Kautostar,
The NATS process is the only free way of getting into UK ATC. There is also the Eurocontrol process if you wanted to work in Europe. There are a couple of colleges in the UK where you can fund your own courses but you would then have to apply to a non NATS airport for a job.
Another method is to apply to an airfield as an ATSA and hope that they can sponsor you through training, I'm not sure how viable that method is these days.
The application process is tough, I'm sure I've heard that only 3% of applicants make it through to the college. The college itself is even tougher, and validation training at a unit is a whole different world of tough
Worth it in the end though
