At Circomedia we have been informed that new Welsh domiciled students will no longer be able to access public funding from Student Finance Wales to study degree level courses at Circomedia from September 2026 onwards.

As the awarding institution, our partner Bath Spa University is responsible for ensuring that any designation conditions that underpin entitlement to student finance across the four nations are fully understood and enacted upon. For students who receive finance from Student Finance Wales, one of these conditions is that, if they are studying in England, their course delivery provider is registered with the Office for Students or has specific designation.

Though Bath Spa University awards the degrees for our courses, their registration does not apply to us as one of its partners. As such, from September 2026, new Welsh domiciled Circomedia students will no longer be able to access public funding from Student Finance Wales, including both tuition fees and maintenance grants and loans for our FdA and BA (Hons) top-up in Contemporary Circus and Physical Theatre. This is a decision entirely outside of our control.

We are deeply disappointed with this situation and the impact it has in restricting access to degree-level Circus and Physical Theatre training for Welsh domiciled artists. Circomedia has always benefited from a strong Welsh student community, whose presence has enriched our learning and artistic environment since we opened our doors.  The loss of government funded access to our courses will be felt across our community.

If you have applied to start our FdA in September 2026, your application is still valid, but you will have to find alternative ways to fund your studies. Our partners at Bath Spa will be happy to explore options with you on how best to progress your application, or to explore any concerns you have in relation to this decision. They can be contacted at partneradmissions@bathspa.ac.uk.

If you are affected by this decision and interested in exploring routes to circus training at Circomedia through any of our non-degree courses, please contact our Courses Manager Heather, on 0117 947 7288. Alternatively, you may prefer to explore other degree options on UCAS.