Last year saw personal UK consumers take out a massive £37 million in loans to help cover the cost of their education.

New data released from Sainsbury’s Finance show that education costs increased in the 12 months till the end of February by five per cent, with the group attributing the higher costs as the main reason for bank assistance which was mainly used to pay university and school fees, personal loans and general education costs.

The supermarket bank estimated that close to 4,400 personal loans were arranged over the past year at an average rate of £8,500 for assistance with educational charges. The breakdown from Sainsbury’s Finance showed that 1,100 loans were granted at a total worth of £12.25 million to help payment of school fees.  University and college fees were worth £13.56 million across 1,900 loans.

Sainsbury’s Finance Head of Loans, Steven Baillie, confirmed that the cost of education was indeed rising, with school fees up by 5.9 per cent, while the Consumer Price Index educational component grew by five per cent. The slow pace of the economic recovery meant that many students still faced challenges to generate the revenue required for the completion of their studies.

An evaluation of government data by Sainsbury’s Finance discovered that £8.8 billion was spent on education between 2006 and 2008 across the UK – a figure which showed dramatic variances between regional fees. London students paid an average of £770 a year, as compared to just £208 in the North West of Britain.

Dedicated followers of fashion who are interested in pursuing a career in the industry will now be able to do so at a new United Arab Emirate campus.

The world-famous London College of Fashion (LCF), which is the only British institution to offer specialised study courses in fashion research, education and consultancy, has announced the launch of its UAE program which will offer potential students the chance to study some of the most popular programs under the school’s top teachers.

 A total of nine short-courses will be offered in the UAE from May 22nd until May 26th 2010, including; Introduction to Fashion Journalism, Fashion Buying and Merchandising, Principles of Personal Fashion Styling, Luxury Brand and Product Design, Online Fashion Marketing, Introduction to Fashion Marketing, The Power of Visual Merchandising, The Business of Fashion and Starting Your Own Fashion Label.

LCF claims that the history of the Middle East, steeped in painting and poetry, is an ideal location for fashion study. The short courses are the same as those that have been a success in the UK and offer UAE residents a great opportunity to develop their skills of just hone their interest. Already several local designers and labels have signed up for the wonderful opportunity.

The courses will be taught be established fashion industry professionals, such as Jimmy Choo, and will provide a Certificate of Attendance to all participants.

Teachers in local public schools across the UK are constantly looking for inventive, interesting new ways to keep young pupils interested in learning. Some of the most challenging subjects include math and science, and instructors are constantly adapting teaching methods to appeal to these young, technology savvy students.

And while Ofsted has said that one such school was using drums to get students to understand the relationship between numbers for a math section, a school in London staged a mini “fashion week” inspired after the annual London Fashion Week in order to generate an interest in the science behind making clothing.

The move, however, has broached concern that instructors are simplifying complex science concepts in order to capture the attention of uninterested students. Think-tank, Civitas’ head of education Anastasia de Waal expressed her fear that techniques such as the fashion week approach would take away from challenging students with bigger issues.

Many have argued that by “dumbing” down such science concepts so that they will be entertaining to children is missing the idea of education, which according to de Waal is to challenge and engage students.

Patrick Lesson, director of education for Ofsted, disagrees however. He added that using creative approaches can make school more relevant and interesting for young students capturing their attention and increasing cognitive learning. He even added that one school in the UK altered their teaching methods to include more alternative, creative methods and over a period of three years saw GCSE results double.