An adult training college has been accused of withholding evidence that some students say could prove that they were misled into signing up for costly courses.
I’ve previously detailed here how former students of New Trades Career have complained about the quality of its courses, which they left without completing, lumbering them with large debts and no qualifications.
Lacey Taylor from Harlow, Essex, borrowed £7,800 to pay for a plumbing course and says that when she was interviewed online for a place she was given assurances that were never fulfilled.
“I was told that I would have a dedicated tutor but this turned out not to be the case,” she said.
“There was a team of tutors and they may or may not answer the phone. When I called I got the impression they weren’t interested in helping you.”
She requested a copy of the recording of her interview but New Trades Career said this would contravene a ruling from the Information Commissioner’s Office, the ICO.
According to the college, the ICO had ruled that providing the recording would breach the data protection rights of the interviewer.
So Ms Taylor asked to see the ruling but was told in an email from New Trades Career: “This is an internal matter between ourselves and the ICO.”
In another email it wrote: "Whilst we recognise your dissatisfaction, this will not change the companies (sic) stance. We have explained as to why we are not releasing the video. You are not able to make a complain (sic) regards to us not releasing the video as this would contravene a ruling that we have already received from the Information Commissioner’s Office in regards to releasing of the videos."
Her case is among several taken up by the student help group Trades Course Complaints, founded by Thomas Donson and Edd Dyett. Mr Dyett a former student of New Trades Career who also tried to obtain a recording of his interview for a place on a plumbing course.
He had complained to the college after being refused a travel allowance that he says had been promised at his interview for a course place.
"When I signed up to the course I was told by the advisor that I was eligible for a travel or accommodation allowance as I was over 50 miles away," he said. "This totalled over £600 and if this wasn't offered I would have not signed up as I wasn't in a financial position to pay for this.
"When I later rang to ask about how I organised the allowance I was then told I wasn't eligible by the New Trades Career advisor, much to my shock. I argued and complained and they then sent me a non-discloure agreement to sign in exchange for them honouring the original offer. I refused to sign it."
He looked into the issue of the college refusing to release the recordings of interviews to students and discovered that the New Trades Career had not after all been told by the Information Commissioner's Office to withhold them. Quite the reverse.
In a letter to Mr Dyett seen by the Mirror, the ICO states that in the interests of transparency the full unredacted recordings should be released to students who make so-called subject access requests for them.
It says that this would allow the students to “consider whether their recollections and views that they were missold have any substance”.
The ICO states that the insistence by the college that it has “a valid and lawful reason” for withholding the recordings was “not likely to be compliant with data protection legislation”.
The letter also states it is of significant concern that Green 360 Limited, the Nottingham company that trades as New Trades Career, appears to be misquoting ICO advice and it will "carefully consider whether further action is necessary."
Green 360 director Ian Morris said: “We intend to urgently engage with the ICO to understand and address their concerns.
“For the avoidance of doubt, we engage with all subject access requests in good faith and have at no stage sought to misrepresent the position of the ICO.”
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