The Royal Agricultural University’s (“RAU”) standard terms and conditions shall apply to any training agreement. Where any of these conditions below are at variance with our standard terms and conditions, then the conditions as set below shall apply. Please read these terms carefully before booking, as they set out your legal rights and obligations when enrolling on an RAU short course.

1. Contract of booking

1.1. Completion of the online booking process and acceptance of these terms and conditions forms a binding contract with the University.

1.2. RAU will send an acknowledgement of enrolment and invoice within 5 working days, unless payment is made immediately online, in which case registration is confirmed upon successful payment. If no acknowledgment is received, contact RAU immediately.

1.3. Joining instructions will be sent automatically prior to the course. For any company bookings, it is the company’s responsibility to communicate course details to the employee.

2. Minimum age

2.1. Participants must be 16 years or older at the start date unless otherwise stated.

3. Fees and payment

3.1. Fees are per participant and exclude VAT unless stated otherwise. Fees include course materials and, unless specified, examination / registration charges.

3.2. Full payment must be received prior to the course start date. Attendance is not permitted without payment. Payment must be made via

  • Immediate online payment (credit/debit card)
  • Invoice (payment due 30 days from invoice date or in advance of the course, whichever is earlier)

3.3. Employers paying on behalf of participants remain fully responsible for fees, including in cases of cancellation or employment termination.

3.4. Late payments may incur interest at 8% above the Bank of England base rate and a £25 administration charge for failed payments.

3.5. All courses are non-residential unless otherwise stated. Participants are responsible for their travel and accommodation arrangements.

4. International participants

4.1. International participants are responsible for ensuring they hold valid travel documentation and visas to attend any in-person course.

4.2. If a participant cannot attend due to visa issues, refunds will not normally be provided unless RAU determines otherwise at its discretion.

5. Cancellation by participant

5.1. Participants may cancel their booking in writing. Fees are based on working days’ notice before the course start:

Notice Period (Working Days)

Refund Value as % of Total Course Fee (excluding VAT)

28 or more

100% (full refund)

15 - 27

50%

7 - 14

25%

Less than 7

0% (no refund)

5.2. Online courses are only entitled to a refund when none of the course content has been accessed, as per clause 7.1, and the cancellation notice was given in writing 14 working days before the commencement of the first online teaching event.

5.3. Failure to attend, without notice as stated in clauses 5.1 & 5.2 will not be entitled to a refund.

5.4. At the sole discretion of the RAU, the participant may be offered an alternate course date or credits towards an alternative course, if there were exceptional and unavoidable circumstances preventing the participant from attending the original booked course dates. The participant must make a request in writing before the course starts or within 5 working days following the missed course date.

6. Cancellation by RAU

6.1. RAU reserves the right to cancel or reschedule courses due to low enrolment, unforeseen circumstances, or force majeure.

6.2. Participants will be offered the choice to:

  • Transfer to an alternative course or date, or
  • Receive a full refund within 10 working days.

7. Online course access

7.1. Online course materials are considered delivered once a participant has accessed or downloaded them, or when live online content has been streamed to the participant. Once materials are delivered or accessed, cancellation/refund rights under clause 5 no longer apply, except as required by law.

7.2. Participants are responsible for ensuring that they have suitable hardware, software, internet connectivity, and browser compatibility for accessing online materials. RAU is not liable for delays or inability to access content due to participants’ equipment or third-party service issues.

8. Transfer

8.1. Courses are not transferable between participants without RAU approval. Requests for substitutions or transfers must be made at least 14 working days prior to the course start date and are subject to a £25 administration fee.

8.2. Each booking may only be transferred once. Any further transfer requests will be treated as cancellations and handled under clause 5.

8.3. RAU reserves the right to refuse a transfer or substitution where the transferee does not meet course entry requirements.

8.4. Online course attendance is restricted to the named participant on the booking only, this means no other person shall attend in the background, and the use of artificial intelligence (AI) notetaker, meeting assistant or meeting transcription assistant services are not permitted to record, transcribe, summarise, provide key insights or analyse course content on behalf of the participant. If a third party or AI software is detected, they will be removed, and the participant may be excluded from the remainder of the course without a refund. The RAU will protect copyright and Intellectual property as stated in clause 11.

9. Accessibility and permitted assistive technologies 

9.1. If at the time of booking an accessibility requirement is disclosed, the RAU will provide the appropriate accessibility requirement to facilitate the participants experience on the course, in the event the accessibility need requires specialised software, the RAU at its sole discretion, may authorise its use without breach of clause 11.

10. Course content, behaviour and participant obligations

10.1. RAU reserves the right to amend course content, timing, venue, or instructor to ensure quality or due to unforeseen circumstances.

10.2. RAU will not be liable for any losses or expenses arising from amendments to the course or cancellations.

10.3. Participants whose behaviour is deemed inappropriate may be removed without a refund.

10.4. Health & Safety (for in-person courses): Participants must comply with all RAU health and safety rules and instructions provided during training, including the use of the required personal protective equipment (PPE) where relevant. RAU reserves the right to remove participants who fail to comply with safety requirements without a refund.

10.5. Code of Conduct: Participants are expected to maintain respectful and professional behaviour at all times. Failure to adhere to the RAU Learner Code of Conduct (available upon request) may result in immediate removal from the course without a refund.

10.6. Participant Responsibilities (online and in-person): Participants are responsible for ensuring they meet any pre-course requirements, bring any necessary materials or documentation, and maintain appropriate conduct throughout the course.

10.7. By booking, participants consent to RAU taking photographs and/or video recordings during in-person and blended course sessions for RAU’s legitimate purposes (including but not limited to internal records, evaluation, publicity, marketing and educational use).

10.8. If a participant does not wish to be photographed or recorded, they must notify RAU in writing (email is acceptable) before the start of the session. RAU will make reasonable efforts to accommodate such requests (for example, by excluding the participant from photographs taken for publicity). However, RAU cannot guarantee absolute exclusion from group images where participants are not individually identifiable.

10.9. Participants must not photograph, film or record sessions themselves unless they have obtained RAU’s prior written consent.

11. Intellectual property & use of materials

 11.1. All intellectual property rights in course content, materials, handouts, recordings, and online resources are owned by RAU or its licensors.

 11.2. Participants are granted a limited, non-transferable license to use course materials solely for their personal learning.

 11.3. Participants may not copy, reproduce, distribute, record, or share any part of the materials with third parties without RAU’s prior written consent.

 11.4. Breach of this clause may result in removal from the course and possible legal action.

12. Liability

12.1. RAU is not liable for indirect losses or expenses, including travel or accommodation, resulting from course amendments or cancellations, except for death or personal injury caused by RAU negligence.

12.2. Participants are responsible for their own travel, accommodation, and incidental costs.

13. Data protection

13.1. Personal information will be processed in accordance with the Data Protection Act 2018 to administer bookings, provide courses, and communicate relevant information.

13.2. For full details, please refer to RAU’s Privacy Notice available at https://www.rau.ac.uk/privacy.

14. Governing law & jurisdiction

14.1. These Terms and Conditions, and any claims or matters arising under or in connection with them, shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of England and Wales.

14.2. The parties agree that the courts of England and Wales shall have exclusive jurisdiction to settle any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with these Terms and Conditions, including disputes about their existence, validity or termination.

14.3. Nothing in this clause shall affect any statutory rights you may have as a consumer.

15. Variation of terms

15.1. RAU reserves the right to amend these Terms and Conditions at any time. The version applicable to your booking will be the one published on the RAU website at the time of booking.

15.2. Any updates will take effect immediately for new bookings and will not affect existing contracts unless required by law.