Your experiences of dcs needing bursaries/financial support at indie schools, please!

[runawayrunaway]

Title says it all, really!

Am considering sitting ds for two local indies (and local GS) at 11+. However, if he was to be offered a place, we'd only be able to take it up with generous financial assistance in the form of e.g. a bursary. I'm a single parent, work as a nurse, rent a flat, don't own etc., so not exactly rolling in assets.

Ds is academically very capable and also sporty/fond of drama etc. I think he would get a lot out these particular schools (and this is not in any way to disparage state - he goes to a great state primary - but I'd like to give him as many options as realistically possible for secondary education). But I am concerned about the reality of a) getting a bursary at all and b) him being a 'bursary kid' at a very wealthy school, iyswim. I don't want to put him under the pressure of applying if it's all likely to be a bit of a pipe-dream/nightmare.

Can anyone out there with experience of having dcs at indie schools on a bursary give me the low-down on the whole process and/or your experiences of being the poorest kids in the place? Thanks!

Runaway, this is certainly not meant as a negative point to you.

Is it just me? DH and I couldn't afford private schools for all our dcs. Such is life - my kids are very bright, but our income is way too high for a bursary. I don't know whether I'm angry or what - squeezed middle classes?

You need to check out the information on the schools you are interested. Some are much more generous in bursaries than others, some will publish figures in order to attract the brighter kids from families who can't afford full fees, some others will also state that they have very limited resources and only offer say 2 or 3 bursaries per year. Also the level of the bursaries vary considerably, some schools will offer 100% in some cases and others a maximum of 50%.

You have to be prepared to divulge ALL of your financial information eg earnings, savings, value of property, equity in property, other assets and provide documentary evidence to support this eg P60, mortgage & bank statements etc etc. Also information about other dependants and any school fees paid for them. If you value your privacy you may think twice about all this. The actual information may vary from school to school but will be essentially the same.

At DDs school they state that about 10% kids receive some form of bursary help, ranging from 10% to 100%. They also state that anyone earning over £55 may not receive anything (this figure is quite high as other schools we looked at had much lower income figures eg £25K). We received about 50% bursary for dd when she first went there as our income wasn't great, but I was only working PT. I am now working FT and for this current year we receive about 25%.

Always make sure you meet the deadlines on the forms because at the moment funds are very tight so if you are late they will just say no as there are many others asking for the same money.

No-one else at the school know she is in receipt of a bursary except the people in the finance office. But please be aware that in addition to the fees there are lots of other costs associated with attending a private school eg uniforms, trips etc. Some of the trips are almost compulsory. Uniform tends to be quite expensive, we have been luck and my sister volunteered to pay for that for her favourite niece (she has no kids of her own).

Good luck, let me know if I can help in any way.

Not sure how I'm meant to read your post except as 'a negative point' to me, but thanks for your contribution anyway, goingmad. Unanswered threads are so embarrassing, after all...

Many thanks crazycarol, some v helpful info. Good points about sending forms in etc. I've not got any property (unfortunately) so I guess my form-filling may be fairly basic!

Can I ask, is the bursary re-assessed every year? I assume it would be.

I do worry a bit about associated costs - school trips etc. I think the grandparents would probably stump up for uniform... though they grow so quick at that age

The schools we are thinking of have, I think, around 40%-50% of children on some kind of financial assistance. So I guess there would be quite a few in the same boat. But I do wonder if I'm doing the right thing... Looking at the size of the fees makes me feel a bit sick, tbh.

Hi, yes the bursary is reassessed every year at dd's school, they advise that it can be varied up as well as down! When dd first went there we were advised of the bursary at the same time we were advised she got a place and then had a couple of weeks to think about it before paying the deposit and accepting the place, but other schools may be different in timing.

I had decided that if she got a place then I would do whatever i could to find the cash just to pay the fees, the bursary was a bonus!

Some schools offer scholarships too (not just academic - some for sport, music etc), however these are becoming less common but again worth checking with the school just in case. I knew dd wouldn't get a scholarship but in her school they are fixed at £1000 per year and not full places.

Sorry - have got the grumps tonight. I really wish you all the best getting a great education for your ds. I really believe education is the only way to keep all options open.

Really, didn't mean to offend.

Hey look, we all have off days, goingmad. And fwiw, in your position I'm pretty sure I'd feel the same. Thanks for the apology

Thanks carol, too. It's all food for thought. I just don't want to put too much pressure on ds but at the same time it really seems like a no-brainer not to give it a shot...

Some private schools are very keen to attract the brightest students from all backgrounds and this can only be a good thing. The diversity of students at my childs school adds to the whole community. It's worth applying for a scholarship as well as a bursary, if they get the scholarship too then I feel in a way they've "earned" their place..
There is definitely no shame in it, you'd be surprised how many pupils have at some stage or another required financial assistance.
Good Luck!

my sister was in exactly the same position as you runaway (she is a single parent nurse). as a family we deliberated over sending her to a prep school as we were worried about her fitting in/inviting people over (to a council estate) etc etc but then we thought sod it (she was v discouraged at her local school.) she entered for the tests at 7+ and did really well. she was offered a full bursary plus assistance (about £300) towards uniform and one paid for school trip. This was exceptionally generous I think.

At 11+, again she did really well in the tests and was offered schloarship + bursary to make up 100% fees at two top independent girls schools. However, no assistance with any trips or uniform.

She also passed for the fantastic state grammar. My sister and niece decided that she may 'fit' in better at the slightly more socially mixed grammar school and that she did not want my niece to feel left out for not having the latest clothes/gadgets/holidays etc. Children obviously become more aware of these differences as they age.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained - if you get offered somewhere, re-visit, talk to the parents, hang around a bit to see what the children are really like to see if your child will 'fit' in. if you have grammar schools then do the same. Good luck with your decision

Quite a few children at both my children's academic indies have bursaries. My daughter doesn't and in no way thinks anything undermining about the girls who do. I think the kind of people you would want your children to hang out with wouldn't worry about it. The ones who are snobbish are generally the ones you are glad they steer clear of.

Runaway - probably not much I can add to crazycarol's advice, but we are bursary candidates for independent secondary school for DD starting Sept. The forms were indeed very thorough (we had to provided evidence of the value of our house contents, for example), and they do reassess annually. DD has also applied for music and art scholarships, and has just been called for an academic scholarship interview at one of the schools, so we are hoping for some assistance out of all that. There is a surprising amount of help available, but you have to be quite organized to get it sorted. Good luck!

My dtr attends an academic indie in central London - we do not receive a bursary despite not being particularly well off. What we didn't realise was that you don't automatically recieve a bursary if your income is below a certain amount as the literature implied that no child who secured a place should be prohibited in accepting that place due to finances. So we applied with aplomb, submitted all the details, and were told that although we qualified for a bursary, they are actually issued on how well the girls did in the entrance exams. So whilst my dtr did well enough to secure a place, we did not receive any financial help.
We had to seriously consider whether or not to accept the place as, idealogically, indies are not acceptable to us (as grammers) but, there were many valid reasons why my dtr wanted to go to this school and she earned her place fair and square (went to failing state school and had NO tuition for the indie tests).
I think the indie schools veer towards offering numerous bursaries so that as many children as possible can access assistance. I would think it is unlikely that you would receive a 100% bursary. If your child is very able and pretty much tops the tests, he may be offered a scholarship as the indie would rather he went to their school than the grammar.
Good luck with your decsion.

Oh, forgot to say that at my dtr's school, she is unaware of who is in receipt of a bursary and doesn't give a hoot either. She is, however, fully aware that if the other girls don't like her because of our income, jobs, house etc, then she does not want to be friends with them anyway.
My dtr does, however, have a very well honed sense of social justice and is very forthcoming in her opinion on how unfair it is that many of the other girls seem to have so much whilst other children have nothing.

^^sorry, I meant that the children at her state school had very little! doh!

My son is on a full bursary at an aademically selective independent, I was at first worried about him not fitting in as there was no way we would be able to keep up with the posh cars holidays etc. but on further investigation discovered thea there are in fact almost 200 with some financial help. He says there is a small group (the party set he calls them!) who seem to think coming from a wealthy background makes you in some way superior but there are plenty more like himself who as he says are 'pretty normal'.
I am a lone parent and have had all four of my children at independent schools on scholarships/bursaries and have never had any of them say they felt different or that they didn't fit in.

in my experience of private schools no one has any idea of who is getting bursary funding and who isn't.
There are a large number of parents who couldn't afford the fee's if their family - usually grandparents weren't paying, so it is hard to tell and I don't know of anyone who tries to guess or find out.

Have done some more investigating and it appears that over 40% of the boys at our preferred school have some level of financial assistance - either scholarship or bursary. That's quite a big proportion, isn't it? - so maybe not so daunting after all...

I'm just hanging on to the idea that in some circles driving an old banger and never having any new clothes is a sign of true class :o

Thanks everyone - great advice and you've all given me lots to think about!

When my dd was around ten she had a very wealthy girl in her class with ponies, posh cars and several luxury holidays abroad each year, the best we managed was a borrowed caravan and visits to free museums day trips to London and other national landmarks such as Stonehenge . DD came home one day and said little rich girl had said to the teacher it was 'so unfair' because my dd had been everywhere!

ds1 is on a bursary, no-one in the school knows except the bursar and presumably the head or smt. It is for the duration of his time in the school and isn't reassessed on an annual basis. the amount is we were told, at the discretion of the head at the time of application.

In addition to all the financial gumph that has to be provided ie payslips, mortgage statement, any subscriptions to cable TV, mobile phone bill, (you'd be amazed at what they want to know) we had to say why we couldn't release any equity from our home and explain not just why we wanted him to go there but what we thought he could bring to the school if he was offered a place.

There were tons of school trips abroad that he wasn't able to go on but he did go in Y9 after the deputy head told us that he really would benefit and the grandparents stepped in to help out. In all other aspects, he is no different to the rest of them- oh except that when he turned 17 last month unlike his friends, he wasn't given a car as a present!
He says he is the only boy in school who hasn't been to America, never has foreign holidays and we are the only family in school with only one car and no holiday home! Thankfully he is not bothered (other than not having a car for his 17th!)

just had the annual report from the indi 3 of my kids go to - approx 200+ kids with some support - 35 or so on full fees remission, and another 50 or so on 75-100% fees remission, rest have lower %'s. They don't stand out in any way, there is an excellent s/hand uniform shop, and it's not stupidly expensive anyway. Trips are either included so free for full bursaries or else optional and only a % of kids go.
There are loads of kids at their school who don't own holiday homes, or even go on holiday each year - ourselves included, and whilst there are some kids who get cars at 17, many don't

Hi,
I was very interested in this thread as I have first hand experience of the topic.Our DS2 is a boarder at a an all boys school.When he started there, he had a 20% scholarship for being a scholar (music,choral,rugby,drama,academia and leadership)Unfortunately, our construction company has been devastated by the recession,my husband became seriously ill and our joint 250k income was slashed.We kept in touch with the school and they were amazing.They have granted our son a 100% bursary for the last 2 years of his education as they don't want to lose him to another school (he's predicted A*'s in all 10 GCSE subjects this summer) This is a huge relief to us and to him as he loves his school.The end of term bills are almost manageable but the expensive foreign trips are a no no though his Grandparents are stepping in to pay for his First XV rugby tour in 2012 (£4500) I didn't think for a minute the school would be as helpful as there have been but the support has been amazing and most welcome in what has been a very difficult time for us.

schoolrunmummy, I am shocked £4500 for a school trip. I would want a family holiday for 6 for that. Where are they off to?

Australia and Hong Kong for 21 days.We thought it was a bit steep too but it does look fantastic and the trips they will be doing on the tour are fab.Mind you,he'll be 17 next year and for the same money the trip's costing, we could buy him a 4 year old mini cooper! Now that puts it into perspective....
Thing is, 2 years ago I wouldn't have even cringed at the cost,but the recession has been a great leveller and has certainly reminded me of what's actually important.We're lucky that the grandparents are happy to take up the slack!

Hi
A word to the wise we accepted an offer for bursary's for 2 of our kids 1 term ago and no the school is closing. As much as they checked our financial status I wish we had checked the schools too. We are now in an awkward position that we need to find new schools for 3 kids asap and Grandparents are stepping in because the places in their old schools are gone and I wouldn't want to go back now. We will have to forget the going to tribunal for our eldest sen child and we are now in a worse state than before we moved them. Please check out the viability of the school before you move. We have paid 2 terms fees and £600 for uniform and have no where for them to go yet.

Nanny 01, that sounds awful! We have been trying to look at finances of poss schools, but it's hard to do if accounts and information isn't published.