SOUTH WEST MINISTRY TRAINING COURSE
SOUTH WEST MINISTRY TRAINING COURSE
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Useful funding information whilst training on a Regional Training Course It is important to note that if you are preparing for ministry on a Regional Training Course, as opposed to a Theological College, you are deemed by all parties to be self-funding. in other words, whilst training, you maintain your existing financial arrangements through employment commitments or other suitable means; your sponsoring church is not expected to provide grant funding during your period of training. You will have had discussions with representatives of your sponsoring churches as to your training arrangements before you started and your financial situation will have been one of the key factors in determining your training pathway. If you made a commitment at the outset to be self-funding, there is always the possibility that during the period of training an unforeseen financial situation could arise that you are unable to remedy by your existing means. It is extremely important that, should you find yourself in financial difficulty, you speak to the nominated representative of your sponsoring church immediately to make them aware of the situation. in order to ease the problem, there are several places you can turn to that may be able to give you support. However it is a harsh reality that most grant funding bodies only accept applications from full-time residential candidates, but do not despair! Local Education Authority The Course Fees are met in their entirety by your sponsoring church and you are not expected at any point to contribute towards them. As a result, you are not eligible for a grant towards Course Fees from your Local Education Authority. However your Local Education Authority also offers part-time students a 'Book and Travel Grant' of £250.00. Full details of this grant can be found on the DfES website together with a downloadable application form: University of Exeter The university is extremely supportive of part-time students and if you are experiencing any financial hardship, there are two grants that may be able to assist. The 'Access to Learning Fund' allocates money to students who have a shortfall between their income and expenditure. The application form requires you to provide details of your financial commitments together with copy documentation, i.e. bank statements, mortgage/rent information, and an appointed panel assesses whether you qualify for any financial assistance. The fact that you are training for ministry has no detrimental impact on your application as the panel is only concerned with your student status and your financial position. The information provided to the university is retained on a confidential basis and is not shared with other parties, i.e. your sponsoring church or tutors. It may feel uncomfortable divulging sensitive and personal information to the university, but this is outweighed if they are able to offer some financial assistance. The university also have a 'Part-Time Child Care' grant that again assists with child care costs for part-time students. As part of the financial questionnaire, you are required to provide details of registered child care costs. The application form that covers both the 'Access to Learning Fund' and the 'Part-Time Child Care' grant can be obtained from either: University of Exeter, Finance Services, Income & Student Funding, Northcote House, The Queen's Drive, Exeter EX4 4QJ, Telephone: 01392 263890; Fax: 01392 263859; email: money@ex.ac.uk or via this hyperlink: http://www.admin.exeter.ac.uk/students/studentfunding/2005-06/access-learning-fund.shtml See 'Part-Time Undergraduate' forms at the bottom of the page. Church Times Train-a-Priest Fund The 'TAP fund' is principally geared towards those in full-time training, however there is a Special Hardship Fund that does accept applications from candidates from Regional Training Courses. The Fund is administered by the Ministry Division of the Church of England and is only available to Anglican ordinands. The application does not require a detailed breakdown of your financial situation, however you are required to explain what has caused your financial difficulty and the purpose of your application. Each application needs to be countersigned by your Diocesan Director of Ordinands before your application can be submitted for consideration. It may therefore be the case that further supportive information will be required before the form can be countersigned. An application form can be obtained from: Mark Hodge, Grants Officer, The Church of England, Archbishops' Council, Church House, Great Smith Street, London SW1P 3NZ Tel: 020 7898 1396; Fax: 020 7898 1421; email: mark.hodge@mindiv.c-of-e.org.uk Travel Grant If you are finding it difficult to fund the travel costs arising from your training, it is worth finding out from your sponsoring church whether you can submit a claim on a termly basis; this is allowable through the Ministry Division of the Church of England. By claiming on a termly basis, you are not funding this deficit until the end of the academic year. These are just a few suggestions that may assist in resolving an unexpected financial predicament during your training. Whatever the case, if you find yourself in financial difficulty, it is vital that you speak to the nominated representative from your sponsoring church. Peter Dixon 26th March 2006. Book grants and other funding to assist the families of ordinands are paid by the Sons of the Clergy charity. Please see http://www.clergycharities.org.uk/ Rail card
You may be entitled to a young person's railcard - this is based on
being a student, rather than being young! It costs £24, lasts for
a year and saves one third on all rail fares.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- If you have other information, especially concerning the Methodist and URC grant making authorities, please email to admin@swmtc.org.uk so that it can be included here. |
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