Support for Students with Disabilities When you enrol, we ask you to indicate on the form if you have any physical or learning support needs, so we can help you from the start of your course. With your permission, our Special Needs Coordinator will share this information with your tutor, to enable them to support you properly.
A range of physical and other support (e.g. hearing loop, Braille notes) are also available. Once the arrangements are made, the Coordinator will keep in touch with you as you go along, to check that things are going well. If any issues arise with regards to your support arrangements, do contact him/her.
Support For Students With Learning Difficulties
We do not offer specific courses for students with learning difficulties. However, we are happy to try and find a course for you at the Centre. Please contact the Head of Department of the subject area in which you are interested. We will do our best to accommodate you at the Mary Ward Centre, or to refer you to somewhere else if we cannot provide what you need.
Additional Learning Support If it becomes clear after you have enrolled that you require additional learning support to help you complete your studies, then your tutor can arrange this through the English Department.
Financial Help Towards The Cost Of Your Studies The Mary Ward Fund helps students who may find it financially difficult to attend classes. It covers travel, the costs of material or books, some exam fees and help towards course fees. The money is there for anyone who needs it, regardless of the course length. Please note that generally you can only apply for support for one course per term. Funds are limited of course, so there is no guarantee of help but we always try.
You will need to provide written details of your financial position, e.g. bank statement, financial outgoings such as rent, and any benefits received.
Please ask if you need help filling in the form. Information about the Mary Ward Fund is available in languages in addition to English, so if you know someone who needs this, ask at Reception for the appropriate language version.
Childcare We do not have a creche. To find childcare you will need to look at your local borough's website which will give lists of childminders, playgroups and nurseries.
If you need financial support towards childcare click on this link below for more information
Fee Concessions At present, we are not able to enrol concessionary students online, as we need to see your concessionary evidence. You can enrol by post or in person. Your concessionary evidence needs to be dated within the last six months and you will be asked to bring updated evidence when it becomes out of date. Details of acceptable concessionary evidence documents are on the enrolment form.
If you are claiming a concession because your state registered pension is your main or principal income, please sign the self declaration on the enrolment form. This is a concession offered by the Centre, since the government does not provide any automatic concessions for retired people.
Concessionary fees are available as shown in the course entry if you are:
in receipt of Job Seeker's allowance
asylum seeker receiving a means tested benefit
in receipt of Working Tax Credit, where the household income is less than £15,050 per annum
in receipt of Incapacity Benefit
in receipt of other income based benefit
unwaged and dependent on somebody in the above categories
over 60 with sole or main source of income a state pension
low waged with proof via payslips of income of £90 per week or less (University Extra-Mural courses only)
registered unemployed but not in receipt of benefit
Evidence of entitlement must be produced before the enrolment is processed. Please supply a photocopy if not enrolling in person. Note: If you are over 16 and under 19 years on 31 August in the calendar year in which your course starts and enrolling for LSC funded courses i.e. not 'U' suffix courses, you can enrol for nil tuition fee.
Instalments
It is possible to pay course fees by instalment for long courses (i.e. 24 weeks +), ESOL courses, and some other courses, by negotiation. You will be asked to pay a deposit when you enrol, usually the cost of the first term of the course plus a percentage of the subsequent term fees. The balance is paid by direct debit (not cash or cheque), termly in advance. Details are in a special leaflet and form available from Reception. For enquiries about instalments, contact Amanda Seller on 020 7269 6095. Instalment arrangements are not available for short courses.
Access to Computers/Internet - Room B5 We have a new open-access IT room, B5, with computers and other resources for students to use, which is open for several hours every day. At certain times, tutors from the Computing and English departments will be able to give particular help to students in those subject areas. Opening times are Monday - Thursday, 2.00pm - 7.00pm & Friday, 2.00pm - 6.00pm.
There are several internet cafés within five minutes walk of the Centre, and Holborn Library (15 minutes walk away) has computer access, for times when Room B5 is not open. Reception has details.
