Terms & Conditions
1. Interpretation and Defined Terms
1.1 When the following words are used in these Terms, this is what they will mean:
1.1.1 ‘You’, ‘your’ means you as the student enrolling on to the BDA Service
1.1.2 ‘Our’, ‘us’ and 'we' refers to BRITISH DESIGN ACADEMY
1.1.3 'BDA' and 'BRITISH DESIGN ACADEMY' are one and the same
1.1.4 ‘Service’ means the interactive online, screen-based and/or paper-based learning Service as applicable and provided to You by Us
1.1.5 ‘Digital Content’ means the digital content and resources accessible as part of Our Service
1.1.6 ‘Website’ means the website(s) used by Us to provide the 'Service' (britishdesignacademy.co.uk)
1.1.7 ‘Course Fee’ means the price stated on Our Website at the time You enrol for the course (save in cases of obvious error)
1.1.8 ‘Enrolment Confirmation Email’ has the meaning given to it in clause 5.2
1.1.9 ‘Code of Conduct’ means the terms and conditions governing Your use of the BDA Service from time to time as provided to You by Us and/or as published on Our Website.
1.1.10 ‘Start Date’ means the date when we first provide you with access to the BDA Service or (if earlier) when we provide you with email and/or learning materials
1.1.11 ‘Business Day’ means a day (other than a Saturday, Sunday or Public Bank Holiday)
1.1.12 ‘Intellectual Property Rights’ means patents, rights to inventions, copyright and related rights, moral rights, trademarks, business names and domain names, rights in get-up, goodwill and the right to sue for passing off, rights in designs, rights in computer software, database rights, rights to use and protect the confidentiality of, confidential information (including know-how) and all other intellectual property rights, in each case whether registered or unregistered and including all applications and rights to apply for and be granted, renewals or extensions of, and rights to claim priority from, such rights and all similar or equivalent rights or forms of protection which subsist or will subsist now or in the future in any part of the world
1.2 Clause, schedule and paragraph headings will not affect the interpretation of these Terms.
2. Our Terms & Contract with You
2.1 These are the Terms for your access to the BRITISH DESIGN ACADEMY Services
2.2 Please ensure that you read these Terms carefully, and check that the details on your order and these Terms are complete and accurate. If you think that there is a mistake, please email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., and ensure that you ask us to confirm any changes in writing to avoid any confusion between us
2.3 We reserve the right to revise and amend these Terms from time to time
2.4 You will be subject to the policies, terms and conditions in force at the time that you purchase access to the BDA's Services, unless any change to those policies or these terms and conditions is required to be made by law or governmental authority (in which case it will apply to orders previously placed by you), or if we notify you of the change to those policies or these terms and conditions by posting the revised terms on our website.
3. Minimum Age Requirement
3.1 You must be a minimum age of eighteen years old at the time of course commencement.
4. Courses
4.1 We reserve the right to modify, discontinue or withdraw a course without notice at any time. We shall not be liable to you or to any third party for any modification, price change, suspension or discontinuance of a course before commencement
4.2 Your place on the course cannot be guaranteed until full payment is received. Full payment of course fees must be received a minimum 20 business days prior to the commencement of the BDA Certificate, Diploma and Residential courses, and 10 business days prior to all other courses.
5. Enrolling Online
5.1 You may enrol by applying for a course via our website.
5.2 Upon placing your order online, you will be sent a confirmation e-mail detailing your order. Acceptance of your order will only take place when we have received full payment from you and we send to you an email confirming we have accepted your enrolment (the ‘Enrolment Confirmation Email’). A contract will only be formed between you and us when we send to you the Enrolment Confirmation Email.
If you have any queries regarding your order, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Should we have any queries relating to your order, we will contact you by e-mail or telephone as soon as possible within the order process.
6. Price and Payment
6.1 The price of our course fees and services will be as quoted on our website except in cases of obvious error. The prices of our courses are subject to change at any time before acceptance of your order by us, and payment in full by you.
6.2 All of the prices given on our website are in UK Sterling and inclusive of VAT at the current rate. Should the rate of VAT change between the date of your order and the date of delivery, we may adjust the rate of VAT that you pay, unless the course fees are paid in full before the VAT rate change.
6.3 Fees can be paid via our website, or by bank transfer - please contact us for account details for BACS payments. We will accept cash and cheque payments by prior arrangement only.
6.4 We welcome orders submitted from outside the UK but will only accept the payment method specified within these Terms.
7. Cancellations and Refunds
Cancellation by you -
7.1 You may cancel this Agreement by providing us with written notice in the following circumstances:
7.1.1 SUBJECT TO THE IMPORTANT EXCEPTION IN CLAUSE 7.1.6, at any time up to 10 days after the Order Confirmation email is sent, providing course commencement is no less than 28 days (this can be done by clear statement via email using the Template Cancellation Form in the following format). If you wish to cancel within 28 days of the course start date, you will not be entitled to a refund, however, you may be able to transfer to another course date or apply the credit to an alternative course, subject to availability:
Template Cancellation Form
To: British Design Academy
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
I hereby give notice that I cancel my contract for the supply of the following services:
[detail any courses you wish to cancel, and the reason for cancelling]
ordered on [insert date]
Student name:
Student number:
Student address:
Signature (only if you send this on paper otherwise print your name)
Dated
7.1.2 if the British Design Academy Service fails to conform in all material respects with its description, be of satisfactory quality, and be reasonably fit for purpose; or
7.1.3 if we change these Terms to your material disadvantage.
7.1.4 In respect of any cancellation notice provided under clause 7.1.1 and 7.1.2 we will confirm your cancellation in writing to you and refund to you the payment made for the goods
7.1.5 In respect of any cancellation notice provided under clause 7.1.3, we will confirm your cancellation in writing to you and provide a partial refund of the amount paid on a pro-rata basis from the date the Terms were changed
7.1.6 You agree that the right to cancel will not apply and is waived where the specific BDA Service involves a third-party software tool and you have accessed that third-party software already as part of the BDA Service. (One typical example of this would be where a licence has been purchased for AutoCad which would be available as part of certain courses relating to Technical training.)
Cancellation by us -
7.2 please note that courses have minimum attendance levels and may be cancelled if too few bookings are received. We reserve the right to amend or cancel courses. If we cancel a course we shall endeavour to give you notice of at least 5 Business Days. You will have the option of transferring to another course or having a full refund of the fees. We will not be liable for any losses (including, but not limited to, travel and accommodation costs) arising as a consequence of any modification or cancellation of courses or timetabling constraints as set out above, beyond the cost of the course fee.
7.3 We may terminate our agreement with you immediately if:
7.3.1 you fail to pay any sum due under these Terms;
7.3.2 you are in breach of the Terms (any payment made to us by you will not be reimbursed if your account is terminated for a breach of the Terms);
7.3.3 acting reasonably, we suspect you have been involved in any form of plagiarism (as set out in our Code of Conduct) and any payment made to us by you will not be reimbursed;
7.3.4 you commit any material breach of your obligations under these Terms which is incapable of remedy, or if capable of remedy, is not remedied within 5 Business Days of us giving written notice requiring the breach to be remedied; or
7.3.5 an Event Outside Our Control continues for more than 4 weeks in accordance with clause 16.6.3
8. Non-Attendance
8.1 If you are unable to attend a class or classes due to illness, or for personal or professional reasons, you will not be entitled to a refund, extra tuition or to automatically transfer to another course. In special circumstances, we will, at our discretion, consider such action that we believe to be fair and reasonable.
9. Course Materials and Equipment
9.1 All learning reference materials for BDA's courses, workshops and masterclasses are included in the course fees.
9.2 Specialist materials and equipment (ie drawing boards, portfolios, scale rulers, technical pens, etc) are not included and where required (ie the BDA Certificate and BDA Diploma courses) a 'Materials and Equipment' list will be provided prior to commencement of the course. It will be your responsibility to ensure you have all materials and equipment required so that you can fully participate in the course.
10. Photography and Video
10.1 We request that you don't take photographs or videos of the course presentation while in progress.
10.2 You may take as many photographs of your own work as you wish during the course but please ask permission of other students before taking photographs of their work, or using their work for your own purposes.
11. Our Website
11.1 The BDA website is operated by the British Design Academy. Throughout the site, the terms “we”, “us” and “our” refer to the British Design Academy. By visiting our site and/ or purchasing a course from us, you engage in our “Service” and agree to be bound by our Terms of Service. The Terms apply to all users of the site, including without limitation users who are browsers, vendors, customers, merchants, and/ or contributors of content.
11.2 We reserve the right at any time to modify or discontinue the BDA website (or any part or content thereof) without notice at any time. We shall not be liable to you or to any third-party for any modification, price change, suspension or discontinuance of the BDA website.
11.3 In using our website you agree to act in accordance with the law and accept and abide by all of our Terms and Conditions and Terms of Service. You may not alter, amend, impair or interfere with our website in any way. If you default negligently in any obligations set out in these Terms of Service, you shall be liable for all losses and damages that this may cause to BDA.
11.4 Although we make every effort to be accurate, there may be information on our website that contains typographical errors, inaccuracies or omissions which may relate to course descriptions, pricing, promotions, offers and availability. We reserve the right to correct any errors, inaccuracies or omissions, and to change or update information on our website if it is inaccurate at any time without prior notice (including after you have booked a course).
11.5 We undertake no obligation to update, amend or clarify information on our website, including without limitation, pricing information, except as required by law.
12. Personal Information
12.1 Your submission of personal information through the website is governed by our Privacy Policy.
13. Intellectual Property Rights
13.1 All intellectual property rights regarding the BDA website including, but not limited to, text, logos, and images and all other materials are owned by the BRITISH DESIGN ACADEMY. No trademarks or content may be copied, reproduced, sold or used without our prior written consent. If we believe our intellectual property rights to have been breached you must at our direction return, delete or destroy any copies of the materials you have duplicated.
13.2 You will inform us immediately if you become aware of any infringement of our Intellectual Property Rights and provide such assistance as we may reasonably request. If any of the BDA Service becomes, or in our opinion is likely to become subject to an infringement claim, we may (at our discretion and expense):
13.2.1 obtain the right for the You to continue using the BDA Service;
13.2.2 modify or replace the BDA Service to avoid the infringement claim; or
13.2.3 if in our opinion neither 14.2.1 or 14.2.2 is commercially reasonable, terminate our agreement with You.
14. Our Liability to You as Consumer
14.1 If we fail to comply with these Terms, we are responsible (subject to clauses 15.2, 15.3 and 15.4) for loss or damage that you suffer that is a foreseeable result of our breach of these Terms or our negligence, but we are not responsible for any loss or damage that is not foreseeable. Loss or damage is foreseeable if they were an obvious consequence of our breach or if they were contemplated by you and us at the time we entered into these Terms.
14.2 We only supply the BDA Service for domestic and private use or for business purposes where purchased for you by your employer. You agree on behalf of yourself and the BDA Member not to use the BDA Service for any re-sale purposes or any commercial purposes (save for business purposes where purchased for you by your employer), and we have no liability to you for any loss of profit, loss of business, business interruption, or loss of business opportunity.
14.3 We do not in any way exclude or limit our liability for:
14.3.1 death or personal injury caused by our negligence;
14.3.2 any breach of the terms implied by section 2 of the Supply of Goods and Service Act 1982 (title and quiet possession);
14.3.3 breach of the terms implied by sections 3, 4 and 5 of the Supply of Goods and Service Act 1982 (description, satisfactory quality, fitness for purpose and samples); and
14.3.4 any other matter for which it would be illegal for us to exclude or attempt to exclude our liability.
14.4 Subject to clauses 15.2 and 15.3 of this Agreement, our total liability for any claims, losses, damages or expenses whatsoever and howsoever caused (even if caused by our negligence and/or breach of contract) shall be limited to the price paid by You for the Course.
15. Complaints Procedure
15.1 Complaints can be made and received in writing by email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. clearly layout out the details.
Please include the following in the email subject line 'Complaint regarding *add issue here*'.
15.2 If You are unhappy with Our resolution and wish to seek further help, here is where You can access Consumer advice https://www.gov.uk/consumer-protection-rights
16. General
16.1 Applicable laws require that some of the information or communications We send to You should be in writing. When using Our site, You accept that communication with us will be mainly electronic. We will contact you by e-mail or provide you with information by posting notices on our Website. For contractual purposes, you agree to this electronic means of communication and you acknowledge that all contract, notices, information and other communications that we provide to you electronically comply with any legal requirement that such communications be in writing. This condition does not affect your statutory rights.
16.2 We may transfer our rights and obligations under these Terms to another organisation, but that will not affect your rights or our obligations under this these Terms.
16.3 You may not transfer your rights and obligations under these Terms.
16.4 We will not be liable or responsible for any failure to perform, or delay in performance of, any of our obligations under these Terms that is caused by an event outside our control (an ‘Event Outside Our Control’).
16.5 An Event Outside Our Control means any act or event beyond our reasonable control, including without limitation: strikes, lock-outs or other industrial action by third parties, civil commotion, riot, invasion, terrorist attack or threat of terrorist attack, war (whether declared or not) or threat or preparation for war, fire, explosion, storm, flood, earthquake, subsidence, epidemic or other natural disaster, or failure of public or private telecommunications networks.
16.6 If an Event Outside Our Control takes place that affects the performance of our obligations under these Terms:
16.6.1 We will contact you as soon as reasonably possible to notify you; and
16.6.2 Our obligations under these Terms will be suspended and the time for performance of our obligations will be extended for the duration of the Event Outside Our Control. Where the Event Outside Our Control affects our performance of the BDA Service, we will restart the Service as soon as reasonably possible after the Event Outside Our Control is over.
16.6.3 We will only cancel the contract if the Event Outside Our Control continues for longer than 4 weeks in accordance with our cancellation rights in clause 7.3.5.
16.7 If any court or competent authority decides that any of the provisions of these Terms or any provisions of our agreement is invalid, unlawful or unenforceable to any extent, the term will, to that extent only, be severed from the remaining terms, which will continue to be valid to the fullest extent permitted by law.
16.8 (Save for fraudulent misrepresentation) these Terms and any document referred to in them constitute the whole agreement between us and supersede all previous discussions, correspondence, negotiations, previous arrangement, understanding or agreement between us relating to the subject matter of these Terms.
16.9 The Terms and any dispute or claim arising out of them will be governed by English law and subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales, although we retain the right to bring proceedings against you for breaking these Terms in your country of residence or any other relevant country.
16.10 A person who is not party to these Terms shall not have any rights under or in connection with them under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999.
16.11 If we fail to enforce your compliance with these Terms, this shall not constitute a waiver of any of our rights under these Terms or otherwise.
17. Contacting Us
17.1 If you need to get in touch for any reason, our contact details are found on our Contact Us page.
