Scholarships in drama/music/performing arts

[MissBPotter]

I’ve started thinking about a scholarship for my dd who is 9 and currently yr4. She’s very into performing arts and our local schools aren’t amazing for these.
she does drama, singing and dance out of school and was taking piano which I want her to take up again….. she was a bit lazy at this but maybe would improve with a goal to aim for. She is an excellent singer with a very good voice, good at drama and dance. We couldn’t really afford any fees without a scholarship. Is anyone able to talk about their experiences with it? Is it too much pressure? Also wondering how unrealistic this all is. We are based in Essex and ideally want day as boarding probably out of budget at the moment!

Essex is a big place! Probably your best bet is to look at the websites of schools near to you and see if they offer appropriate scholarships/bursaries. Be aware that scholarships are normally very small in monetary value but might be offered in conjunction with a bursary if your finances are appropriate. The only way to find out what you might be offered as a bursary is to contact the schools' bursars directly as arrangements and thresholds vary widely from school to school.

Thank you! I’m not sure we would qualify for any bursaries as dh earns a reasonable income, but due to a fairly big mortgage and 3 dc, we would struggle to afford fees, although could afford some. Good to know it could possibly be available as I had noticed that some scholarships were very small.

I suppose these things are very competitive and some parents have perhaps been preparing for years, so I’m very behind the curve! I’ve only recently thought about it.

Is probably also a big administrative headache.

@MissBPotter , it's more likely that a drama scholarship is worth 10-20% off the fees. You are more likely to get a larger discount with a bursary.

I think in Y4 you have plenty of time to prepare - you just need to know if it's affordable or not. Your best bet is to contact bursars and ask about what level of income would attract the sort of bursary that might make it affordable. Better to know now than prepare and not be able to afford the fees.

DC are at a private school with massive drama and music depts and send pupils to conservetoires. The scholarships are usually 5% off fees plus free lessons (and child is obliged to take part in all out of school time performances).

Not a massive amount really.

Would she be better going to a good Saturday performing arts school? Must be loads in Essex but definitely in London

Do good extra-curricular training (if you are close to London you could look at something like Spirit or MX masterclass) and save your money for drama school when she is older, which can be pretty expensive.

My DD has a music scholarship at a super competitive entry school and its monetary worth is lessons in one instrument. It’s worth more in terms of access to masterclasses, advanced training etc. I think most funds are funnelled into bursaries rather than scholarships now - rightly so!

My DC has a full drama scholarship and they just get free LAMDA lessons (plus other non monetary support). The maximum scholarship we found only offered 10% off. Every little helps but it’s not enough to make it feel “affordable”.

She has worked professionally in film, TV and theatre. The other scholar in her year was in a big West End Show. The closer to London you are, the greater the competition will be because there are more opportunities for children to get professional experience.

Whilst there are children in other years without professional experience they are very talented. Whilst the singing and dancing are great extras, it is the drama they are awarded the scholarship for.

Thanks everyone some really interesting points. She doesn’t have any professional experience and we aren’t too close to london so a little tricky to get it. Might just stick with her performing arts classes at the weekend as sounds like it won’t be a sufficient fee reduction even if she were successful. We can’t afford fees but are probably over the threshold for a bursary. Oh well.

Just ask the bursars. Better to make a decision with full information.

Ask the bursar - you never know! I know of children that have drama scholarships without professional experience. My DD also does LAMDA which is useful - quite often the Saturday morning drama schools offer it as an add on.

Also, have you considered BYMT or NYMT which are a fantastic experience? They also run camps if you don’t make it on to a show.

This. She’s 9, she may have a new favorite thing next year.

This. She doesn't need to go to a private school to access good drama and music opportunities. Look up your local music service. Plenty of privately run drama groups that operate on an evening or a weekend.

She already does a performing arts school at the weekend…. Not sure why you think I wouldn’t have looked up local activities for her, but at her age we are also considering secondary school options :9 this seemed a possibly good idea. She’s been doing this for a few years now so I don’t think it’s a phase, though it’s fine if it is.

Of course it isn’t a necessary requirement but I was wondering about people’s experiences as it’s something I was considering and my experience is that many independent schools have excellent music, drama facilities compared to state schools. I will try to find her more opportunities outside school and will look up BYMT thanks.

Brentwood school definitely has performing arts scholarships but their scholarships are usually 10% of fees however they are generous with bursary's I understand.

New Hall I think also do something and are more generous with their scholarships but will only offer a max of one a year and, certainly this year, have not offered any bursary's to incoming year 7 students.

Gosfield I believe have just built a new performing arts block however I don't know what they offer on scholarships/bursarys. They are very small which will not suit all children and also seem to be predominantly focussing on children with SEN needs from what I hear.

The best thing to do would absolutely be to ring the schools and get a feel for what they offer both scholarships and bursary's. Each school will be different. If not eligible for a bursary I would think very carefully about whether this is the right move for your family as a whole given the impending 20%.