These Terms and Conditions apply to Functional Skills diagnostic assessments, online courses, examinations and Course + Exam packages supplied by Esgate Education, a trading name of Super Scientists Ltd.

By purchasing one of our Functional Skills services, you agree to these Terms and Conditions.

1. Our Functional Skills Options

Esgate Education offers four Functional Skills routes:

Diagnostic Assessment — £10

For learners who are unsure whether they are ready to sit a Functional Skills Level 2 examination or would benefit from further preparation.

Course Only — £199

Access to an online Functional Skills Level 2 preparation course in Maths or English.

Exam Only — £259

One Functional Skills Level 2 examination in Maths or English.

Course + Exam — £399

Access to the relevant Functional Skills Level 2 preparation course together with one Functional Skills Level 2 examination.

Prices shown are the current Esgate Education prices and may change for future purchases.

2. Diagnostic Assessment — £10

The Diagnostic Assessment is designed to help indicate the learner's current working level and whether they appear ready to sit a Functional Skills Level 2 examination.

Following purchase:

1. Esgate Education will create a learner account.
2. Login details will be sent to the email address provided.
3. The learner completes the online diagnostic assessment.
4. Esgate Education reviews the assessment information available to us.
5. We email a recommended pathway.

The recommended pathway may include:

• progressing directly to an examination;
• completing the preparation course before sitting an examination; or
• completing further preparation before progressing.

The Diagnostic Assessment is for guidance only and does not guarantee that a learner will pass an examination.

The £10 Diagnostic Assessment does not include a paid preparation course or examination.

3. Diagnostic Assessment With Course Purchases

Learners purchasing the Course Only or Course + Exam option do not pay an additional £10 Diagnostic Assessment fee.

Where appropriate, we may create a learner account and ask the learner to complete the diagnostic before the paid course licence is activated.

Following the diagnostic, Esgate Education may email the purchaser with a recommended pathway.

4. Course Only — £199

The Course Only option provides access to the relevant Functional Skills Level 2 online preparation course.

The course may include:

• structured online learning;
• video tutorials;
• practice questions;
• assessments;
• mock examination preparation; and
• revision and exam-preparation activities.

The Course Only option does not include an examination.

Completion of the course does not guarantee that the learner will pass a Functional Skills examination.

5. Course Activation

A free learner account may initially be used for diagnostic assessment before a paid course licence is activated.

Where Esgate Education recommends that the learner proceeds with the course, we will ask the purchaser to confirm that they wish the paid course to be activated.

Once the paid licence is activated:

• the digital course content becomes available to the learner; and
• Esgate Education has committed a paid licence to that learner.

Before immediate activation, where required, we will ask the purchaser to expressly confirm that they want access to begin immediately and acknowledge that their statutory cancellation right relating to that digital content will be lost once supply begins.

6. Exam Only — £259

The Exam Only option includes one Functional Skills Level 2 examination in the selected subject.

This route is intended for learners who are already working at the required level and do not require the preparation course.

Examinations are arranged through specialist examination providers and regulated awarding organisations.

The learner must provide all information and identification required for examination registration.

7. Course + Exam — £399

The Course + Exam package includes:

• access to the relevant Functional Skills Level 2 preparation course;
• one Functional Skills Level 2 Maths or English examination;
• online exam preparation;
• examination booking through the relevant examination provider; and
• eligibility for the subsidised resit described in Section 8, subject to its conditions.

8. Subsidised Resit — £75

A learner who purchases the Course + Exam package may be eligible for one subsidised resit at £75 where they:

• attended their first booked examination;
• completed the examination in accordance with the examination rules; and
• did not achieve a passing result.

The £75 subsidised resit is not available where the learner does not attend their first booked examination.

A learner will also not qualify for the subsidised resit where the examination cannot be completed because the learner:

• does not attend;
• does not provide the required identification;
• does not meet the required technical or room requirements;
• fails to complete required checks; or
• otherwise does not complete the booked examination in accordance with the examination-provider rules.

Where the first examination is missed or not completed for these reasons, any replacement examination will be charged at the applicable examination/provider rate.

The subsidised resit is:

• not a free resit;
• not transferable;
• not redeemable for cash;
• subject to availability; and
• subject to the requirements of the examination provider and awarding organisation.

9. Functional Skills English

Functional Skills Level 2 English includes separate assessment components:

• Reading;
• Writing; and
• Speaking, Listening and Communicating (SLC).

All required components must be successfully completed before the full qualification can be awarded.

10. English Speaking, Listening and Communicating (SLC)

The Speaking, Listening and Communicating assessment is completed online as part of a scheduled group session.

Because other candidates are required for the assessment to take place, availability of a suitable SLC group session may affect how quickly the English qualification can be completed.

Once an SLC session has been booked and confirmed, the learner must attend at the agreed date and time.

SLC Non-Attendance Charge

If a learner fails to attend a confirmed SLC session, a £75 non-attendance charge will apply.

This charge reflects the additional cost and administration involved because a replacement participant may need to be arranged so that the group assessment can proceed.

The £75 charge is a non-attendance charge only.

It does not include the cost of rearranging or rebooking the learner's SLC assessment.

Any separate rebooking, rearrangement or administration charge imposed by the examination provider may also be payable.

Learners should therefore make sure they are available before confirming an SLC assessment date.

11. Online Examinations and Automated Remote Invigilation

Functional Skills examinations may be completed online from home using automated remote invigilation.

Depending on the examination provider, there may not be a live invigilator watching the learner throughout the examination.

The learner's examination session may instead be monitored and/or recorded using the learner's:

• webcam;
• microphone;
• computer screen; and
• examination software.

The learner must follow all examination-provider and awarding-organisation requirements.

12. Examination Requirements

The learner is responsible for meeting all examination requirements provided before the examination.

These may include:

• valid photographic identification;
• a compatible computer or laptop;
• a working webcam and microphone;
• reliable internet access;
• required browser/software settings;
• successful completion of technical checks;
• a suitable private room; and
• compliance with examination and invigilation rules.

If the learner cannot sit or complete the examination because these requirements have not been met, additional fees may apply to arrange another examination.

13. Examination Availability

We aim to arrange Functional Skills examinations as quickly as reasonably possible.

Maths examinations can often be available at short notice.

English completion times may be affected by availability of the required SLC group session.

Any examination-booking timeframe displayed on our website or provided in correspondence is an estimate and is not guaranteed.

14. Results

Where a fast-track examination route is used, results are typically expected within the timeframe stated in the relevant product information.

Where we state that results are typically available within 2–6 working days, this is an expected timeframe and not a guarantee.

Results are determined and released by the relevant awarding organisation.

Esgate Education cannot guarantee:

• the date on which a result will be released;
• the result awarded;
• that additional quality-assurance checks will not be required; or
• that delays will not occur within an external provider or awarding organisation.

15. Pass Rates

Any pass-rate information displayed by Esgate Education relates to the particular course, learning platform or published dataset identified alongside the claim.

A published pass rate does not guarantee that an individual learner will pass an examination.

The final assessment and qualification decision remains with the relevant awarding organisation.

16. College, Apprenticeship and Employment Acceptance

Functional Skills Level 2 is a recognised Level 2 qualification and is accepted by many colleges, apprenticeship providers, training organisations and employers.

However, individual organisations and individual courses may have their own entry requirements.

The purchaser is responsible for checking that Functional Skills Level 2 is accepted for the particular:

• college course;
• apprenticeship;
• employment opportunity;
• university course; or
• other purpose

for which the qualification is required before purchasing.

Esgate Education cannot guarantee that a particular organisation will accept the qualification.

17. iGCSE and Other Examinations

Esgate Education may also arrange International GCSE (iGCSE), Entry Level Functional Skills and other examinations.

iGCSE examinations normally operate within scheduled examination series rather than the faster on-demand model available for some Functional Skills examinations.

Availability, entry deadlines, examination dates, fees and results dates therefore vary according to the examination centre and awarding organisation.

18. Prices and Additional Charges

The price displayed at the time of purchase is the price payable for the selected product unless there is an obvious pricing error.

The advertised price only includes the services expressly stated in the relevant product description.

Additional charges may apply for:

• resits;
• replacement examinations;
• missed examinations;
• examination transfers or amendments;
• missed SLC sessions;
• SLC rebooking;
• provider administration charges; or
• other services not included in the original purchase.

Where possible, additional charges will be explained before a new service or booking is confirmed.

19. Cancellation Before a Paid Service Begins

Nothing in these Terms affects the purchaser's statutory consumer rights.

If a purchaser wishes to cancel before Esgate Education has begun supplying a paid service or incurred non-recoverable costs, they should contact us as soon as possible.

Examples of a service beginning include:

• activation of a paid course licence;
• supply of paid digital course content;
• examination registration;
• examination booking;
• SLC booking; or
• payment or commitment of fees to an external provider.

20. Digital Course Access and Cancellation Rights

Where a purchaser asks us to activate the paid digital course immediately, Esgate Education may provide access before the end of the normal statutory cancellation period.

Before doing so, where required by law, we will obtain the purchaser's:

• express consent for the digital content to be supplied immediately; and
• acknowledgement that the statutory cancellation right relating to that digital content will be lost once supply begins.

Once this confirmation has been received and the paid course licence has been activated, the purchaser will not normally have a statutory cooling-off right to cancel that digital content merely because they change their mind.

This does not affect statutory rights where digital content is faulty, materially misdescribed or otherwise fails to meet legal requirements.

21. Cancellation After Services Have Begun

Where a service other than digital content has already begun, any refund will depend on:

• which elements of the service have already been supplied;
• work already carried out by Esgate Education;
• whether an examination or SLC session has been registered or booked;
• third-party costs already incurred;
• whether those costs are recoverable; and
• the purchaser's statutory rights.

Where a third-party learning or examination provider does not refund a fee already paid or committed on the learner's behalf, Esgate Education will not normally be able to refund that element of the purchase.

Any refund will therefore normally be limited to amounts relating to services not yet supplied and costs that Esgate Education can still recover.

22. Examination Cancellations and Changes

Once an examination has been registered or booked, the examination provider's own cancellation, transfer and rescheduling rules may apply.

If a learner can no longer attend, Esgate Education should be contacted as soon as possible.

We will explain any available options and charges.

We cannot guarantee that a booked examination can be transferred, cancelled or refunded.

23. Examination Non-Attendance

If a learner does not attend a booked examination:

• the original examination fee may be lost;
• a replacement examination may need to be purchased;
• additional examination-provider charges may apply; and
• a learner who purchased the Course + Exam package will not qualify for the £75 subsidised resit on the basis of that missed examination.

For English SLC sessions, the separate £75 SLC non-attendance charge described in Section 10 may also apply.

24. Technical Problems

Learners should complete all required technical checks before an online examination.

Where an examination cannot proceed because of the learner's:

• computer or device;
• internet connection;
• webcam or microphone;
• identification;
• examination room;
• software setup; or
• failure to follow technical instructions,

additional charges may apply to arrange another examination.

Where a technical failure is caused by the external examination platform or examination provider rather than the learner, Esgate Education will work with the provider to determine the appropriate next step.

25. No Guarantee of Passing

Esgate Education cannot guarantee that a learner will pass an examination.

A diagnostic assessment, course recommendation, course completion or published pass rate does not amount to a guarantee of success.

The examination outcome is determined by the relevant awarding organisation.

26. Third-Party Providers

Esgate Education uses third-party organisations to provide elements of its Functional Skills and examination services.

These may include:

• specialist online learning platforms;
• examination providers;
• examination centres;
• awarding organisations; and
• remote-invigilation systems.

By purchasing the relevant service, the purchaser acknowledges that information necessary to deliver the service may need to be provided to these organisations.

Learners may also be required to comply with the third party's own:

• examination rules;
• platform terms;
• privacy information;
• identification requirements; and
• acceptable-use requirements.

27. Learner Information

The purchaser is responsible for providing accurate learner information.

For examination registrations, the learner's legal name and personal details may need to match their identification documents exactly.

Esgate Education will not be responsible for problems caused by inaccurate information supplied by the purchaser or learner.

Where an external provider charges Esgate Education to correct learner information after registration, that charge may be passed on to the purchaser.

28. Personal Data

Esgate Education may use learner and purchaser information to:

• administer purchases;
• create learner accounts;
• provide course access;
• review diagnostic assessments;
• arrange examinations;
• communicate results;
• provide recommended pathways; and
• administer examination services.

Where necessary, relevant learner information may be shared with learning-platform providers, examination providers, examination centres and awarding organisations so that the purchased service can be delivered.

Personal information will be handled in accordance with the Esgate Education Privacy Policy and applicable UK data-protection law.

29. Circumstances Outside Our Control

Esgate Education is not responsible for delays or disruption caused by circumstances reasonably outside our control.

These may include:

• awarding-organisation delays;
• examination-provider system failures;
• learning-platform outages;
• remote-invigilation system failures;
• changes to examination availability; or
• changes imposed by examination providers or awarding organisations.

Where this occurs, we will take reasonable steps to help resolve the issue or identify an appropriate alternative.

30. Complaints

If you are unhappy with a service supplied by Esgate Education, please contact us so that we have an opportunity to investigate and resolve the issue.

Our Complaints Procedure is available on the Esgate Education website.

31. Statutory Rights

Nothing in these Terms and Conditions is intended to remove, reduce or restrict any statutory consumer right that cannot lawfully be excluded.

32. Contact Details

Esgate Education

Email: chris@esgateeducation.co.uk

Website: www.esgateeducation.co.uk

33. Legal Business Details

Esgate Education is a trading name of Super Scientists Ltd.

Super Scientists Ltd is a private limited company registered in England and Wales.

Company number: 13628127

Registered office:
71–75 Shelton Street
Covent Garden
London
WC2H 9JQ

These Terms and Conditions are governed by the law of England and Wales.