STUDENTS fear they will lose thousands of pounds after training centres in Kidderminster and Hartlebury suspended trading this morning.

A notice has been posted on the front door of Advent in Green Street and Access 2 Trade on Hartlebury Trading Estate, saying the firms have been “unable to secure ongoing funding”.

This morning, 12 students were left waiting outside the Kidderminster offices, which were empty, apart from two security guards manning the doors.

Many of them had turned up expecting to do exams today in computer training courses, with the hope of getting a job when they qualify.

Students have paid up to £6,000 in course fees each and they are now wondering if they are going to get the money back.

A number have travelled from places across the country, including Somerset, London and Wigan, and were staying in hotels in the area while they attended a course this week.

They have paid hundreds of pounds in accommodation and travel which, they now think, is also “at risk”.

Adam Pyrzyna, 29, said he was “gobsmacked”, as he put “everything” he had into the course.

A former construction worker who has been unemployed since October, he said: “I have been studying very hard and got 87 per cent earlier this week in a test.

“I thought I would pass my exams and then be ready to go but now it has all gone. All of my plans have fallen through.”

Advent is based at Hagley Hall, where students have faced the same problem this morning, as they try to find out what has happened.

The majority of studying is usually done from home, with students required to attend workshops and exams at centres like Kidderminster’s.

When The Shuttle called the firm earlier, there was no answer.

Access 2 Trade Careers, part of the Advent group, was opened in Hartlebury last April by West Midlands Regional Minister Ian Austin, who hailed it as a “local success story” that was bucking the economic downturn.

The facility provided entry level vocational courses for plumbers and electricians.

The notice posted on the doors of the training centres and the companies’ websites says: “It is with the greatest regret that having tried our very best we have been unable to secure ongoing funding for the company and accordingly as matters currently stand we are unable to continue to provide your training.

“Arrangements are being made for an insolvency practitioner to be appointed and you will be hearing from them in due course.”

Bogdan Ghervase, 29, a builder from London, said: “Surely they should have known this was going to happen before today.

“I have been revising until 2am for days for this exam and now this happens.”