Should I update school bursary details before my son starts?

[Lamf93]

My son was awarded a 100% bursary at an independent school.
This was due to the application being done last November and him scoring well on their entrance exam. I was working 3 days a week on UC top up.

Fast forward to now, I was promoted to full time and my youngest son’s dad (whom I wasn’t with last year) has moved in after I had fallen ill.

My son doesn’t have a relationship with his father and his father has no PR.

My son is due to start September 3rd & I’m thinking do I tell them about the changes now or wait until my review? I’ve re-read all the terms and conditions and can’t see anywhere about thresholds or notifying them.

I ended up asking AI (I know I know) & it managed to find something about £65k being their limit for help and currently together the household brings in around £12k less than that before tax.

Has anyone else had a bursary and then had their circumstances change? I’ve already paid the £300 term time lunch fees so it’s not like I don’t contribute at all.

Any advice welcome, I’m actually making myself sick over it all.

I would keep quiet.

See I was thinking this because it’s due for a review anyway in a couple of months & then I’ll be able to provide up to date info.
My thinking is them suddenly being like “why didn’t you tell us?”

I mean the reason I haven’t & I’ve asked advice first is 1) he’s isn’t technically a pupil yet and 2) I know a review is due

Does the paperwork you have say "you must inform of us of any changes in circumstance" or just "the bursary will be reviewed on this date"? It sounds as if it is the latter, in which case presumably they are accepting that there may sometimes be a lag in changing it to match new circumstances. It's probably less admin for them than making changes at random times throughout the year, and they can't rely on everyone letting them know as soon as things change.

If you're worrying about it, then just ring and ask "I've had a pay rise; do you need to know about that now, or just when we get to the review in November?"

From reading the acceptance letter and pack nearly 10 times, it just says how the offer is usually tenable throughout his time at the school, subject to yearly review.

The acceptance pack states the same about reviews and then about how they handle people who have been knowingly dishonest.

I was thinking and emailing and asking what would happen if I accepted a pay rise, that way I’m not opening up a whole review, which would be pointless at the moment anyway since I’ve not had 3 months worth of pay to provide yet.

You need to tell them because if the scholarship is reduced at review and you can’t afford to continue with him at the school, it will be really disruptive for him. So tell them now, find out if you can still afford it, and if not, get a move on with plan B.

Just wait for the review. The bursary has already been awarded.

They'll review next year and you might not be entitled to any discount or 80/50% etc... work out what you can afford.

Also, be prepared to lose the place for next year

I'm not sure if you'll be able to say your ds has no relationship with his father if he lives with him now.

I think that's not the Bursary Child's dad?

She has at least two. Bursary Child with Dad 1, Youngest with Dad 2, and it's Dad 2 that has moved in?

Oops, just realised is it a different sons father who's moved in? Ignore what I wrote then

She might lose some or all of the bursary, but I can't see why there is any risk to the place, provided she can afford the fees (and presumably they won't reduce the bursary by more than the increase in income). If they wanted him when he was on a full bursary, they're still going to want him if he's bringing in some fees too.

I think it's probably just best to say that you have got the pay rise, and does that mean the review needs to come forward?
If fees are paid termly in advance, then at the time that this term's were due, you probably hadn't yet had the benefit of the increased income, so November will probably be sufficient.
If you make it hypothetical, they might think that you are considering declining the pay rise if it will jeopardise his bursary.

Is there a risk of the bursary being removed? If so, will you be able to keep your son on at the school? I think you need to understand what can potentially happen here in order to decide if this is actually the right school for your son.

This is really good advice and they won’t think well of you for lying it’s not a good start to your relationship with the school at all.

And how do they handle people who have been knowingly dishonest?