help with school fees: a guide to bursaries and scholarships

help with school fees: a guide to bursaries and scholarships

The Whitgift Foundation is a charity founded in 1596 by Archbishop John Whitgift with the aim of providing education and care in Croydon and the surrounding areas. Over 400 years later, we continue to promote educational excellence by offering one of the largest school fee support schemes in the UK to students who attend our leading independent schools. whitgift school Day and boarding school for boys aged 10 to 18. trinity school of john whitgift Day school for boys aged 10 to 18 with a co-educational Sixth Form. old palace of john whitgift school Nursery school for boys and girls aged 3 months to 4 years and girls aged 4 to 18 through Preparatory and Seniors. I owe a lot to The Whitgift Foundation. I fully appreciate all of the opportunities that I have been given and I hope many more young people will be given the same chance. Foundation School Alumnus 2

help with fees The Whitgift Foundation currently gives financial support to 42% of students, totalling more than 5 million a year. This enables a strong inclusive culture within our schools, educating young people from many backgrounds and walks of life. We offer two types of school fee support: bursaries Bursaries (or reduced fees) are awarded by The Whitgift Foundation to a limited number of parents whose child wishes to attend a Foundation School but whose total income and assets fall below a given level. The bursary will be retained throughout their time in the school subject to an annual reassessment and satisfactory academic progress. It is possible to be awarded both a bursary and a scholarship. Bursaries at Old Palace are offered at Seniors from Year 7. scholarships Scholarships are awarded to the highest performing applicants based on academic ability or through specific areas such as sport, music or the arts. The value of the scholarship can be up to 50% of the fee. Scholarships are awarded by each individual school - contact Whitgift, Trinity or Old Palace for further details. 3

4 We support 42% of 3000 students with bursaries and scholarships

applying for a bursary A chart can be found at the back of this booklet showing the level of support you may qualify for. To apply, a bursary application pack can be obtained directly from the School, at an open event or downloaded from the School s website. A bursary form must be completed before your child sits the entrance examination and returned to The Whitgift Foundation. Forms should not be returned to the schools. Demand for bursaries is extremely high and so the Foundation s Finance Office rigorously assesses all bursary applications. Only a selected number of students are awarded bursaries following their entrance examination and admissions interview. If successful, you will be notified at the same time you are offered a place at the School. how bursaries are calculated The level of bursary is calculated by The Whitgift Foundation and will depend on your family s relevant income. This means the total income (before tax) from all sources of both parents as well as any unearned income of all your dependent children. Assets, such as equity in property, are also taken into account when considering whether to award a bursary. Relevant income is calculated from the preceding income tax year to the school year you are being assessed for. You will have to provide evidence of your income such as Form P60 or End of Year Accounts and Inland Revenue Tax Returns. An allowance of 2,000 is taken off this total for each dependent child (other than the bursary holder) in full-time education. The amount of assistance will be reviewed every year so you will have to provide details of your income annually. 5

changes in family circumstances Applications for financial assistance by parents of a student not granted a bursary on entry to the School but whose financial situation changes whilst their child is at a Foundation School will only be granted in very exceptional circumstances. Parents are urged to take out a school fee insurance policy to cover such an eventuality. If this situation arises you should immediately write to the Head of Finance explaining the circumstances; please provide as much detail of your financial situation as possible for example, if you have been made redundant, enclose a copy of your redundancy notice and entitlement. Whilst a bursary may not be awarded, you may be able to reach an agreement for payment over an extended period. If parents divorce, providing the divorce is finalised before the child sits the entrance examination, the parental contribution will normally be assessed on the relevant income of the parent who has actual custody of the child, plus the income of his or her spouse or partner. Maintenance is included in relevant income and the Foundation reserves the right to ask for income details of both parents if it is deemed necessary. Other expenses not covered by a bursary Bursaries do not cover the cost of uniform, travel, trips or school meals although some families may be eligible for help with music lessons. At all schools, A level and GCSE examinations are charged to parents at the cost levied by the Examination Boards. School trips are often heavily subsidised. 6

38 million granted in school fee support in the past 10 years 7

old palace of john whitgift school Old Palace Road, Croydon, CRO 1AX Telephone 020 8688 2027 Email admissions@oldpalace.croydon.sch.uk Website www.oldpalace.croydon.sch.uk trinity school Shirley Park, Croydon, CR9 7AT Telephone 020 8656 9541 Email admissions@trinity.croydon.sch.uk Website www.trinity-school.org whitgift school Haling Park, South Croydon, CR2 6YT Telephone 020 8688 9222 Email admissions@whitgift.co.uk Website www.whitgift.co.uk the whitgift foundation North End, Croydon, CR9 1SS Telephone 020 8680 8499 Email enquiries@whitgiftfoundation.co.uk Website www.whitgiftfoundation.co.uk

qualifying for a bursary This chart shows you the contributions you may have to make towards fees and will give you an idea of the level of support you may qualify for. Assets, such as equity in property are also taken into account when calculating a bursary. If you have three or more students on a bursary, a different scale will apply. A GUIDE TO PARENTAL CONTRIBUTION TO FEES FOR THE 2018/19 SCHOOL YEAR Relevant household income 2017/18 tax year ( ) One bursary place for a student entering in September 2018 For each of two bursary placeholders entering in September 2018 19,000 201 150 23,000 600 510 27,000 1,002 870 31,000 1,401 1,230 35,000 1,800 1,590 39,000 2,502 2,292 43,000 3,501 3,330 47,000 4,500 4,371 51,000 5,502 5,412 55,000 7,101 6,531 59,000 8,700 7,650 63,000 10,302 8,772 67,000 11,901 9,891 71,000 13,500 11,010 75,000 15,102 12,132 76,000 15,501 12,411 78,000 16,302 12,970 79,000 16,704 13,250 80,000 17,100 13,530 87,000 Full fees 15,504 93,000 Full fees 17,196