Advice please

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Hello there,

Firstly apologies cos I know these type of questions get asked a lot and it must really grate some of you to keep repeating yourself.

I currently work in a financial institution in London. I have worked in the city for approx 13 years. I have been considering a change of career for some time and have always been interested in IT. My job is pretty stressful and unsatisfying and was hoping that I could couple my financial knowledge with a career in IT. I'm particularly keen on web development and design. I have looked at a number of courses with various training providers including computeach and National IT learning centre. They basically want around 5 grand for the entire course and offer the Microsoft Track and CIW track. I'm not overly keen to part with that type of money initially and was hoping to complete basic level of this using self study. Sort of try before I buy sorta thing.

So I was hoping someone could point me in the right direction. Firstly what wld be the most industry recognised qualification Microsoft or CIW ? Secondly what type of materials would I need to complete the foundation or basics of each course. Is there specific books, CD's or websites dedicated to this. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Cheers