Bursary private school ?

[AMxx]

I'm looking for some guidance on secondary school bursaries.

Situation as follows:
-Live with my DS in my parents home as I can't afford my own + childcare for work.
-Catchment secondary is a failing school, known for drug and other issues. Worst results in the county.

I can't move so I'm looking into whether a bursary could be an option for an independent school. Where I can't find any information is whether my parents home / pension would be considered ''house hold income''. Neither are in great health but have the space for us to live here, which given we don't have any other option bar social housing seems better. I don't want to jeopardize them, or even involve them but want to try and avoid DS ending up at the catchment school.

Any experience of this gratefully received!

What are you basing this opinion on Fazackerley?

Because there is a vast, vast chasm of difference between those two experiences. (Which is not to say a child couldn't achieve the same academic results at either.)

And actually, particularly for a single parent who may have little time left between work and (possibly) caring responsibilities - the social and extra-curricular benefit for a child switching to boarding is enormous. Friends and access to facilities for pretty much anything - available 24 hrs a day without the need for parental taxi-ing and organization? It's an utterly marvellous option.

I don't understand!! I pay two sets of full boarding fees at 40k plus per kid!! I really don't get why you should get it for free. We struggle, it's not easy, but we manage. If you can't afford it then you can't afford it!! The schools should take your living situation, ex H income etc into account.

Because i have a child on a bursary and unless you get 100% the cost is a real strain. Im not being mean here but if your dc doesn't have a real outstanding talent (mine does fortunately) then i cant see any reason why they would give you 100%

the school my dc is at does have a very small number of bursaries for teens from very difficult home lives who in their opinion would benefit from full boarding. I'm not sure living comfortably with your parents would count.

Yes of course its a marvellous option. But its extremely expensive.

I've just read another post. the bursar will want to investigate your living conditions - not necessarily visiting but they will investigate.

They may ask why don't your ex h or parents contribute.

Hmm ... My own experience and observation suggests that the OP is probably in a very good position as regards likelihood of a substantial, or even 100% bursary award.

(Unless she returns to tell us she earns £250,000 a year ...)

And it really isn't invariably necessary to have some outstanding talent. Boarding schools want (need) to vary their intake to maintain a lively and forward facing community. They can't thrive otherwise.

yodel - As I'm sure you're aware, the major public schools (or at least the one I know most about) were founded on charitable principles and have large sums of money invested for this purpose. But perhaps, as a fee paying parent, you could write to your school and let them know that you highly disapprove of their offering bursaries to other people's children ...

I suppose it depends on who else applies.

Quartermiss I absolutely don't disapprove. I think bursaries are great for kids with outstanding talents or who have issues at home that make boarding life preferable.

I disagree with the 'help me get a bursary for my normal kid' attitude!

Bursaries are for the exceptional kids.

As the other poster said, do start speaking with the bursars. The ones we spoke with are really helpful.

I don't know much about boarding schools but the day schools we spoke to don't link academic performance to eligibility of bursary as long as you have an offer. Having said that the only DC we know who got full bursary is an extremely bright and extremely musical child.

On the finance side, OP seems to have over £40k gross per year, not paying rent or having a mortgage, and only one dependent child, doesn't sound like a full bursary case. But again this is based on some day school experience, so just for reference!

One of the things that always infuriated me when we paid fees for our older DC was that some apparently privileged families seemed to be getting bursary support for their DC while we did not qualify ( and yes the other students do know who is on a bursary)

These included

• families whose wealth was tied up in family trusts - so discounted as income
• Divorced mother, wealthy EX apparently refusing to contribute to school fees but living in luxury accommodation shared with the DC and happy to pay for expensive holidays for the DC.
• Non working parent living in £x million family home owned in the name of a grandparent and which said parent would eventually inherit.

These parents had all managed to find the fees for prep schools - or GPs had paid- and it was difficult to avoid concluding that some considerable thought had gone into arranging the family finances in a way that left eligibility for secondary bursaries open.

I hope that canny bursars are now insisting on charging against any future inheritances.

Just on the issue of whether a non resident fathers income will be taken into account: I got bursaries for 2DC, atb2 different schools, one boarding, one day. I produced paperwork from the Child Supprt Agency, about maintenance he was required to give towards his DC: this was acceptable as evidence that he just did what the law requires, and he wasn't asked to supply income details.
The fact that this dated back several years, meant it didn't look to the schools like we'd just chosen to live in separate houses in order to facilitate getting a bursary.

The 2 schools attitudes were very different. One said their aim was to make admission as nearly means blind as they could, regardless of whether DC was top, middle, bottom of intake.

The other, v different. Not said bluntly, but made obvious that bursaries were for pup who would enhance the schools results and reputation. There was actually, it emerged, an internal struggle between the bursar, who wanted a lot of MC parents to each receive some support, and the senior management, who preferred giving some v high percentages to scholarship pupils who could otherwise not attend.
So, different criteria apply in different schools, and no, ex's income, if he refuses to contribute, won't necessarily be taken into account.

"I hope that canny bursars are now insisting on charging against any future inheritances."
Im not sure how they could do this. No inheritance is guaranteed and you could be talking many years down the road, and you would need a legal dept to implement this kind of agreement (Im writing as someone who's father was in a nursing home and charge wad taken against his property). If you applied this principle would you not also have to be take a charge against any substantial increase in salary or maybe you could take a charge against the pupils future salary? Ive seen a bursary application form and as Ive worked in the independent sector talked to a few bursars over the years you are asked to detail your current financial situation often submitting last years bank statements utility bills mortgage statements etc are asked for, you do have to details assets etc but bursars are actually very realistic for example you cannot insists someone frees up capital in their property by increasing their mortgage if their bank building society wont increase their existing mortgage or they wont then be able to afford the repayments. The conversations Ive had with bursars I get the impression they like to be much more generous but basically just don't have a big enough pot of money; sadly in the vast majority of cases money is quite limited and they rather offer smaller bursaries to more pupils and get some fees in than a very large one to a couple and get no fees.

I went through highschool on a 100% scholarship (non UK). Couldn't have gone there without it, local state school would have been a total misfit for me. My parents have contributed to that school's building fund as they have been able, years after I left.

My own children are benefitting from substantial bursaries, we are certainly paying all we can afford at present. It is probable that we will eventually get a significant chunk of money from the sale of my mother's current house. I also intend to contribute to the relevant school bursary funds in the future as and when we are able.

Thanks to everyone who has posted so far. My observation from the feedback is that the criteria varies dramatically school by school and success is far from guaranteed. Nothing ventured nothing gained.

To address the point on boarding, boarding is not my preference as I'd prefer my child to be at home every night. This is coming from DS... That said, as Quatermiss alludes to, my career has been heavily hindered by the fact that I am limited to either an employer within geographic proximity of my parents home (excluding opportunities which would reverse our financial situation such that I would just pay the fees). My parents do not live within a distance commutable such to allow me to take my child to school or see them ever at bedtime and fulfill my career. Whilst my parents help me a lot, I wanted to be there. Having one absent parent was more than enough so I adjusted our life significantly. I cannot move area, ex took care of that via courts....

EX will sign the forms, just doesn't want anything to do with it & absolutely won't part with a penny for it. If the school consider he ought to, then its a dead end.

DS is the one pushing this, and doesn't bat an eye lid at the thought of tests and assessments. Takes that kind of thing very much in their stride. This is a child who has been through a LOT over the years, and had no choice but the develop a degree of resilience.

I realise this is all a very long shot, but hey if you don't try you'll never know. The worse that can happen is they turn us down.

Good luck OP. Hope this all works out for you and your DS eventually!