Career development loans are changing
Posted: 3 June 2009
More support available for those wanting to enhance their skills for work, retrain or start a career in an emerging industry or profession.
As part of the Governments Real Help Now agenda to provide support for individuals, families and business during the economic downturn, the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) is making Career Development Loans more attractive to potential learners seeking to enhance their skills for work, and particularly those looking to retrain or start a career in an emerging industry or profession.
Career Development Loans will be re-named Professional and Career Development Loans The idea is the same - a commercial bank loan between a bank and a learner to pay for a course that leads to work, where the learner enjoys an interest free period during learning and only begins repaying the loan when they stop their course - but the conditions of the loan will be changing.
The LSC is currently working with some of the UK's leading banks to make the loans more attractive to learners by offering competitive fixed interest rates for repayment and increasing the amount of money learners can borrow to support the cost of learning.
Promotional materials and briefing packs to help practitioners raise awareness of Professional and Career Development Loans with learners will be available to order during June.
Download the Professional and Career Development Loans e-newsletter [110kB PDF]
You can sign up to receive further updates on the changes to the loans by emailing pcdladvice@lsc.gov.uk
You can also call the Professional and Career Development Loans helpline on 0800 585 505.
Update: July 2009
More information is now available on the Direct.gov website.