Winchester Employability Fund (WEF) Terms & Conditions
These terms and conditions (“Terms”) apply to the University of Winchester’s (“University”) Winchester Employability Fund (“WEF”).
Section 1: Outline of the WEF
Under WEF, the University has a limited number of monetary grants which it wishes to allocate to eligible undergraduate students for the following activities:
i. Secure volunteering or unpaid work experience/internships within voluntary organisations or companies and require funding to support with travel to and from the experience.
ii. Secure a placement with an organisation and you require funding to support with travel to and from the placement.
iii. Secure an interview and require funding to support with travel to and from the experience.
iv. Secure a placement or volunteering opportunity abroad and require the funding to support with travel to and from the opportunity. Note If your trip abroad is linked to a Study Abroad Opportunity or Turing trip you are not eligible for WEF funding and you should contact globalmobility@winchester.ac.uk
v. Maximum funding is £500 per student, per academic year.
Section 2: Terms
By making an application for WEF (whether or not you subsequently receive funding) you accept and agree to be bound by these Terms:
i. In order to apply for the WEF, the following criteria must be met. Please note that meeting the eligibility criteria set out in these Terms will not automatically result in you being entitled to, or you are being made an offer of the fund and allocation of this shall (subject to these Terms) be at the University’s absolute discretion. The University may also withdraw WEF (or any part of it) at any time without notice.
ii. You must apply to WEF before 31 May, 2024, and the activity needs to be completed by the end of this academic year.
Section 3: Eligibility
To be eligible to apply for funding you must:
i. be a full-time undergraduate, home student (but not Channel Island) student with settled or pre-settled status, of the University.
And meet one or more of the following criteria:
ii. have a household income (as assessed by Student Finance) of under £42,875
iii. have disclosed a disability to the University
iv. be a care-leaver or care-experienced
v. be a young adult carer
vi. from a Black, Asian, or Minority Ethnic (BAME) background
vii. be an estranged student (as assessed by student finance)
viii. be a Sanctuary Award student
ix. be a Gypsy, Roma, Traveller, Showman or Boater
x. have secured a volunteering or unpaid work experience/internship/ placement, either as part of your course through the volunteering module or another work experience module, or as an extra-curricular activity during term-time or vacation.
xi. or have secured an interview and require support with travel to / from the interview.
xii. meet the other requirements set out in these Terms
xiii. Please note the University will request a proof of the agreed experience from the student or voluntary organisation/employer before they can process your application and this should be detailed on the application form.
xiv. If you are applying to the fund to support travel / to and from an interview you will need to provide the email evidence confirming you have the interview secured and the location.
xv. If you secure a placement or volunteering opportunity abroad and require the funding to support with travel to and from the opportunity, you will need to provide the email evidence confirming the trip. Note If your trip abroad is linked to a Study Abroad Opportunity or Turing trip you are not eligible for WEF funding and you should contact globalmobility@winchester.ac.uk
xvi. The funding cannot contribute to fundraising targets for work experience schemes, work you have already completed, educational or cultural exchange schemes.
Section 4. Definitions
i. Volunteering means any activity that involves spending time, unpaid, doing something that aims to benefit the environment or someone (individuals or groups) other than, or in addition to, close relatives.
ii. Unpaid work experience/internship means a temporary work placement within an organisation or company of good standing in the United Kingdom or internationally, which does not carry out business which is illegal, immoral, unethical or offensive or which could otherwise be detrimental to the University’s reputation or interests.
iii. A placement refers to a period of assessed learning in a workplace included in a module. Placements linked to modules need to be approved by the University and carry a requirement for the student to complete.
Students may also do a placement outside of their course in holiday periods which might not be assessed.
iv. The University shall not be under any obligation to carry out enquiries into the organisation you are volunteering/working with and makes no warranty regarding the employer/voluntary organisation, or the work experience.
v. The University reserves the right to judge whether the proposed experience meets the criteria stated within this clause and its decision will be final.
vi. You must secure your own volunteering or unpaid work experience but can use the assistance of the Careers and Opportunities Hub, where appropriate.
vii. The University accepts no responsibility for securing the work experience or for any other matters relating to it and (except for personal injury or death caused by the University’s negligence) excludes its liability for all matters (including without limitation any employment-related issues) related to the experience or any prospective volunteering/work experience.
viii. Your request will only be considered from the date of your application and remaining duration of your placement. The University will not consider applications for travel related to placements/volunteering/work experience in the past.
ix. The University will request a proof of invitation to interview from the applicant or from the organisation/employer before they can process your application any further.
x. The funding cannot contribute to interviews you have already attended.
xi. The role will be within an organisation or company of good standing in the United Kingdom or internationally, which does not carry out business which is illegal, immoral, unethical, or offensive or which could otherwise be detrimental to the University’s reputation or interests and meet the recommendations in our Vacancy Policy.
xii. The University shall not be under any obligation to carry out enquiries into the organisation you are offered an interview or experience with and makes no warranty regarding the employer.
Section 5. Allocation of funding
i. If the University notifies you that your application has been successful, the University shall pay you the funding directly into your bank account of up to £500 only. The amount will be based on the information you have
added to the application form. You will be notified of an expected payment date.
ii. If the University notifies you that your application has been successful, the University shall pay you funding of up to £500 only.
iii. If you are successful, funding will be allocated 10 working days from the point the award is approved.
iv. Prior to receiving funding, you will be required to provide evidence of your volunteering/work experience /placement with your organisation. It may be necessary for the University to contact the organisation you are volunteering/carrying out work experience with directly who will be required to present the University with an email confirming the nature of the experience and dates of attendance. If the organisation does not respond to our emails, you agree that the University may contact the voluntary organisation/employer by telephone to confirm these details.
v. You will be required to submit receipts / relevant evidence within 2 working weeks of the placement / work experience/ volunteering or interview. We may have to ask for reimbursement if you are unable to provide receipts.
vi. The funding for related travel costs including public transport, travel will be for public transport within the UK and not first or business class and should be at the cheapest rate possible.
vii. The funding for related travel costs for travel abroad for work experience / placement / volunteering should be not first or business class and should be at the cheapest rate possible.
viii. The University shall always use reasonable endeavours to act fairly when making decisions as to whom to allocate the funding. However, by applying for WEF you acknowledge and agree that the University reserves the right to decide at its absolute discretion how it wishes to allocate the funding to applicants. You further accept that the University shall not (unless required by law) be required to give any reasons for its decisions.
ix. There is a limited amount of funding available, and the payment of the funds shall always be subject to the University’s budget constraints.
x. Funding will be allocated on a first come first served basis. There is no guarantee you will receive the funding before you start your opportunity, or attend your interview so please apply as far in advance as you can. 4
xi. Funding will only be allocated after the full WEF application process has been completed and written (email) confirmation by the Careers and Opportunities Team has been sent.
xii. The Careers & Opportunities team will require a feedback form to be completed and returned to them after completion of your experience to demonstrate the impact of the funding. This will be sent to you via email.
xiii. The amount issued is down to the discretion of the Careers and Opportunities Team and is non-negotiable.
xiv. For placements / volunteering / work experience that are ongoing, funding can only be claimed for experience or related interview travel that falls within the financial year (until 1st July 2024).
xv. Only one WEF allocation is allowed per person per academic year.
xvi. Please be aware if you wish to apply to the WEF, please submit your form before 31 May 2024.
Section 6: Making Your WEF application and the support from Careers & Opportunities Team.
i. Please visit the Winchester Employability Fund intranet page to find out how to apply or email careers@winchester.ac.uk.
ii. Should you require assistance in completing your application or have any queries about your eligibility, contact careers@winchester.ac.uk (or visit Careers and Opportunities Hub in SAB303).
iii. If you are considering going on a placement/sandwich year, please get in touch with Careers for support. You can email careers@winchester.ac.uk or telephone 01962 827310. You can also access our resources to support you.
iv. Applications must be submitted via the online application form, Applications sent by other methods or in an incorrect format will not be considered.
v. On submission of your application, you are agreeing to these Terms and Conditions.
vi. The University will consider all the applications received and will let you know if you have been successful in being awarded funding by email.
vii. You will receive an email if you have been unsuccessful.
viii. The University may however at its sole discretion consider your application at a subsequent time during the academic year.
ix. The University shall not return your application form to you.
x. Each application to WEF is only valid for the 2023/24 academic year, should you wish to apply for WEF in the future a new application should be made (only one application per academic year). Applications cannot be carried over.
Section 7: General
i. The University reserves the right not to award funding to you and/or to end WEF (or any part of it) at any time.
ii. If you provide the University with incorrect or incomplete information, or if you do not to complete the placement / volunteering/unpaid work experience or interview, so that you do not in fact meet the eligibility criteria for the funding, or you otherwise do anything which might bring the University into disrepute, without prejudice to its other rights and remedies, the University may, on notice to you, terminate its agreement with you pursuant to these Terms with immediate effect and will not pay any money to you and/or may require you to return any money already paid to you pursuant to these Terms.
iii. By submitting an application to WEF you agree to disclose your personal information and for this to be held by us, according to our Privacy Notice.
iv. Your personal information will be used for legitimate purposes in connection with your application to the Winchester Employability Fund. Data held by the Careers and Opportunities Team is also subject to the central University Data Protection Policy.
v. You accept that the University does not act as agent, partner or employer of you, nor of any employer. You shall not be providing services to the University and the University does not act as an employment agency or employment business in any capacity under these Terms.
vi. The University takes no responsibility for undertaking health and safety or any other risk assessments of placements/voluntary/work experience/interviewing organisations unrelated to course requirements organisation/association/University.
vii. If the opportunity is for a placement or volunteering module related to an assessed piece of learning the relevant process should be followed by the student to either upload the information to InPlace or liaise with the course
team to ensure the information follows the University process. More information can be found here.
viii. Students and graduates participating in WEF are expected to undertake their own assessments and familiarise themselves with the relevant organisation’s processes in order to ensure their personal safety and wellbeing.
ix. Except in relation to personal injury or death caused by its negligence or for fraudulent misstatement, the University accepts no liability to you for indirect and consequential losses, loss of opportunity, loss of business or loss of profit and otherwise limits its liability under these Terms the amount of funding allocated.
x. By submitting an application to WEF, you agree to being contacted by the Careers and Opportunities Team with requests for assistance with promoting WEF to future students; this may include being part of a case study.
xi. Other departments within the University may wish to contact you in the future in connection with any funding you receive, for example, for general marketing purposes. Your details will not be passed to third parties outside the University. We will assume that you agree to your details being forwarded to colleagues within the University unless you tell us by emailing careers@winchester.ac.uk.
Updated February, 2024