Sumps - CAA are a law unto themselves. Just sit the exams, pay the nice man and a wait for your licence to pop through the post. If you have plenty of experience some serious studying should get you through the B2 without too many headaches. (Apart from the usual dubious CAA multi-choicers).
Not sure about Kingston.
Someone in the armed forces can go through the process and hold a licence. Just a case of sitting the exams. Getting the experience and type courses is the difficult bit.
In our firm , unlicenced techs are on around the high 20's before shift pay.
Licenced engineers (B1, B2) are on about 35 plus shift pay although we don't get licence pay other companies do pay for each type you hold which can easily bump this to over 40k.
Despite what a certain poster on here has said I don't think the best part of 30k is peanuts.
Good luck!