Foundation years take one academic year. They are counted as year 0 of your degree, and carry the same tuition fees as other university years. You can get a loan from Student Finance to cover tuition fees and also maintenance loans/grants.
Foundation years are aimed at:
- international students whose school qualifications aren't sufficiently similar to A Levels,
- home-grown students who have studied the wrong A levels for the subject they wish to pursue,
- mature students who don't have appropriate level 3 qualifications
- (sometimes) students whose A Level results weren't quite good enough to start in year 1.
Sometimes the entry requirements will be quite high, as not all universities will accept students in the last category I mentioned. If you are a mature student, some universities will still want to see evidence of recent study, but some may be willing to waive this, especially if you have relevant work experience.
Have you tried other colleges for Access? You may have more luck elsewhere. Or you could try Access via distance learning or do an OU course.