How to claim ELC funding

ELCAS receive a large number of enquiries from people who wish to find out more about the claims process. They also have to return a number of claims as they are incorrectly completed. We are therefore including the key elements of submitting an ELC claim in this update.

There are many pre-requisites to making an ELC claim. However, the two basic and most fundamental requirements are:

• you must be a scheme member. This means that you must have completed a Registration for Scheme membership form and received an Acknowledgment of Scheme Membership from ELCAS. If you are unsure about whether you are a scheme member or not, please contact the ELCAS helpline on 0845 300 5179 and a member of the ELCAS team will be happy to check for you



• you must have completed sufficient eligible service prior to signing and dating your ELC claim form. Only service accumulated since 1st April 2000 may be counted as eligible service for the purposes of the ELC scheme. Full details may be found in DCI JS27/05 The Enhanced Learning Credit Scheme: Regulations for the Sponsorship of Service Personnel for Personal Development

• you must fully research both the provider that you choose and the course that you wish to study. Requests to cancel or amend claims must be authorised by MoD and you must ensure that you fully research the course details and requirements prior to submitting a claim for ELC funding



• ELC funding is only available for courses that result in a Nationally Recognised Qualification at level three or above on the National Qualification Framework or level six or above on the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework or, if pursued overseas, an approved international equivalent qualification. Just because an organisation is listed as an ELC Approved Provider it does not mean that all of their courses are at the required level



• the only comprehensive listing of all Approved Learning Providers is on the ELCAS website www.enhancedlearningcredits.co.uk Your chosen provider must be approved before you submit your claim form to ELCAS



• for all claimants in Service the proposed learning activity must be of benefit to the Service. Applicants are required to demonstrate that their proposed course of study is as a result of careful planning



• retrospective ELC claims are not permitted. You must ensure that you submit your claim to ELCAS with enough time to receive the Claim Authorisation Note (CAN) to present to your chosen provider before the course starts. In the case of the Open University the CAN must be presented by the final course registration date. Please note that from 1st September all claims must be received by ELCAS 15 clear working days prior to the course start date



• you must not pay any money to the provider before you receive your CAN


• you must make a personal contribution of at least 20 per cent towards the total course cost. You will also be responsible for any costs associated with food, accommodation, course books, material, travel and subsistence. As the ruling states 'a minimum of 20 per cent' the contribution should always be rounded up to the nearest penny. For example if 20 per cent of the course cost is £200.012 pence the contribution must be rounded up to £200.02



• if you are making a second or third claim you must first submit a course evaluation form for all previous claims. You must also demonstrate that you have completed previous claims.

Some frequent questions and answers

Q: How do I know whether a course is at the appropriate level?

A: This is something that should be discussed with your education or learning staff. However, the responsibility lies with you to demonstrate that your chosen activity is at an appropriate level (ie results in a nationally recognised qualification at Level 3 or above on the National Qualification Framework or Level 6 or above on the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework or, if pursued overseas, an approved international equivalent qualification. Useful sites for checking that a learning activity is at Level 3 on the National Qualification Framework are www.accreditedqualifications.org.uk or www.qca.org.uk You may also find it useful to refer to the National Academic Recognition Centre for the United Kingdom (UK NARIC) or the Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) Directory.

Q: What happens if I do not attend the course?

A: As mentioned earlier you must fully research the course that you wish to study before making your ELC claim so there should be no need to cancel the claim at a later date. However, should you need to cancel your claim you must contact your education or learning staff in the first instance. Only under certain operational or compassionate circumstances or if the provider cancels the activity altogether will you be permitted to cancel your course. If you do not apply to cancel your claim then that claim stands as one of your three possible claims.

Q: What do I do if my course details change?

A: If any of your course details change you should consult your education or learning staff to ensure that they are aware of these changes. Within certain parameters you may amend your existing claim but outside them you will need to cancel your claim and submit a new one. For example if your course start date changes but is still within three months of the course start date detailed on your CAN you may amend your claim. However, if your new course start date is more than three months from the course start date on your CAN then you will need to cancel the claim and start a fresh claim. For guidelines on what constitutes an amendment and what constitutes a cancellation, see the table above.

Q: How do I amend my claim?

A: Once you have established that the change requires an amendment you must ask a member of the education or learning staff, who is authorised to sign off claims, to submit the amendment request in writing to ELCAS. The request may be sent by letter, e-mail or fax but must be received in writing; requests cannot be taken over the phone. Once the amendment has been processed by ELCAS a replacement CAN will be issued.

Q: How do I cancel my claim?

A: Diagrams of both the cancellation and reinstatement processes may be found on the ELCAS website www.enhancedlearningcredits.co.uk along with the forms required. However, it is worthwhile explaining these processes in some detail:

• Firstly you must contact your local member of education or learning staff and the learning provider responsible for delivering the course to discuss the cancellation. Whilst in contact with the learning provider you must also ascertain whether payment has been generated to them by ELCAS. If you or the provider are unsure about this, contact the ELCAS helpline on 0845 300 5179 for confirmation. If payment has been generated by ELCAS (regardless of whether it has yet been received by the provider) you must apply for a reinstatement of the claim NOT cancellation.



• Once you have established whether you need to apply for a cancellation or reinstatement you should download the relevant form from the 'claiming' page of the ELCAS website. This must be completed and submitted to your authorised member of the education or learning staff with all of the necessary supporting documentation as detailed on the form. Your education or learning staff will then complete section 4 of the form and forward it to your Single Service Representative. Claimants no longer in Service should contact the Single Service Representative who will also act as their member of education or learning staff.



• If your cancellation or reinstatement request is rejected you will be contacted by the member of the education or learning staff who completed part 4 of the form. If your request is approved you will receive written confirmation of this from ELCAS. Only after you have received confirmation from ELCAS will you be able to submit a replacement claim, should you wish to do so.



• Single Service procedures and Notes for Guidance must be referred to. If payment has already been generated to your provider by ELCAS then you must apply for a reinstatement of your claim.