Could this NVQ company be a scam? How can I find out?

[returningstress]

I have found a company that get goverment funding for me to do an NVQ, but they have asked that I pay £200 upfrount (which I am fine with) but just wondering how I can find out if they are a real company or if it is a scam?

As usually if training is goverment funded then the training provider would not ask for any money to start with.

Any ideas??

I have heard of places requiring a deposit in case you don't attend regularly enough and lose them the funding but I'd be sceptical too especially about a distance learning set up. Can you check with the relevant awarding body that they are fully accredited ?

have they not got a website with their accreditation on it?

this is the website there is not very much information on there about an awarding body or anything.

The government and industry bodies do use outsourced providers to deliver training and grants in all sorts of sectors.

Its a bit of a gravy train for these companies, as they simply match certain portions of funding available through various training pots of money to end customers like you.

I think it would be more sensible for you to just go to the NVQ site and or your local college of FE to find out about NVQs.

Looks odd - all you have to be is over 19? What if you have a high income? Do you still get a grant? Find out who gives the grant , then contact them and see who are their 'middle men'/training providers

Looks dodgy: no landline etc.
I would contact your local college and ask to do the NVQ through them instead.

Ask them who is the awarding body for the NVQ and check with them. Likely to be OCR, City and Guilds or suchlike.

freephone no. on google shows a removals company, no details of any actual NVQs... MIL did an NVQ with someone (no idea who) recently then they 'went bust' and she couldn't finish it.

Thank you all for your help. It does sound doddgy about the number being a removals company.

The thing is I cannot do an NVQ through my local college as you need to be working or in a work placement. And they said they can find me a local work placement within two weeks. Which sounds very quick to me??

what are you doing the nvq in? mine was done through a university. i would contact your local one to find out rather than go through this route - looks odd.

what nvq do you want to do?

It's a shoddy website. Bad grammar, mixed fonts, etc and it doesn't make sense to me. On the first page they are offering all sorts of NVQs and then on the work placement page they say "we will arrange an interview at our nursery closest to you". You might not want to do childcare!

Besides on the home page they list 'NVQ's'. Avoid!

The restrictions around NVQs these days mean that the gravy train has left the station . However, quite a few (mainly but not all) private training providers find other ways of making money.

The usual trick is to also make you do literacy and numeracy exams as they can pull down quite a lot of funding for these (even though they are supposed to actually provide tuition).

Seems to me this company is topping up the funding with the 'fee' to get you a placement/work - which ime you'll get easier yourself.

My organisation has been around for 30+yrs and we provides NVQs. I like to think we do it properly - i.e provide weekly sessions with tutor/assessor,ongoing support and regular feedback.

I've done an NVQ based on the model of 'get on with it and we'll assess it once you've completed a couple of units' and tbh it's soul destroying. Usually with this model there is a high turnover of assessors and you'll probably have 3 or 4 over the duration of the course.

I'd recommend either your nearest FE college, or if that's too daunting, try your local authority or learning alliance - they should be able to put you in touch with a local community venue that offers daytime and evening classes.

I want to do an NVQ level 3 in business administration.

When I spoke to the company they said an assesor would see me monthly. I did a NVQ level 2 years ago and had to go to college once a week untill it was completed.