Thanks chaps! I really appreciate all of the helpful advice. I've decided to sit it out. As I previously said, I abhor the idea of paying to work and thanks to a couple of very helpful guys on this forum I have a few trails to follow up which might hopefully lead to something.
To other guys in a similar position, and I know there are many, just taking some time to think really is the best thing to do. I've been way too focused on getting back into the RHS as soon as possible, I took a few days holiday earlier this week and sat back and had a serious think about things, it did me the world of good and gave me clarity on the situation. If you've done well enough to gain employment in this industry once, you've already proven that you meet the grade, you don't need to folk out £30k+ extra to prove that all over again.