TERMS & CONDITIONS

Course Booking Terms and Conditions and Cancellation Policy at SkinAstute Limited trading as SkinAstute Aesthetic & Beauty Training Academy & Dermedics UK.

Please ensure that you read through the terms and conditions.

Minimum Age for Enrolment

Please note minimum age for enrolment for most NVQ/VTCT Courses at SkinAstute Aesthetic & Beauty Training Academy is 18 years of age.

Please note minimum age for enrolment for Advanced VTCT and Aesthetic Courses at SkinAstute Aesthetic & Beauty Training Academy is 18 years of age at the beginning of the course.

Attendance

VTCT Courses

Students will receive dates of attendance days required as part of the course. The attendance days consist of theory, practical, practice and assessment days. Quality assurance dates will be provided at least 14 days prior to the QA date; students must arrange their own models for all quality assurance visits. Students will be provided the approximate number of attendance days and must attend all dates arranged.  Where students do not attend their theory, practical, practice days or do not pass their written or practical assessments additional dates will be arranged. These dates will be with the next cohort of students subject to space availability.

Due to the nature of the course we are not able to give a definite number of attendance days. Where students attend the course as agreed and have not prepared for practical or written assessments a charge of £75 will be applied to cover the cost of the additional assessment day arranged.

Students must notify their tutor, not a fellow student of any absences. Where the student does not contact SAABTA on Tel: 07852 169344 or their tutor directly via telephone by 8am to notify of an absence, this will be noted as failure to attend and a £150 charge will be applied for arranging an alternative day. Tutors may not provide their contact number; where the student does not have access to the Tutor’s contact number, they must notify SAABTA on Tel: 07852 169344 via a phone call. All absences must be notified via phone call and not as SMS, WhattsApp or any other messaging service.

Beauty & Aesthetic Courses

Payments for all courses must be cleared before the course date. Where a date is booked and students fails to attend, all monies paid are non-refundable to covers loss of earnings. It is the responsibility of the student to ensure that they have the necessary pre-requisites for the course and that they have sought advice regarding to changes in regulations and appropriate insurance cover by independent means prior to enrolling on a course.

Online Courses

We have added CPD accredited online courses to the wide range of courses we offer. When completing our online courses, it is the responsibility of the student to ensure that they have sought advice regarding insurance prior to enrolling and that they have the necessary prerequisites. We do not accept any liability for students who cannot obtain insurance following the completion of the course. There are courses which can be completed solely online such as the LED Light Therapy Course. The certificate for these is issued online once you have completed the course.

Advanced conversion courses such as AHA Chemical Peels and MST Micro-needling can be assessed online via Skype or Zoom, only where the student provides proof of previous qualifications held in the relevant treatment.

Remaining courses which require students to perform practical are assessed face to face. Please check the suitability of dates prior to enrolling on the course. Where we have a significantly low number of students we may cancel the session by providing a 5-day notice or offer an alternative date at one of our other centres. The face to face practical assessment must be booked via email and take place on one of the practical dates in the link which can be found for each course in the ‘Description’ section under ‘Assessments’. Clicking the link will take you dates; please choose the date and location (Birmingham or Luton centre) and email us the date.  This does not include 1-2-1 or onsite training. If you need assistance with finding the link please email us at [email protected]

We will email you a confirmation of the date subject to availability.

Certificates for courses which require face to face attendance will be issued once the practical assessment has taken place.

Tutor / Academy Contact 

Students can contact SAABTA any time via email. SAABTA aims to respond within 7 days of receiving an email. SAABTA accepts no responsibility for last minute emails, regardless of whether or not these are in relation to assessments. Once you have emailed your query, please wait 7 days for a response (please allow 14 days for marking of assignments). Please do not follow emails with SMS, WhattsApp or any other messaging service as this is unnecessary. All emails are dealt with in date order.

Students can contact their tutor Monday-Friday (excluding bank holidays and weekends) via email for assignment queries. Queries in the form of SMS, WhattsApp or other messaging services will not be responded to.

Tutorials – VTCT Courses

Students have the right to request tutorials as part of their course support. Tutorials can be booked with tutors face-to-face on any of the attendance days at the end of the day. These tutorials must be booked in advance and requested via email. It is the responsibility of the student to book the tutorial in advance based on their assessment plan.

Assessments – VTCT Course

Written Assignments

All written assignments are to be completed electronically and sent to [email protected] on dates agreed as part of the assessment plan. The students has the responsibility to adhere to the guidelines as set by SAABTA for assignment submissions including the layout of written work for ease of marking. Where assignments do not meet the criteria these will not be marked and resent to students for amendments.

SAABTA do not accept assignments via online sharing programmes including dropbox, google drive, etc.  Assignments can be written on word document and attached to an email as a file or sent as an email with all outcomes listed for the relevant unit. Amendments must be made in bold and comments from the tutor must not be deleted. Students must print their written assignments and bring these with them to be placed in their portfolio. SAABTA do not offer printing facilities. Where these are required an invoice of £50 plus vat must be paid to cover all costs associated with printing of assignments.

SAABTA do not allow the submission of assignments via USB drives. Students must adhere to email sent upon enrolment outlining requirements for assignment submissions.

The assessment plan will provide deadlines for assignment submission and where the assessment plan has not been adhered to these assignments will not be marked on a fast track basis. Student folders must be up to date at all times. Where an internal or external quality assurance visit is due to take place and there are missing assignments the folder will not be quality assured. This will result in the folder and being presented at the next quality assurance visit which may take place approximately in 6-12 months time. Tutors are not required to mark assignments out of priority for assignments not completed on by the deadlines as per assessment plan.

Written Exams

VTCT courses consist of multiple choice written exams, a mark of 70% or higher is required to pass the written exams. Students must bring proof of photographic ID with them on all attendance days including learning, practice and assessment days and present this to their invigilator at the start of the exam. The first two attempts of the exam are included in the course fee. Third attempts are charged at £50. Where a fourth attempt is required VTCT must be notified. Fourth attempt is charged at £100. Failure to do so will result in re-arranging the exam date for which there is a fee of £150.

Models

We require students to arrange models for training and assessment purposes as part of their training, unless agreed upon enrolment.

SAABTA do not accept the responsibility for providing models for onsite training or for training arranged at any other location unless it is at our Luton or Birmingham training centre and has been previously agreed in writing.

For our advanced courses we require students to perform treatment on each other; therefore please arrive prepared to perform and receive a treatment. Students attending advanced courses which require performing more than one treatment will be required to provide their own models. SAABTA accepts no liability for models not arriving on the day of the training even where this has been agreed prior to the course delivery.

Students must arrange their own models for all quality assurance visits.

Cancellation of Courses and Changes to Courses, by SAABTA

We reserve the right to reschedule or cancel courses. Reasons for this may be, but not restricted to, low enrolment numbers, weather warnings, model availability (only applicable where models are provided by SAABTA), tutor illness or tutor availability (special circumstances). In the instance of a Tutor absence a full refund will be given, or alternative dates will be provided.

Course tutors may be subject to change due to tutor unavailability. Where there is a change in tutor, SAABTA will endeavour to give as much notice as possible in advance of individual classes or course start date.

Although we do offer one-to-one and onsite training, many of our courses require a minimum number of enrolments. Where the courses do not reach the minimum number required they will be cancelled no later than 7 days before they are due to start*

Students are required to perform practical treatments to pass the courses**

We may be required to cancel an individual class at short notice. Wherever possible we will endeavour to offer the course at a later date*. If it is not possible to rearrange this class or you cannot attend the new date, a partial refund will be given. Where the course is booked at an offer price and the alternative date is not suitable, the course fee will revert to the full amount and discount price will be void on future bookings.

Where students travel to us and book overnight accommodation, we advise that students purchase the flexible room rate which allow for last minute cancellations. SAABTA accept no responsibility for charges relating to accommodation as a result of course cancellations.

Disclaimer SkinAstute Aesthetic & Beauty Training Academy is not responsible for any additional costs you may have incurred, including costs for travel or accommodation. Further information is detailed below.

Cancellation by You

Once you have received our invoice you are deemed to have entered a contract with SAABTA.

You have the right to cancel this contract with us. The cancellation period (excluding online courses) will expire at the end of 14 days after the invoice has been sent and the non-refundable booking fee must be paid within two working days. Please note that the 14-day cancellation period starts from the date of when the invoice was sent and not the date when the booking fee is paid. Please familiarise yourself with the details in the Cancellation Policy below.

Online courses can only be cancelled if the course has not yet commenced. Students who start the online course will not qualify for the refund, regardless of whether the course has been fully completed or not.

After the cancellation period has expired consideration may be given, on a case by case basis, to requests to cancel where exceptional circumstances exist. A refund may be given, or a credit note issued which can be used against future course fees. Students may be asked to provide supporting evidence, e.g. a medical certificate. Where refunds are issued, a 25% administration fee (of the total course fee at time of booking) will be charged for any refunds made outside of the 14-day cancellation period.

Students should be aware at the time of booking that, that after the 14-day cancellation period, there is no automatic right to cancel and there will be no refund of fees.

Course booking fees will not be carried over for cancellation of the course on more than one occasion.

Special Offers

To qualify for a reduced or special offer rate on our courses, this offer must be active at the time of booking. Where the course price is reduced as part of a promotion, no claim can be made by the student on the discount applied to scheduled courses once invoice has been sent. Late payments of the booking fee or course fee can result in price increase where the special offer has expired. One offer or discount can be claimed at a time.

Where the course has been cancelled by the student, the discount will no longer apply. In exceptional circumstances SAABTA may consider apply the discount on one occasion of rearranging course dates as a gesture of goodwill.

Where discount has been applied for joint bookings and the course is completed together on the same dates, then the discount will be split evenly and applied to the total amount due by both parties. Where the discount is applied for joint bookings but the course is not undertaken at a later date by the second party, the discount will be applied to the amount due to the second party and not on the initial booking. Discounted prices offered for joint parties will no longer apply if one part cancels the course.

Discount Codes

These may be launched via social media; therefore please follow us on social media to ensure you receive the latest offers. Where a discount code applies and this has not been entered upon enrolment; the full course fee applies and no refund is given for the difference.

Starter Kits

These are not included with discounted courses or courses on special offer.

Course Materials & Certificates

Our course fees include the cost of the manual and certificate unless stated otherwise.  However an administration fee £20 will be applied for the reprint of the certificate (including postage costs) for spelling error or replacement certificates.  An administration charge of £40 will be applied for replacement of the course manual (excluding postage costs).

Students must collect their certificates and folders in person; where this is not possible a £35 charge must be paid to cover administration and postage costs. This must be paid within 5 working days of the notification of certificate arrival as sent by SAABTA. The administration and postage costs are not included in course fees. The certificates and folders are sent and recorded delivery, therefore we require a delivery address which allows the courier to obtain a signature which is required upon delivery. Failed delivery attempts where the folder is returned to us will incur an additional £35 charge for postage. SAABTA accepts no liability in cases where parcels are signed for at the delivery address provided and do not reach the students.

Students are encouraged to make use of the manual as well as conduct additional research through further reading of journals, articles and textbooks associated with the subject area.

For our VTCT courses we will provide students with resources including the revision sheets to assist with exams, online resources, etc to assist with preparation of exams.  These are a guide to assist you alongside the theory, practical and written work undertaken as part of the course.

VTCT Certificates can take 4-6 weeks to be processed and received.

SAABTA deliver accredited courses and some cases a certificate of attendance is issued to acknowledge students have attended additional training relevant to their qualifications.

Online course certificates will be provided in electronic format upon completion of the online course which does not require attendance. Where attendance is required to undertake practical assessment, the certificates will be issued following competent practical assessment.

Course Timings & Dates

We offer approximate number of training days and hours during which the course is delivered.

We do not cancel courses unless there are exceptional circumstances and try our very best to continue with the training scheduled, even if this means 1-2-1 training. The timings and days of our course depend on the number of students enrolled and the content covered. In some instances we may finish earlier or later than anticipated. Our aim is to ensure that the content of the course is covered. Where students are not able to source models for their training, additional dates arranged will incur and additional cost listed below:

VTCT Courses (teaching / assessment – tutor only) – £150 per additional day plus travel expenses

Quality Assurance Visit – £250 per additional day plus travel expenses

Accredited Beauty Courses – £150 per additional day plus travel expenses

Aesthetic Courses – £350 per additional day plus travel expenses

Evaluations

Students are required to evaluate the course prior to receiving their certificate. Course evaluations allow us to monitor our course standards and allow for improvements. We request students provide online course reviews at https://www.skinastute.com/ under the relevant course.

Where an evaluation form is completed for any of our courses, we will post the feedback on our website under course reviews using the email address supplied by the student and the rating of 1-5 used as start ratings.

Quality Assurance Visits

As part of the VTCT / ITEC qualifications regular Internal and External Quality Assurance visits are undertaken at the centre.  As part of your qualification this visit date will be made available to you following the course registration with VTCT.  Should this date not be agreed with the EQA/IQA upon enrolment or be subject to change we will notify students no less than 14 days prior to the visit date. Students are required to attend these QA visits or we reserve the right to withhold the certificate as per our QA policy.

All folders must be up to date in accordance with the assessment plan. Where there are missing assignments, a further quality assurance visit may be required prior to completion of the course.

Where the student is unable to attend quality assurance visits, additional visits can be arranged at a cost. These fees are £250 for Internal Quality assurance visit per person and £500 for VTCT External Quality Assurance visit (subject to EQA availability) per student.

Travel and Accommodation Bookings

We strongly advise students to purchase the appropriate insurance cover for any travel & accommodation costs. We advise purchasing travel and accommodation at flexible rates which allow last cancellation.  SAABTA will not be liable for any travel and accommodation costs incurred by students where SAABTA cancels the course.

Refunds

Please note that outside of the 14-day cancellation period, you are only entitled to a refund if SAABTA cancel the course*. the 14-day refund policy applies only to courses which have not yet commenced. Refunds for cancellation of an online courses will not be given if the course has been commenced, regardless of whether the course has been fully completed or not.

Refunds are not available should you have a change in circumstances that makes attendance at the course difficult, or additional responsibilities that affect you time and commitment to attend the course and complete the course study.  Therefore prior to booking we encourage students to consider their availability and commitments carefully at the time of booking.

Wherever possible, when we cancel, we will transfer you to another course date provided there are places available. If the cost of the course you have been transferred to is less than your original payment you will be refunded the balance. If the new course fees are greater you will be asked to pay the difference accordingly

Please note that credit towards another course is valid for 6 months after it is applied to the student’s account*

Progression

The wide range of courses we offer are deigned to allow students to progress on to advanced treatments therefore we can support students with progression in their career in advanced treatments alongside supplying products and equipment. Students have the responsibility to carry out due diligence in relation to advance training and the restrictions relating to insurance, licensing and any other relevant restrictions in place.

Payment Plans & Associated Fees

SAABTA offer payment plans which are managed in-house. There is £40 administration costs associated with payment plans.

All payments must be cleared by due date. For card payments allow 3 working days for funds to clear. For cheque payments allow 5 working days for funds to clear.  All payments must be cleared at least 14 days prior to course start date. All funds paid are non-refundable / non-transferrable. By paying the non-refundable booking fee you are agreeing to the SAABTA terms and conditions of Course Bookings. Late payment charges of £20 per week are applied for overdue payments. SAABTA reserve the right to amend Ts&Cs without prior notice

Complaints

SAABTA makes every effort to ensure you enjoy your course of study. In the unlikely event that you have a complaint about any aspect of our service please refer to our Centre Complaints Policy.

CANCELLATION POLICY

Your Right to Cancel

You have a right to cancel your contract with us within 14 days, under The Consumer Rights Act 2015. Please read this information carefully. Once the invoice has been sent, you are deemed to have a contract with SAABTA.  The 14-day cancellation period commences on the date the invoice is sent and not the date the booking fee is paid.  At the point when the invoice is issued the provisional dates are held for two days to allow for you to make payment of the non-refundable booking fee.  Once the non-refundable booking fee has been paid the dates will be confirmed. After this time for making payment of the booking fee has expired your place will be released to the next student.

You have the right to cancel this contract with us without giving any reason. The cancellation period will expire at the end of 14 days after the invoice has been sent. If you wish to cancel in accordance with the Consumer Rights Act you must inform us of your decision in a clear statement by sending an email to [email protected] with your full name, course name, course date and the reason for cancellation (optional).

To meet the cancellation deadline, it is sufficient for you to advise us that you wish to cancel before the 14-day cancellation period has expired. Please note that a request for cancellation must be made by email. Where a refund is requested the cost of fees (associated with processing of payments, £50 admin fee, and charges incurred for equipment / venue hire, etc will be deducted.

Effects of Cancellation

If you exercise your right to cancel before the course begins, we will reimburse you all payments received from you or offer to transfer this credit to another course where appropriate. We will make the reimbursement without undue delay, and not later than 21 days after the day on which we are informed about your decision to cancel the contract.

If you wish to cancel within 48 hours of the training then you will be required to pay the associated costs including venue hire and tutor travel, accommodation and costs of resources. If you attend the training and this take places within the 14-day cancellation period, no refund will be issued as you will have paid for the course which has been delivered.

We will make reimbursement using the method in the table below. If we need to reimburse by international bank transfer we will deduct bank charges.

You will lose your right to cancel if the course has been fully completed during the cancellation period, and it began:

1. After direct express agreement that the course may start during the cancellation period
2. With direct acknowledgement that cancellation rights are lost once the course has been fully completed.

*Please be aware that this applies to all courses at SAABTA

**Students must arrange for models to successfully pass the course. SAABTA will not be held liable for arranging models or for non-attendance of models as part of the learning and assessment process (unless previously agreed). Please ensure that you have spoken to your insurance company regarding insurance as the prerequisite for each insurance company vary.  Our courses are recognised by Hamilton Fraser & Towergate, are accredited by CPD, Professional Beauty Direct and ABT. HF will only insure individuals who possess a therapists with a NVQ Level 3 in Beauty Therapy or equivalent or are medical professionals.  ABT & PBD will insure individuals who have an NVQ Level 3 in Beauty Therapy or equivalent, VTCT Level 4 in Laser & IPL, VTCT Level 4 in Micro-blading. Our courses are accepted by many insurance companies. We do not accept any liability for students unable to obtain insurance following attendance on one of our courses or for any other lack due diligence carried out by the student before enrolling on the course.