Private school sport scholarship

[EllyGi]

Hi all,

My DD will be in Y6 next year and we can't afford private school fees but she is quite sporty so I'm seeking advise on her chances of a scholarship.

What types of kids usually have a chance for such a scholarship?

She competes professionally in 2 sports - tennis and karate and is interested in at least 2 other sports - plays them regularly but doesn't train professionally.

Do you think she has a shot?

Two of my children got a sports scholarship to a private school. However it was just a £250 one off payment. So you definitely need to look into the scholarship arrangements at the schools you are interested in.

I work in a private school admissions dept. Of course it’s different from school to school but generally we offer 5-15% off the basic fees. In year 7 we generally have 30 sports scholarship applicants for 5 sports scholarship places. Competition is high.

Scholars are expected to go to fixtures and clubs to keep their scholarship.
You also have to factor in extra costs like yearly fee increases, trips, after school clubs, lunches (some schools include this in fees) uniform etc.

We also have record numbers of people wanting bursaries and that pot isn’t massive either anymore because of all other costs.

Check each schools admissions policies but be aware that this might be something that just isn’t feasible so don’t just look at private, make sure you have a solid state school as backup. I’m not trying to put you off but it’s good to have a realistic mindset from the off.

Honestly if you are looking at private school for the sport only, (while obviously the coaching will be good) you may find that, if she does get a scholarship, her school sport schedule would take up so much time that she wouldn’t be able to fit in her external clubs. A good state school with above average sport provision would be better if it meant she could still do her training externally. It sounds like she is already performing to a high level so continuing with specialist training outside school will serve her better.

Having said that, Sutton Valence may be worth looking at. They pride themselves on offering generous bursaries (you may be surprised what you qualify for).

I may have under stood, but if you’re applying for a Kent grammar in the least the education is free unless of course you’re applying for one of the grammar schools such as Cranbrook which are known as state boarding schools? If that is the case entrances based on academics. There may be some commutation of the boarding fees, although I doubt it. A scholarship may be £100 or so to a grammar school for books, et cetera.

@LIZS

So there's time but open days should be booked now.

Also the schools linked by a pp are the best schools to look at. They do tennis. Queenswood is a sporty school and you don't have to be a genius to get in. Benenden is in Kent but is possibly more academic. Yes, sports scholars.train and play sport for the school. Thats the deal. Dc might even have reduced timetable. If op never asks, she will never know.

The other option is go local state and carry on with local coaching. However sporty private schools like sporty dc. State schools possibly don't have 27 tennis courts for 400 pupils like Queenswood does.

Thank you all. This has really been eye opening. It doesn't sound like this would be a good path and it will be much better to go to a nice state. Ir also doesn't sound line we would be able to afford it anyway, but I didn't realise how demanding it can be for a small decrease in fees. When you think about it 2k off 20k yearly fee doesn't warrant the dedication and time they would ask for.

DD has a sports scholarship. It’s 10%

My nieces have got sports scholarships and get 30% off their fees. No academic tests. The oldest had to get certain grades in GCSEs to attend the 6th form but very achievable. They are both county players in 4 sports but were observed in 2. They took their national rankings for one. They were most interested in their team sports eg. hockey/netball/cricket. They have to play school matches for the sports they play, but not for other team core sports eg. Football/rugby. The coaching they are getting is excellent, but sport is their thing and all they want to do is sport related. They don't do drama/music things but can get involved if they wish. Scholars get additional sport sessions during the week. We don't qualify for bursaries. We have no idea who gets a bursary as it's kept anonymous. Hope this helps.

OP states that she doesn't understand the education system.
OP, many grammar are state schools and are free.
(Sorry if I've misunderstood and you did know that)

I want to apply for my daughter scholarship in Music and Drama and also apply for a bursary.

I won't be able to afford the fees. Its £6,900 per term. My husband has a neurological disorder therefore can not work anymore. We only have 1 income.

Please do not judge us. We were financially well but since its only myself bringing an income we are struggling.

The ideal will be for my daughter to go to either St Edmunds or Kent college.

Not sure if they will offer us a bursary. If they do it will need to be between 50 to 70% anyone was successful with more than 50%?

She won't survive in any state schools. She is autistic and dyslexic. She has Grade 4 violin, Grade 4 Lamda, Grade 4 singing,. She is not sporty but plays football and tennis.

Any suggestions or advice please?

I should have applied for an EHCP maybe it will give her higher chance? What do you think?

Thank you for not judging or being sarcastic. This is stressing me.

Sorry to hear about your husband.

not sure about the bursary % but it sounds like it’s worth a shot for a music scholarship (again this is often only 10% ish though they may throw free music lessons in which is worth a few hundred a year on top).

I don’t think an EHCP would make a blind bit of difference in the independent sector. However my understanding is that children with EHCPs get first pick of state schools, regardless of distance, catchment and sibling preference rules. Therefore it might be worth perusing from that point of view. Thought I’d take the advice on the school on this; does the SENCO think she’ll get it? And how old is she as it takes months if not years to get through the process.

@EllyGi

So would you not qualify for a bursary? Is that not worth looking into? Scholarships for sport will never give huge discounts but bursaries are for the less well off.

@EllyGi DD just applied for and was awarded a sports scholarship in the 11+ (SW London) so happy to share advice.
Overall "athleticism" and potential is very important - fitness, endurance, speed, agility, hand eye coordination. They will test all this to see if the child has potential to represent the school / A-teams / reach county level in any of the school sports (could be athletics as well). This is the generic part.
In addition, private schools tend to have their core sports (often netback and/or hockey, sometimes football or cricket etc) and they do seem to care most about children who are very strong in one of these sports.
Given your daughter's profile, I assume she has the fitness, but you'd need to target schools where tennis is a core sport so that the school cares about her tennis, as a school very strong in hockey but mediocre in tennis might not be the right place for her.
Off the top of my head in London / Surrey they are Putney High, Surbiton High, St George's Weybridge. Queenswood mentioned above is also well known. I am not familiar with schools in Kent, check their social media to see who the Kent county champion schools are in different age groups. You could also check all the female county players in Kent for U12 / U14/U16 and see which schools they attend, that will probably give you a clue.
If your daughter competes at regional/national level, some schools can be more generous with scholarships, 20-30% is certainly possible (depending on the school).
I know some girls who won tennis scholarships at Putney High / Surbiton High and I believe they were all in the Surrey or Middlesex county squad by the time they applied.

Yes I agree with this… my friends daughter was offered two sports scholarships for year 7 entry to three different sporty secondary schools in Surrey. She is A team standard (but possibly not quite county) in all of the schools core sports, possibly not the best of all the applicants in every sport but certainly up there. Her parents think that what clinched it for her was her fitness which was by far and away better than anyone else when they tested them on that element. She was two or three levels ahead of all of the other candidates in the bleep test which they carried out at the end of the day.

Are you expecting 100% fees paid or can you afford some fees?

@Riverlee I can afford up to 70% that would be max.

Thank you @swgeek that's super useful information.

DD is in Y7 at a London day school and has 25% sports scholarship which is generous, the maximum is usually 20% for sport. She plays club & county netball, and has top 10 national rankings in four different athletics events. She's also top 10 ranked in one of the swim strokes. She's a strong hockey (invited to trial for London) & cricket player but doesn't do these out of school as she simply doesn't have the time! School do expect her to prioritise school sport over club, so if she has a club netball fixture clash with school, she needs to do the school match. Her school look for country standard in 2 sports, they would consider tennis, but not karate - they are looking for athletes who will give them strong results in the sports they compete in. Generally, (for girls) they look for netball/hockey/cricket/football/athletics/cross country/swimming.

Might be worth looking at state boarding schools they are considerably cheaper as the state pays for the education and the parents the boarding element. There are 2 in Kent - Duke of Yorks in Dover which offers sports scholarships and BTEC PE and Cranbrook although the latter has no scholarships until Year 9.

I think we may qualify for a bursary but I thought private schools would only offer a bursary if the child has something to give in return such as sport or music etc..

Or can they offer a bursary with nothing in return?

@London7474 she would need to pass academic entrance tests and interview and be at a school which values drama and music participation, even if not awarded a scholarship. Bursary funds are limited and usually awarded on merit, sometimes fewer large awards, more smaller or a mixture. You are best having a conversation with the respective bursars.

I have a meeting next week and I want to be honest with them. First I cannot afford the fees, 2) If she gets a scholarship not sure I can run around to take her to whatever scholarship she may receive as I need to be home for my husband.

Perhaps the best option will be just a bursary and not a scholarship. Someone said they don't give scholarships on their own and come along with a scholarship but I disagree.

Please can I ask about hockey trials? I didn't know that trials were as early as year 7 or younger?