Student Bursary

Policy Aims/Statement

The 16-19 Bursary Fund is a scheme to help students facing financial hardship to continue in full time education after Year 11. It is designed to contribute towards costs incurred when remaining in education, i.e. travel to and from their place of education and to provide essential equipment or resources. 

Applications will be assessed individually depending on personal circumstances and award decisions will be on a case-by-case basis according to need. 

Students and parents/guardians will be expected to agree to and sign a Bursary Fund Agreement before awards are made. 
The majority of bursary awards will be ‘in kind’, i.e. a travel pass (or a contribution towards one), text books, course materials/equipment as specified by subject areas. 

Any resources provided to a student via the bursary must be returned at the end of their programme of study. 

If any awards are monetary rather than ‘in kind’ payment will be made by BACS into a student’s bank account in arrears. If a student does not have a bank account, they will need to open one in order to receive their bursary.   

Please note that the 16-19 bursary is not intended as a source of regular income and it must only be used for costs related to a student’s programme of study. Receipts may be required as proof of how an award is spent by the student. 

Please note that funds are strictly limited and that eligibility criteria may be subject to change depending on ESFA funding. 

Students will need to re-apply in the summer of 2024 if they wish to receive a bursary for the 2024/25 academic year. 

Eligibility

To be eligible to receive a bursary, a student must be aged under 19 on the 31st August in the academic year in which they start their programme of study and must satisfy the residency criteria in the EFA Funding guidance.  

Level One: Vulnerable Student Bursary    

This will be paid to applicants who are in care, care leavers, young people in receipt of Income Support/Universal Credit and disabled young people in receipt of both Disability Living Allowance/Personal Independence Payments and Employment Support Allowance. These payments are processed through the school, so we recommend an application at the earliest convenience. *Please note that to receive this level the criteria above MUST apply to the student and not parents or carers. *  

Level Two: Discretionary Bursary  

This will be paid to applicants who are in receipt of free school meals or who were in receipt of free school meals in Year 11.  

Students should apply for funds for specific educational purposes. Each claim will be reviewed for approval.  

Level Three: Discretionary Bursary 

An amount will be agreed based on need. This will be awarded to applicants whose household income is above the free school meal threshold but below £30,000. Household income can be used in conjunction with other factors, such as distance to travel from the institution and the number of dependent children in the household, as well as the actual participation needs the student has. This funding is for students to enable them to participate in school activities which are linked directly to their programme of study and where the Assistant Headteacher agrees it is essential to their education.  

Where the payment is ‘Up to’, then the amount offered will attempt to match the request made by the applicant, but please note that this will also depend on the level of need across the Sixth Form and the eligibility of the applicant.  

If an existing applicant’s situation changes, then the applicant may reapply for the new level of funding as described in the 3 levels above.  

 

Applying for a Bursary

Appropriate evidence will be required to support an application.  

For the Vulnerable Student Bursary:  

  • A letter referring to the benefit(s) to which the young person is entitled and/or  

  • Written confirmation from the Local Authority of the young person’s current or previous looked after status.  

For the Discretionary Bursaries we require evidence of total household income (including benefits):  

  • Free school meal eligibility certificate 

  • Earned income – P60 for every working adult in the household  

  • Universal Credit (printouts of the most recent 3 months statements)  

  • Original copies of other benefits  

  • Evidence of Company Dividends if self-employed. 

 

Application Process  

Students and parents/guardians will be expected to agree to and sign a Bursary Fund Agreement before awards are made.  

Students should apply for a bursary by the end of September.  

Students should identify items of need which the school can purchase on their behalf on a bursary claim form. 

In exceptional circumstances, bursary cash payments may be made; these are paid on a monthly basis when costs are incurred by the student. These must be pre-agreed with the Sixth Form Team. Students may need to provide receipts via the Bursary Claim Form. 

Applications must be made by the student, and purchases are made by the school on behalf of the student. If a direct payment is needed this will be made directly to the student via BACS. The school will not consider applications from parents/carers, nor will payments be made to anyone other than the student in question. 
 

Items which can be purchased/borrowed through the bursary fund:  

- Laptops (loaned only) 

- Textbooks/Academic books (specified by department reading lists)  

- Specialist subject equipment, for example graphical calculators for use in A-Level Mathematics 

- The Charter School branded sports equipment for use when representing the school in a range of sports. 

 - Essential Subjects Trips, for example Geography field trips to undertake study for coursework elements.  

- Stationery (a small supply is held within the Sixth Form office for emergency purposes).  

- Public Transport Travel costs to and from school (Where the use of Oyster is not permitted or accepted)  

- Public Transport Travel costs to and from university open days/interviews and apprenticeship interviews 

-additional school equipment as required and agreed with the subject teacher. 

 
Conditions for receiving 16-19 Bursary 

Payments for both the bursary for vulnerable groups and the discretionary bursary are conditional on the student meeting agreed standards of attendance and behaviour. 

Appeals 

Students are entitled to appeal against decisions made in relation to their application for a bursary or the withholding of payments. They should first raise their concerns with the Head of Sixth Form, and if this fails to resolve issues, they should make a written complaint to the Headteacher. If this fails to resolve the matter, students can take their appeals to the School’s Local Governing Body. A copy of the school’s complaints procedure is available from the Head of Sixth Form. 

Fraud 

Fraudulent claims for bursary allocations will be referred to the Police. Students found to be making fraudulent claims will be required to refund all payments received and may be asked to leave the school. 
 

5% of the bursary fund may be used to pay for administration of the fund.