from Student Finance, or Council Tax exemptions, for the period between the course end date and the next course start date.

Other costs

All students are expected to provide their own stationery for taking notes. You will also be charged for photocopying and for replacing a lost student ID badge.

Additional costs relating specifically to your course - such as specialist equipment, study materials, or workwear, are specified on each course page under 'Key Information'.

You can discuss the detail of these either with our Student Support Team or a tutor. It may be possible to access additional non-repayable funding to help you pay for these items.

International students

EU/EEA Citizens

If you are an EU/EEA citizen you will need to bring evidence of your settled / pre-settled status with you to enrol.  At enrolment you can provide us with your share code or evidence of the outcome of your application for the EU Settlement Scheme.

Non EU/EAA Citizens

You will need to bring your passport and current visa with you when you enrol.

See our International Students fees and funding page for full details of what and how to pay.

Loans

Tuition fee loan

Student loans are available to cover the full cost of your tuition fees.1 You don’t have to pay anything upfront1 and there’s nothing to pay back until you’re qualified and earning at least £25,000 a year.3

Maintenance loan

If you’re studying a full-time course you can apply for a maintenance loan to help with living costs.

Maintenance loans depend on your household income:

• Under 25 and living with parents/guardians? You can get a maintenance loan up to £8400.
• Over 25 or living away from home? You could get up to the maximum maintenance loan of £9,978 (£10,490 if entitled to benefits).

Nothing to repay until you’re earning £25,000 a year

The great thing about both tuition fee and maintenance loans is that you don’t need to pay anything back until you’re earning at least £25,000 a year.

The table below gives you an idea of what your monthly repayments could be.

There are different repayment plans depending on when you started your degree course and whether it was at undergraduate or postgraduate level. If you are not sure which plan applies to you, you can check by visiting the government website here.

Equally, if you want to access further details about your repayments especially if you have more than one plan, you can find out more by visiting the following page on the gov.uk website.

Government support

For parents

If you’re a parent studying a full-time degree-level course you could access the Parents’ Learning Allowance, worth up to £1,915 a year.1 The allowance is dependent on your household income and usually paid in three instalments. There is also the Childcare Grant, which covers up to 85% of your childcare costs - up to £188.90 a week for 1 child and up to £323.85 a week for 2 or more children.

For those supporting an adult partner or relative

For full-time degree-level students who support an adult dependant, the Adult Dependants’ Grant could give you up to £3,354 additional funding each year.1 An adult dependant is usually your husband, wife, partner or civil partner, but could also be a relative, such as a parent or grandparent. It cannot be an adult child.

If you’re under 25, the adult dependant cannot be your partner unless you’re married or in a civil partnership.

Members of the Armed Forces

If you’re a member of the Armed Forces you may be eligible to claim funding for your course through the MoD’s Enhanced Learning Credits Scheme (ELS).

If you have a disability

Disabled Students’ Allowance is available for any student with a learning difficulty, health problem or disability. This is in addition to any other finance you claim. The amount you receive isn’t income based: it’s based on your individual needs and intended to cover any extra study-related costs you incur due to your health condition.

The allowance is worth:

• up to £26,291 per year

Bursaries, scholarships and awards

• Terms and Conditions
• Application form (applies to all bursaries, scholarships and awards)

Up to £500 with B&FC’s Advantage Bursary

We offer a means-tested bursary of up to £500 to help towards the cost of equipment (books, tablet etc) you might need for your course. This is awarded in the first year of study only (2 x £250 instalments) to eligible undergraduate students only ie new full-time level 4 UK home students or EU nationals who have been living permanently in the UK for the last 5 years.

We only have a limited number of bursaries available so we will assess your eligibility using data supplied by Student Finance England.

You will need to apply for the bursary before the first day of the month in which your course starts (ie 1 September for courses starting in September and 1 January for courses starting in January).

£1,000 a year with B&FC’s Access Scholarship

If you’re a care leaver, young carer or estranged student (young student without the support of a family network) you could receive £1,000 for each year you study (3 annual payments, 2 x £350 and 1 x £300 up to a maximum of 3 years) with our Access Scholarship.

If you’re studying part-time, the amount will be paid pro rata and you must be studying a minimum of 25% of the full-time course each year. To be eligible you must be a new UK home student or EU national who has been living permanently in the UK for the last 5 years. You cannot receive the award if you are repeating a study year or doing a placement year.

You will need to apply for the scholarship before the first day of the month in which your course starts (ie 1 September for courses starting in September and 1 January for courses starting in January) using the form below.

B&FC is a winner of the Standalone National Excellence and Innovation Award for supporting HE students who are estranged from their families throughout their learning journey.

The B&FC Opportunity Scholarship

This scholarship is part of our Access and Participation Plan and will support up to five new undergraduate students from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic backgrounds to access higher education at B&FC.

It will cover the cost of tuition fees for up to 3 years of study on a higher education programme at B&FC.

You may be eligible if you are a new full-time level 4 / year 0 UK home student or EU national and have been living permanently in the UK for the last 5 years (undergraduate students only) from one of the following BME (Black and Minority Ethnic) groups:

• Mixed/Multiple Ethnic Group
   White and Black Caribbean/White and Black African/White and Asian/Other Mixed/Multiple Ethnic 

• Asian/Asian British
  Indian/Pakistani/Bangladeshi/Chinese/Other Asian

• Black African/Caribbean/British
  African/Caribbean/Other Black/African/Caribbean
   
• Other Ethnic Group

This Scholarship is not available if you are repeating a study year, undertaking a placement year and/or have a sponsor who is covering the cost of your undergraduate programme.

The number of scholarships is limited to five, therefore, we may assess further based on information requirements detailed in the Important Information section.

Application deadline is the last day of the month in which your programme starts.

£200 with B&FC’s DSA Student Contribution Award

The Government’s Disabled Students' Allowance (DSA) is intended to help you pay for extra costs related to your disability, learning difference, mental health conditions and/or health conditions which may impact on your studies. 

If you have applied for Disabled Students' Allowance, depending on your funding body you may need to contribute £200 towards the cost of any computer equipment that is provided for you.

If your confirmation of funding letter indicates the purchase of a computer/laptop, you may apply for B&FC’s DSA Student Contribution Award and you could receive a one-off £200 award to cover your contribution towards the cost.

To be eligible for this you must be a current B&FC undergraduate student.

For more information, email ssfunds@blackpool.ac.uk.

• Terms and Conditions

Hardship fund

In exceptional cases, B&FC can access extra funding for those who find themselves facing financial hardship. This will obviously depend on the individual circumstances. Speak to one of our advisers to find out more.

Other support

FREE breakfast

As a B&FC student, you’re entitled to a FREE healthy breakfast every morning while you’re at College.

Supplement your income

A part-time job could help you to supplement your income. Once you’ve enrolled you can check local vacancies via our online Job Shop. We’re happy to advise you about how to find a suitable position, whether that’s to help make ends meet during your studies or when you’re graduating and ready to start or move forward in your career.

Contact us

Our advisers are here to help with all aspects of funding.

• Call 01253 504177, Press Option 1
• Email info@blackpool.ac.uk.

Disclaimer: Tuition fees may be subject to increases in subsequent years of your course.

1Eligibility applies – gov.uk  2Please note: our course fees are subject to changes in government information and we reserve the right to update our fees accordingly.  3 Applies to English and Welsh students only - for full terms and conditions go to https://www.gov.uk/repaying-your-student-loan. 4 Based on studying outside London