CognateUK | Cancellation and Refund Policy

1. Who this Policy applies to

This Policy applies where a parent, guardian or other authorised person, or eligible student, enrols on CognateHelix and pays Excellence First Enterprise Consultancy Limited trading as CognateUK directly.

Where a school or organisation funds a place, cancellation and refund arrangements are governed by the agreement with the school and this Policy does not apply to the family.

2. Key dates and figures

3. Your statutory right to cancel within 14 days

You may cancel within 14 days of the day we send your enrolment confirmation, without giving a reason.

If you have not asked us to start providing the Service, we will refund every payment you have made within 14 days of receiving your notice.

If you asked us to start providing the Service during the cancellation period, we may deduct a proportionate amount for the Service supplied up to the date of your notice and refund the balance.

The model cancellation form is in the Service Terms and Conditions. You may use it but you do not have to.

4. Withdrawing before the programme starts

If, after the cooling-off period has ended, you withdraw before the programme start date of 4 October 2026:

• we refund all programme fees you have paid;
• no notice period applies; and
• no deduction is made.

5. Withdrawing after the programme starts

You may withdraw the Student at any time by giving us 30 days' notice by email to programmeteam@cognateuk.com. The effective date of withdrawal is 30 days after we receive your notice.

You remain responsible for the fees attributable to the programme up to the effective date. We refund the proportion of the fee represented by the period from the effective date to the programme end date, measured in days, less any study weekend deduction under section 6, and we cancel any future instalments.

Worked example. You email us on 1 March 2027. The effective date is 31 March 2027. Assuming a programme end date of 10 December 2027, 254 of the programme's 433 days remain after the effective date. The refund before any study weekend deduction is 254 ÷ 433 of £1,750, which is £1,026.56.

6. The February study weekend and committed costs

We book and pay for the February study weekend in advance. Those costs become committed and non-recoverable before the event itself. The committed-cost date is 31 December 2026.

If we receive your notice of withdrawal before 31 December 2026, no study weekend deduction is made.

If we receive your notice on or after 31 December 2026, we deduct from your refund the venue and catering cost, and, where an overnight stay is arranged, the accommodation cost, actually committed for the Student's place and not recoverable. The deduction is capped at £400 per student.

We will take reasonable steps to reduce the loss, including offering the place to another student and seeking to amend or cancel the booking with the venue. Any amount we recover is returned to you.

7. If the Student does not attend the February study weekend

The programme fee is for the programme as a whole. A Student who chooses not to attend the February study weekend is not entitled to any reduction in the fee or refund.

If the Student is unable to attend because of illness or another reason beyond their reasonable control, and you tell us as soon as reasonably possible and provide any proof we reasonably request, we will seek to recover or reallocate the cost committed for the Student's place and refund to you whatever we recover.

8. Instalments

Where an instalment arrangement is in place, we compare the amount you have actually paid with the amount due under this Policy at the relevant date. We refund any excess. If the amount due is more than you have paid, you are responsible for paying us the shortfall. Instalments falling due after the effective date of withdrawal are cancelled.

9. If we change, reschedule or cancel the programme

If we cancel the whole programme before it starts, you may choose a full refund or a transfer to a future cohort.

Where a cancelled or rescheduled session materially reduces the Service and cannot reasonably be replaced, we provide a reasonable refund.

Where the programme ceases to be commercially viable, we refund the undelivered element or offer a modified programme. If the modification materially reduces the Service, you may choose not to continue and receive a refund for the Service not delivered.

Where circumstances beyond our reasonable control prevent delivery continuously for more than eight weeks and no reasonable alternative exists, we may cancel the programme and refund the Service not delivered.

10. If we end the contract

Where participation is suspended or ended for serious or repeated misconduct, risk, misuse of the platform or material non-payment, any refund for programme content not delivered is calculated fairly and proportionately using the same principles as this Policy.

11. How refunds are paid

We refund to the payment method used for the original transaction unless you expressly agree otherwise. You are not charged any fee for a refund.

Cooling-off refunds are paid within 14 days of your cancellation notice. Other refunds are paid within 14 days of the refund amount being established.

12. How to give notice

Email programmeteam@cognateuk.com, giving the Student's name, your name, a clear statement that you are cancelling or withdrawing, and the date.

You may instead write to Excellence First Enterprise Consultancy Limited, 6 Theydon Grove, Epping, Essex, CM16 4PU.

Simply stopping attendance does not count as notice.

13. Your statutory rights

Nothing in this Policy affects your statutory rights as a consumer.

14. Changes to this Policy

We may update this Policy for future cohorts. The version that applies to you is the version in force on the date your contract is formed, as stated in your enrolment confirmation.