School House Scholarships & Bursaries 2022/23

SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES 2022/23 SOFT POWER

Why scholarships still count

WORLD OF ACTION

READY, SET, GO Where to send sporty teens

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Supporting Ukraine

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CONTENTS SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES

41 NEWS 12

WHAT’S UP Schools building bridges and star pupils soaring

COMMENT 10

PHOTOS: THE LEYS; ROYAL ALEXANDRA AND ALBERT; THE ROYAL SCHOOL

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TOP SCHOLAR Isabella Sim from Godolphin and Latymer, London FIRST WORD David Goodhew from Latymer Upper School, London PREP HEAD Sarah Segrave from Eaton House Schools, London SENIOR HEAD Nick Hewlett from St Dunstan’s College, London EXTENDING THE PITCH Sporting viewpoint by Jimmy Scragg from Marlborough College, Wiltshire

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FEATURES 22

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EDUCATION’S BEST-KEPT SECRET Discover state boarding schools with Peter Stanford MONEY MATTERS SUMMED UP Sally Jones with tips and tricks for financing school fees WORLD OF ACTION Victoria Lambert looks at the schools helping communities, near and far

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INSIDERS’ GUIDE Eleanor Doughty speaks to experts about opportunities for sporty pupils YOU’RE WORTH IT Anna Tyzack discovers the ways schools are providing scholarships to those who need it most CLASS ACTS Victoria Lambert hears from five young students about their life-changing bursaries

DIRECTORY 50 58 78

LONDON SCHOOLS COUNTRY SCHOOLS SCHOOL LISTINGS

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ON THE COVER: Latymer Upper School.

Photographed

by Hester Marriot

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SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES

Editor’s LETTER

Pupils at Heathfield, Ascot

Christ’s Hospital

W

hether you live in London, Norfolk or the Cotswolds, it’s impossible to ignore the glorious scents and colours of autumn. Leaves are turning red and orange, the tang of colder weather is in the air. And at home, larders are beginning to fill with home-made jams and freezers with apples and blackberries gathered to fill pies later in the year.

In schools, thoughts turn to the notion of harvest as well. One generation of youngsters has left for universities, careers and gap years, but a new one has arrived, to be nurtured and encouraged to grow into ripeness in time.

The ebb and flow of seasons is felt inside schools like nowhere else, the comforting reminder that renewal is always at hand.

As ever, in this edition of School House, we concentrate on how schools are seeking to contribute to their communities by offering opportunities to children who might otherwise not reach their full potential. There is increasing passion among independent schools to look beyond their traditional horizons with innovative schemes to support more funded places than ever.

Inside, you will find inspiring stories of students who have made the most of their bursaries or scholarships (p46). There is also advice for parents on funding education (p26), as well as advice for those whose children could well be the sporting stars of Britain’s future (p36). After all, the next Olympics are only two years away.

Meanwhile, Anna Tyzack considers the prestige scholarships still confer on their holders (p41) and Peter Stanford takes a look at the little-known boarding schools which are run by the state (p22). You may be surprised at how much they have to offer.

Lastly, in the September issue of School House, we launched our first Green Champion Award, presented with our huge congratulations to Cottesmore School. Next year, we aim to recognise more schools with awards which will include acknowledgement for Acts of Kindness, Community Co-operation, and Pastoral Care – as well as Green Champion. Look out for more details online.

Anthony Watson, Marlborough College bursary ambassador

Benenden School

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‘Leading the way in educational initiatives is instinctive for this

DYNAMIC Oxford school.’ tatler schools guide

‘A HAPPY, FIZZING SCHOOL plumb in the middle of an inspiring city’ the good schools guide School coach from London via Beaconsfield every weekend.

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weekly & full boarding | day | a level & ib | co-educational | 13 – 18

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INDEPENDENT DAY SCHOOL FOR GIRLS AGED 11-18

DAVID GOODHEW

David Goodhew has been head of Latymer Upper, a leading co-educational school, since 2012. Born in west London, David attended a local comprehensive and was the first in his family to take A-levels or go to university.

He graduated with a First in classics from Oxford. David is committed to boosting social mobility through the school’s vast bursary programme, with its partnership and outreach work.

CATHERINE MORGAN

FULLY FUNDED PLACES AVAILABLE

Catherine Morgan is a multiaward winning qualified financial planner and certified financial coach, on a mission to reduce financial anxiety and to increase financial resilience for one million women worldwide.

She is host of the top one per cent global podcast In Her Financial Shoes and founder of The Money Panel®. She also is author of bestselling book It’s Not About The Money.

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JIMMY SCRAGG

Jimmy Scragg has been the deputy head for cocurriculum and outreach at Marlborough College since January 2021. After reading classics at Oxford, he began his teaching career at Oundle School which lead on to the classics department at Eton College where he was housemaster, ran the boat club and worked as Ofqual’s lead reviewer for the current GCSE and A-level examinations in classics.

www.godolphinandlatymer.com Godolphin and Latymer Iffley Road, Hammersmith London W6 0PG

@gandlschool

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SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES 2022/23 C O N T R I B U TO R S

ANNA TYZACK

Country & Town House’s property editor is found either at her desk in London or at a farmhouse in the Blackdown Hills, on the Devon-Somerset border. In her busy schedule, Anna regularly writes and edits for The Daily Telegraph and set up Mumfidential, a support platform and resource for mothers, new and old. At home, she is married to a barrister, has four children and a whippet.

PETER STANFORD

Peter Stanford is a journalist, writer and broadcaster. He is a feature writer at The Telegraph titles. His books include biographies of Martin Luther, Cecil Day-Lewis and Lord Longford (later made into a BAFTA-winning film with Jim Broadbent). He has presented radio and TV programmes, including Channel 4’s Catholics and Sex and BBC Radio 2’s Good Morning Sunday.

SARAH SEGRAVE

Sarah Segrave is a driven and experienced educational leader who mixes traditional values with a modern outlook. She has significant insight and expertise in the independent schools’ sector, having held three headships, and she is now principal for Eaton House Schools, a group of single-sex day schools in Belgravia and Clapham.

Sarah is ambitious about developing the potential of every child in her care.

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Arrange your bespoke visit Contact Charlotte at admissions@sherborneprep.org 01935 810911

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SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES 2022/23

The country’s leading Catholic prep school for boys aged 7-13

VICTORIA LAMBERT EDITOR

CAMILLA VAN PRAAGH PUBLISHER

EDITORIAL DIRECTOR LUCY CLELAND MANAGING EDITOR AMY WAKEHAM EDITORIAL & PRODUCTION ASSISTANT RUBY FEATHERSTONE SUB EDITOR & FEATURES ASSISTANT TESSA DUNTHORNE CONTRIBUTING EDITORS ELEANOR DOUGHTY, PETER STANFORD, SALLY JONES, EMMA REED CREATIVE & PRODUCTION DIRECTOR PARM BHAMRA ONLINE CONTENT DIRECTOR REBECCA COX JUNIOR ONLINE EDITOR ELLIE SMITH ONLINE WRITERS CHARLOTTE RICKARDS, CHARLIE COLVILLE, OLIVIA EMILY SOCIAL MEDIA EXECUTIVE ZOEY PHOON DIGITAL ASSISTANT NAOMI GRANT ADVERTISING EXECUTIVE MELISSA CAMPBELL ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER ELLIE RIX ACCOUNT DIRECTORS PANDORA LEWIS, SERENA KNIGHT ACCOUNT MANAGER SABRINA RAVEN DIGITAL MANAGER ADAM DEAN BRAND PARTNERSHIP MANAGER CHRIS HOLT ADVERTISING OPERATIONS MANAGER JESSICA DAVEY SALES SUPPORT & OFFICE MANAGER XA RODGER TECHNICAL MANAGER LUIGI BOLOGNA TECHNICAL DIRECTOR MARK PEARSON FINANCE DIRECTOR JILL NEWEY FINANCE CONTROLLER LAUREN HARTLEY FINANCE ADMINISTRATOR RIA HARRISON HUMAN RESOURCES CONSULTANT ZOE JONES PROPERTY & MARKETING ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR AND B CORP PROJECT MANAGER GEMMA COWLEY CHIEF COMMERCIAL OFFICER TIA GRAHAM CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER JAMES THROWER MANAGING DIRECTOR JEREMY ISAAC EDITORIAL ENQUIRIES victorialambert@schoolhousemagazine.co.uk ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES camilla@schoolhousemagazine.co.uk

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SCHOOL HOUSE is a biannual magazine published with Country & Town House magazine and distributed to AB homes in Barnes, Battersea, Bayswater, Belgravia, Brook Green, Chelsea, Chiswick, Clapham, Coombe, Fulham, Hampstead, Highgate, Holland Park, Kensington, Knightsbridge, Marylebone, Mayfair, Notting Hill, Pimlico, Putney, Richmond, South Kensington, St John’s Wood, Wandsworth and Wimbledon. It is also on sale at selected WHSmith, Sainsbury’s, M&S, and Waitrose stores and independent newsagents nationwide. School House is published by Country & Town House Ltd, Studio 2, Chelsea Gate Studios, 115 Harwood Road, London SW6 4QL (tel: 020 7384 9011). Registered number 576850 England and Wales. Printed in the UK by William Gibbons and Sons Ltd, West Midlands. Paper supplied by Gerald Judd. Distribution by Letterbox.

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Pupils at Godolphin and Latymer School

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SCHOOL HOUSE SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES 2022/23

Isabella Sim, 17, head girl at Godolphin and Latymer School, London Isabella Sim is a bursary student and head girl at Godolphin and Latymer School, an academically selective day school for girls aged 11-18 in west London. Having moved to Britain from New Zealand at the age of seven, Isabella went to a state primary from where she gained her place at Godolphin and Latymer at 11. ‘I was the only girl from my state school that came here,’ Isabella says, ‘it was a daunting experience entering into a really big school and getting lost in all the corridors. But I felt grown-up too. Sitting in assembly on the first day, I realised I was among likeminded girls who all had their own passions.’ For Isabella, that came to include playing netball in a London league and swimming competitively for her county, as well as taking up the piano. Academically, the pace of the school suited her well, and she achieved 11 GCSEs. Now, Isabella is sitting maths, biology, chemistry and economics for A-level as well as writing an EPQ examining ways to conserve coral reefs. Potential university destinations include Cambridge, UCL and Loughborough. Her future plan is to study chemical engineering, aiming to work for an organisation involved with the UN sustainable development goals. Godolphin and Latymer has been the launch pad needed. ‘Coming here gave me space to dream and opportunities I didn’t know existed. I’d like to think other girls will see my story and feel anything is possible for them too.’

Portrait by Hester Marriott SCHOOLHOUSEMAGAZINE.CO.UK | 11

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WHAT’S UP

Emily Ralfe (middle) with Highness and Anna in front of the new perimeter wall

The latest from schools, new developments and bursaries

CHARITY EFFORTS

Phe Phe (middle right) and her GB relay team

TRACK STAR

Dauntsey’s sixth-former Ophelia (Phe Phe) Pye was selected to compete in the European Championships in Jerusalem for the Great Britain & Northern Ireland Under 18 athletics team.

At the competition, she improved her personal best times in every round and won the European 400m hurdles, running a new national record time of 58.06 seconds. She also won bronze in the World Under 20 Athletics Championships in the 4 x 400m relay.

Emily Ralfe, a teacher at St George’s School Windsor Castle raised more than £1,000 over the summer to purchase resources for two children’s facilities in Arusha, Tanzania, where she spent a month working as a volunteer. Ralfe used the money to buy teaching resources and food, for a day care centre looking after around 40 children, and for the Destiny Foundation orphanage for disabled children, both in Arusha. It also funded maintenance work like the construction of a new perimeter wall at the day care centre.

Westminster School’s partnership with Phab charity, which supports disabled and non-disabled children and people to reduce social isolation in the community, generated the 44th Phab residential week in July. It included craft workshops, cinema nights and the final day’s Phab Show.

Children in Care

Cold Spots Hotting Up Eton College has announced that it has teamed up with Star Academies, a multiacademy trust which operates 28 free schools and academies in the UK. The pair are hoping to open three selective sixth form colleges in areas identified by the Government’s levelling up paper as education ‘cold spots’ such as Dudley, Middlesborough and Oldham.

Homefield School has partnered with Sutton Local Authority and the Virtual School for Looked After Children to include vulnerable young people in its provision. The school collaborated to develop an identification tool and process before enrolling LAC students on full bursaries.

SPRINGBOARD

Downe House has partnered with the Royal National Children’s SpringBoard Foundation, a social mobility charity. The foundation works to bring the transformational opportunities offered by the UK’s leading schools to the young people who will benefit the most.

CHINESE EDUCATION ON THE UP

St Mary’s Junior School, Cambridge, was recognised by the UK Association for the Promotion of Chinese Education as one of the ‘Best Schools’ for Mandarin in the UK after demonstrating its involving culture and the breadth of opportunities open to students. Junior School Mandarin teacher, Ariel Skillings, was also recognised as one of the ‘Best Teachers’ of Mandarin.

BRAVE NEW WORLD

At Cardiff Sixth Form College, Ukrainian student Zorian, has aced his A-levels, achieving four As, while his father fights on the frontline against the Russian invasion of their country. The 18-year-old has also been volunteering to help Ukrainian families living in Cardiff feel at home, talking to them and providing translation which has helped alleviate their concerns.

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SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES

NEW DEVELOPMENTS MILITARY AND MORE

Felsted’s Marshall Centre for Learning

HEATHFIELD EXPANDING

Heathfield School in Ascot has just opened its Cadogan Sixth Form Centre. This new space, officially opened by alumna Davina Cadogan (nee. Motion), provides spaces for different styles of learning and study for the new sixth form programme which runs alongside the academic side of the sixth form, giving an enhanced schooling experience.

Forfar Education has committed to support serving and former Armed Forces members and has signed the Armed Forces Covenant.

Ex-army officer and Forfar’s CEO and Founder, John Forsyth, said it was an impactful way to support exservice personnel.

Felsted’s brand new multimillion pound development is ready for use by its pupils. There are ten spacious classrooms in the Centre, all with writable walls to encourage the pupils to move around and think creatively. Two classrooms have a moving wall to enable users to create a larger space for group activities and brainstorming.

New Bursaries Blackheath High School has announced an increased provision of bursary opportunities for young girls that demonstrate excellent academic potential to secure subsidised places at its sixth-form school.

SCHOLARLY SUCCESS PAPPLEWICK DOING WELL

Boys at Papplewick School, in Ascot, celebrated scholarship success in music, art and sport, gaining music scholarships to Eton College, Winchester College, Westminster School, Uppingham School and Cheltenham College, and art scholarships to Harrow School and Tonbridge School.

HIGH-FLYING HIGHFIELD

An impressive 17 senior school scholarships have been awarded to the outgoing pupils at Highfield and Brookham Schools in Hampshire this year, taking the total number of scholarships to 123 in the past eight years alone.

Winning Chatsworth In the Chatsworth Schools family in London, The Village Prep School’s leaving Year 6 group received ten scholarships to a range of day schools from a class of 13 girls. Meanwhile, Highfield Preparatory School in Maidenhead, gained ten scholarships and a 100 per cent 11+ pass rate. The group has been shortlisted in four categories of the 2022 Education Investor Awards.

KING’S SCHOLAR

Former Edge Grove pupil, Ediz Karakas, has just joined Eton College as a King’s Scholar. The application process is highly competitive, and he is one of just 14 boys from across the country to have been awarded a scholarship for September this year.

BOARDING BOOST

Bede’s Senior School has opened its new boarding house. The development includes modern facilities and accommodates 70 beds with the scope for higher capacity, as well as a 170 sq/m atrium, learning spaces, flexible spaces for meetings and conferences, offices, kitchen facilities, and storage areas.

CHANGING FACES Heads on the move

Conifers School in West Sussex welcomes Kirsty HendersonJones as their new head of Early Years. Joining Conifers from St John’s College Junior School in Hampshire, Kirsty brings a wealth of experience to the role.

Sarah Glencross has succeeded Ben Dunhill as head of Redcliffe Gardens School from September 2022.

Redcliffe Gardens School merged with the Godolphin and Latymer School Foundation in September 2020 and continues to thrive.

Helen Milnes became the new head of Griffin House School in September 2022. She joined Griffin House from Wetherby Kensington, a pre-preparatory school for boys in London, where she was the founding head.

The Leys School has a new director of sport, cricketer Carla Rudd, who joined at the start of the autumn term 2022. Carla’s arrival came just days after coming second as part of the Southern Brave team in this year’s The Hundred competition.

The GDST Trustees appointed Emily Codling as the new headmistress of Bromley High School, GDST. Emily was previously headteacher at Eden Park High School, London, which she founded for the Education for the 21st Century Trust five years ago.

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David Goodhew among his students

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SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES FIRST WOR D

A FORCE FOR GOOD Bursaries make life better for all of us, says David Goodhew, headmaster of Latymer Upper School. It’s as simple as that

A

good education can and should change your life. That’s certainly true for me. I was born in west London where I went to my local state school. I was the first member of my family to do A-levels and go to university, graduating from Oxford with a First in Classics. From there, I went on to teach in some of the UK’s most prestigious learning institutions. All of that was possible because I had had the benefit of wonderful teachers who inspired me with a love of their subjects.

I am a passionate advocate for education as a force for good through social mobility.

I have firm views on the role independent schools can play in improving the chances of children from disadvantaged backgrounds. At Latymer Prep and Upper Schools, we are committed to breaking down barriers to opportunities that so many young people face. We want to ensure it is ability, not background, that determine whether a child enjoys the education we offer.

When I joined Latymer a decade ago, one in ten of our pupils were on a bursary. In 2017, I launched the Inspiring Minds campaign with the aim of raising £40m by 2024, coinciding with Latymer Foundation’s 400th anniversary. This will enable us to offer one in four pupils a bursary – that’s 300 children – making us one of the David Goodhew most socially inclusive independent schools in the UK. It is an ambitious fundraising programme and the brilliant news is that, with two years to go, we’ve already raised over £39m. As we welcome our new cohort, it is exhilarating to know one in five of our pupils are here on a bursary, the majority of which are free places, and that we’re in a very good position to hit our target by 2024.

This is all possible thanks to our generous community which shares our passion for social inclusion. As a result, our bursaries reflect a personal connection, with donations of all sizes and bursaries named to honour favourite teachers, like the extraordinary Mr Robert Orme, or set up by our many alumni networks abroad, like the US Latymerian bursary. We

even have fans of one of our famous alumni, late actor Alan Rickman, donating in his name. School fees are one of the biggest financial commitments a family will undertake and we know every situation is unique. This is why we take an holistic and bespoke approach so our bursary programme is not just one of the most extensive, it is also one of the UK’s most generous. As well as covering fees, our ‘open door’ approach ensures that bursary families can access support with additional costs including uniform, sports kit, trips and activities as well as dongles for home study and travel to university interviews and events. We want to ensure that Latymerians never miss out for financial reasons. We try to make applying as straightforward as possible and our Admissions team are there to support and give advice throughout.

At Latymer, we prepare our students to make a positive impact on society and to excel in the wider world. As this year’s cohort of Latymer graduates begin the next stage of their lives, I am reminded of the life-changing impact of our bursaries. Since 2004, more than 70 per cent of our bursary holders have gone on to Russell Group universities with increasing numbers now also accepting places at international universities, including Ivy League. One such student, who joined us as a quiet and rather shy young girl in Year 7, received offers not only from Cambridge to read Natural Sciences, but also Princeton and MIT, where she is one of only 140 international students in the world to be admitted. She, like a third of our bursary holders, will be the first in her family to go to university and it is thanks to the incredible generosity of our community that young students like her, can come to Latymer and realise their dreams. With 89 per cent of our former bursary holders telling us Latymer increased their aspirations for life after school, I cannot wait to see what they will achieve.

We want to make sure that Latymerians never miss out on opportunities for financial reasons. We aim to make applying as straightforward as possible and our Admissions team is on hand to offer support and advice throughout the process

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Eaton House The Manor’s façade

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SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES

THE START OF SOMETHING GOOD

Eaton House Schools has created a Foundation to provide three 100 per cent bursaries.

Principal Sarah Segrave explains why this is a cause dear to her heart

T

he need for bursaries has never been greater, yet it takes determination and passion in a difficult financial climate to take on the challenge of funding bursaries. Some schools offer part-funded places, or choose to offset certain costs such as music classes or instrument purchase. Eaton House Schools has a long history of offering scholarships and other awards to its pupils, but September 2022 was the first year that we made available three new 100 per cent funded bursaries from Key Stage 2 in Year 3. These bursaries last for the duration of the child’s education, and they allow bright seven-year-olds with potential to enter our schools free of charge.

This provision of three bursaries is an ongoing commitment, with more to come. One is for Eaton House The Manor Pre-Prep and Prep School, leaving at 13+; a second for Eaton House The Manor Girls’ School, leaving at 11+; and a third bursary for Eaton House Belgravia Pre-Prep and Prep, also leaving at 11+.

We are hoping to increase the number of bursaries annually, with a target approaching six bursaries by 2026.

The Foundation itself is a recent innovation, envisioned by a group of Eaton House parents during the pandemic, as t hey became increasingly conscious of the immense value of the education their children were receiving in difficult circumstances. They wanted to build a ‘lasting legacy that celebrated the value of an Eaton House Schools education’, by enriching the lives of talented children in the local communities of Belgravia and Clapham The new initiative is the school’s first fully paid bursary scheme, covering 100 per cent of the school fees, as well as the cost of lunches and provision for uniform. We feel that the fact this is a 100 per

cent bursary is extremely important, as we don’t want participating families to be concerned about any extra incidental costs.

The bursaries are available to individuals from the local community who may not have access to a private education otherwise. Individual incomes and circumstances will be taken into account. Candidates in Principal Sarah Segrave Year 2 at state primary schools are encouraged to apply.

Bursaries are awarded based on a number of criteria, which include a positive reference from the pupil’s current Head and a strong performance in an interview with the Head of the Eaton House School to which they are applying.

We also look for a performance that indicates potential in our 7+ English and mathematics assessments, and a standardised cognitive ability assessment.

Ultimately, the prospective pupil must be deemed by the Head to be able to make good academic progress following admission and to participate in the wider life of the school. We often consider other mitigating factors, such as health and family circumstances.

Our aim is to make this process as easy and comfortable as possible for all the children that take part – and, hopefully, fun!

Our bursary candidates will follow in the footsteps of alumni and inspirations such as former Prime M i n i st er H a rold Macmillan, actors and Oscar winners Sir Laurence Olivier and Eddie Redmayne, and writer Philip Pullman.

They will also join the many happy children who have discovered a love of learning at Eaton House Schools and who then go on to pass on their knowledge to many future generations.

We really can’t wait to meet them!

The Foundation itself is a recent innovation, envisioned by a group of Eaton House parents during the pandemic, as they became increasingly conscious of the immense value of the education their children were receiving in difficult circumstances

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St Dunstan’s College

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SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES

OUR MUTUAL FRIENDS

Schools must reach out to the communities beyond their gates, says Nick Hewlett, head of St Dunstan’s College

S

t Dunstan’s College, established in Catford in 1888, was founded on principles of benevolence and ambition.

Benevolence that saw a group of parishioners from St Dunstan’s in the East see fit to fund a new school in the growing suburbs of London, and ambition to create a school that Nick Hewlett was ‘ahead of its current time’.

A school that would enable students ‘to find out and do’, rather than simply sit and listen.

A school that would introduce a radically different curriculum, containing science, technology and engineering, and trailblazing a contemporary educational offer.

A school that would enlarge access by supporting children from a range of backgrounds and means.

We know that classroom learning forms only part of the educational journey for young people. Learning from service to others and involvement in wider communities, both local and beyond, is of equal importance in shaping compassionate and confident young people, keen to make positive choices in their pathways through life.

I am a firm believer that independent schools must be active participants in the broader societal journey and our collective endeavour towards a more inclusive society. We can and must do more to erode any perception that we are bastions of institutional privilege. As one of the only independent schools in our local borough of Lewisham, our school community realises that we hold a fortunate position.

It is important to us that this can be of benefit to, and be enhanced by, the communities that extend beyond our College gates.

In recent years, we have worked hard to build strong partnerships with local state schools and wider Lewisham community groups, and in such a way that goes far beyond merely permitting the use of facilities.

The College’s Wren Committee is a strategy group that brings together all stakeholders to consider how we can further promote social mobility, engender wellbeing and improve the communities of which we are a part. In recent months, we have undertaken

a number of initiatives. Partnerships with local state secondary schools have included welcoming talented musical students to join our music scholarship programme here at St Dunstan’s, allowing them to receive music lessons, join our ensembles and orchestras, and take part in our musicals and concert performances. Our CCF, drama and sporting programmes all work alongside our partner schools to the mutual benefit of all. Our two-week St Dunstan’s Festival, which takes places every June, has been opened to the wider community and this year local schools joined our own students in the production of key artistic events. Our partnership with Tottenham Football Club is based on a framework that ensures benefits extend as much to our broader community as they do to our own children. And our work with the local SEND hub allows us to share best practice and benefit from one another’s expertise, as much as our facilities offer tremendous benefit to those schools and their children.

Last year, we launched a new groundbreaking partnership with Lewisham Council and Westside Leaders Academy to establish the Lewisham Young Leaders Academy (LY L A).

Through weekend classes hosted at St Dunstan’s, LY LA prov ides addit ional support to young people from across Lewisham through transformative teaching of life skills and leadership coaching. Sixty students attend each week, with three staff mentors and two parent volunteers.

Of course, we also run an ambitious bursary programme. The admissions team and senior staff have a busy schedule proactively visiting local schools and community groups.

The independent sector has a tremendous opportunity to shape an exciting future, capitalising on a rich collective heritage for a greater societal good. I encourage all schools to embrace the opportunities that lie on their doorstep.

We can and must do more to erode a perception that we are bastions of institutional privilege

Nick Hewlett is head at St Dunstan’s College n SCHOOLHOUSEMAGAZINE.CO.UK | 19

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Marlborough College

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EXTENDING THE PITCH

Sport is intrinsic to the culture of Marlborough College, says Jimmy Scragg, deputy head co-curriculum and outreach, so a specialist rugby bursary was a natural fit

A

t Marlborough College, we are committed to building a diverse, would use their connections to identify potential candidates. A generous socially minded and forward-looking school which awards places parent was so inspired by the plan that they offered to make a £1.25m regardless of background or circumstances. We know that to donation to fund one bursary in perpetuity, one of the largest donations find the right young people, some of whom may never have for financial aid that the College has ever received. This was matched by thought of an independent education or heard of Marlborough the College, meaning that there would be one recipient of the bursary in College, we need to work in partnership with other sectors which share the Lower Sixth and one in the Upper Sixth at any one time. The donation our passion to support and develop talent. Sport, and all it stands for, is and this partnership are a key part of the College’s aim to increase the intrinsic to our culture and so it was not surprising that sport, in this case number of full bursaries it can offer to young people who would otherwise rugby, would provide a rich opportunity for a mould-breaking partnership. be unable to attend Marlborough. Rugby has a heritage at Marlborough Beno Obano is one of that stretches back 150 years and England’s leading rugby players.

I believe offers an exceptional, England player, Anthony He has never forgotten that a inclusive experience for aspiring Watson, in action Sixth Form bursary changed players. Everyone at the College his life and, we are delighted is thrilled we have created this to say, he is working with us to alliance with Beno and Anthony try and give that opportunity to to find young players who will be another young player from a less a huge asset to the Marlborough fortunate and non-traditional rugby programme. rugby playing community.

Alongside their sporting talent, Beno and Anthony Beno plays for Bath Rugby Football Club with whom we are amazing ambassadors for have strong links, alongside our bursary partnership and fellow England player incredible role models for Anthony Watson. A visit by prospective pupils. Beno says: the pair to Marlborough ‘To get a sixth form bursary College in lockdown to use was amazing. I had so much our track for training planted support and I feel others should have access to this. the seed. They came with Alan Murdoch, Bath’s strength Rugby changed my life and I and conditioning coach, had no idea before that I could who works with Director of make a career of it. For me, if the bursary recipient ends Rugby Terry Gilmour to coach our sports scholars, up playing for England, that’s great, but what is and between the four of them the rugby bursary most important is that we was born. create a good human being Beno is an inspirational who enjoys rugby.’ Anthony character. He is committed adds: ‘I always felt rugby to raising the profile was somewhere to belong of rugby and made the and we want to encourage documentary called others to realise that it is Beno Obano, England rugby player Everybody’s Game about a great sport and you can which he writes: ‘The make a career of it if you want. I am keen to do anything I can do to help someone experience documentary is about how rugby is a great sport, and how it should be a great school like Marlborough. But the best possible measurement is accessible to everyone. I think rugby has traditionally been a sport played not whether they go on to play professional rugby but that they end up and watched by middle-class white people. However, I’ve been able to going to a university or start a career that otherwise they would not have benefit in so many ways from rugby and I don’t fit that description. I want thought about.’ to change the perception of rugby and expose more people to it by telling the stories of non-traditional players in the hope those spectating and The first recipient of the Obano Watson Rugby Bursary award joined participating in rugby may begin to grow and diversify.’

Marlborough in the Lower Sixth in September 2022. We look forward to The film provoked a more concrete conversation about a partnership. working with them, and those who come in subsequent years.

The plan would be to create an annual Sixth Form rugby bursary. Then, following a meeting with the Master, it was agreed that Beno and Anthony Jimmy Scragg is deputy head co-curriculum and outreach at Marlborough College n

For me, if the bursary recipient ends up playing for England, that’s great, but what is most important is that we create a good human being who enjoys rugby

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Hanging out at Royal Alexandra and Albert School

EDUCATION’S BEST-KEPT SECRET

Places at the 34 boarding schools run by the state are little-known but highly sought after, finds Peter Stanford

‘W

hat I like most about Wymondham,’ enthuses Alison Leinster, who has sent both her children, Oliver and Connie, to this highly rated state boarding school in Norfolk, ‘is the feel of it. When you are there, it is like a university campus. There is always something going on and it all happens on a single site.’

About 60 per cent of Wymondham College’s 620 boarders (out of 1,400 pupils in total) come from Norfolk. Many come because state schools in this predominantly rural county, England’s sixth largest, are thinly spread. And high-achieving ones thinner still.

For Norfolk parents reluctant to send their son or daughter to the struggling local academy or comprehensive, but unable to manage typical independent boarding school fees of about £40,000 a year per child, state boarding at Wymondham (pronounced Wind-ham in that time-honoured

Norfolk way designed to trip up outsiders) provides an affordable option.

At the 34 schools that are listed as members of the State Boarding Forum (Wymondham is the largest), public funds cover the cost of the teaching, with parents asked to pick up the bill for the boarding element. It typically comes in at between £10,000 and £18,000 per annum.

While Alison Leinster and her husband were making a decision about Oliver’s secondary education, they looked at local independent day schools as another option. Their son, now at university, had been attending an independent prep school as a day pupil, where he had occasionally boarded and he had really enjoyed that experience. ‘Once he had had a taste of it, he knew he wanted more,’ Alison recalls. ‘He didn’t want to give it up.’

Sometimes, of course, children can’t have what they want. Or parents know better. But for the Leinsters, there were also resolutely practical reasons for going along with his wishes. ‘Oliver is a very sporty boy, as

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SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES is his sister, who followed him to Wymondham. Between them they do swimming, cricket, tennis, karate and horse riding. It just wouldn’t have been possible for me to fit in driving them round to all these activities once their day school had closed its gates at four o’clock. On the Wymondham campus, they all happen in the same place, and they can go there without me spending my life in the car.’

State boarding schools are regularly referred to as ‘education’s best-kept secret’, though the past 20 years have seen their numbers and their reputation growing.

However, the direction of travel is not uninterruptedly upwards. The combination of the impact of the pandemic and Brexit (to qualify for statefunded teaching at state boarding schools since January 2021 you have to be a UK national or have the right of residence here, whereas previously they were open to all EU nationals) has seen a number of schools with smaller boarding operations close them down. Like De Aston School, a mixed academy in the Lincolnshire town of Market Rasen, which had 80 boarders as part of a total intake of just under 1,000 until 2020.

With strong government support as part of their drive to enable more parental choice in education, plus in many cases an OFSTED-endorsed reputation for academic excellence, state boarding schools are overall in good shape, with almost 6,000 places now available.

Some schools are local-authority run, others are Free Schools, academies and part of wider educational trusts or charities. Holyport College in Berkshire, for example, was sponsored by nearby Eton College when it started up in 2014 as the first boarding-and-day-pupil Free School.

At the other end of the timescale is Lancaster Royal Grammar School, founded in 1472, regularly rated Outstanding and with 170 boarders among its 1,200 pupils.

Though there are only 34 state boarding schools in England and Wales to pick from – plus two in Scotland (Oban High School and Queen Victoria School, Dunblane) – they range between the academically selective, single sex or mixed, those that interview and those that don’t, and those that take under 11s or others that only cater for sixth-formers like Richard Huish College in Taunton, Somerset, which – in its own plain-speaking description – ‘offers an independent school sixth-form

experience at a fraction of the cost.’ Another distinction is between those that offer a choice only between ‘full’ boarding and being a day-pupil, and those that provide a hybrid that sits somewhere in between. At Gordon’s in Woking, Surrey, founded in 1885 in memory of the war hero General Gordon to help ‘necessitous boys’ but now a non-selective state boarding school, pupils are put into one of three categories: full boarder, weekly boarder (who go home at weekends) and day boarder.

This final grouping covers those who continue to live at home. Day boarding is essentially a boarding school experience minus the bed.

But, while the taxpayer funds their classroom education, a compulsory day-boarding fee of £3,000 per term (roughly half the rate for weekly boarders) covers all extra-curricular activities during a school day that starts at 8:20am and ends at 7:30pm.

At nearby Royal Alexandra and Albert School in Reigate, the result of a merger in 1949 between two long-established philanthropic facilities, the same group of pupils are referred to as flexi-boarders. Their fees are between £1,580 and £2,165 depending on age, with means-tested bursaries available and 33 per cent reductions for the children of stipendary Church of England clergy. Currently, there are about 650 flexi-boarders, mostly local, learning and all-but-living alongside 480 full boarders, many drawn from military and expatriate families.

Not all the schools have the traditional grandeur of an independent school but some do, like Royal Alexandra and Albert, which operates Wymondham College Girls’ Under 15 cricket team with Connie Leinster (bottom left)

Pupils at Wymondham College

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SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES Out on the rugby pitch at The Royal School

day-boarders join in Year 7, at the same time that pupils at state primaries go on to state secondaries.

The extended hours of flexi-boarding suit Camilynn well as a working mother (who recently joined the team in the school office). ‘It fits with modern working patterns,’ she says.

‘If I have an early meeting, I can drop my sons off at school first where they will be given a delicious cooked breakfast, rather than rushing them through cold toast at home. ‘And,’ she adds, ‘if I am going to be late home, there is no worry about having to buy ingredients and cook a nice dinner. They can eat at school.’

As far as Camilynn is concerned, rather than being an extra drain on the family’s finances, flexi-boarding represents real value for money. ‘If I was fitting work round normal day-school hours,’ she points out, ‘I’d be spending more on childcare to fill the gaps between when my sons finished and when I finished.’

Gordon’s and Royal Alexandra and Albert both have their roots in philanthropic foundations of earlier centuries. So, too, does The Royal School in Wolverhampton, a non-selective, non-denominational Free School that takes boys and girls from the ages of four to 19. Set up in 1850 as an orphanage by local businessman John Lees, it went through various incarnations in the state and private school systems before being granted Free School status in 2014. It has 1,464 pupils on its 25-acre site, with 350 of them as day boarders alongside 80 full boarders and a strong contingent in this group being from Forces families.

A distinguishing feature of its make-up – in line with its original purpose – is that it makes a point of providing both education and a caring, empowering environment in which to learn for vulnerable and looked-after children including those in foster care and young unaccompanied asylum seekers.

‘What we hope to live out,’ says Headteacher Mark Heywood, ‘is a wider remit that makes this a social mobility school. That is an aspiration that we share with our parents.’

Leo, Camilynn and Jack Baker And an aspiration that is becoming reality. The school, Heywood at Royal Alexandra and Albert School reports, is oversubscribed, while on a recent visit OFSTED said of its particular ethos: They (pupils) see in the middle of Gatton Park, a vast the school’s diverse population as a Capability Brown-designed landscape strength. The school is a harmonious, with its own lake, orchards, equestrian multi-cultural community where centre and allotments. The sixth form equality of opportunity is enshrined is housed in a Grade II-listed mansion. in all areas of school life.’

Camilynn Baker’s two sons, nineThe school community was year-old Leo and Jack, 12, are both particularly deligted that Ofsted confirmed that, at the school, flexi-boarders there, but it was neither ‘personal development and welfare the grounds nor the facilities – Mark Heywood, headteacher, is outstanding’. It is also the most excellent though she agrees they are The Royal School, Wolverhampton oversubscribed senior school in – that made her choose state boarding for them. ‘We chose it because of the the country. wrap-around care the school provides,’ she explains.

With state boarding schools, the usual parental checklist around ‘It has a homely feel, and everything they do, in the classroom and exam results, good facilities and home-from-home style care are every outside, is contained in one site. If my children weren’t there, they bit as important as in their equivalents in the independent sector. The would be in the car going after school to five different places every obvious bonus they offer is that the challenges posed for family budgets week to do sport and other activities.’ by fees – especially in this cost-of-living crisis – is mitigated by having the Both boys had been in local state primaries near where they lived in cost of the classroom education met by the state. east Grinstead, but Camilynn took them out to join Royal Alexandra Yet what this sometimes overlooked sector of the education system and Albert’s junior section – which starts from Year 3 (age eight). is delivering, despite its small numbers, is a wide-ranging, innovative ‘It removed all those worries over secondary school transfer,’ she says, and thoroughly contemporary style of education, geared to the needs ‘and was so seamless. Jack joined in Year 6 (aged 10, the final year of of pupils, parents and the modern world. Can you afford not to take primary school) so it gave him a chance to get used to the place.’ Many a look? n

‘What we hope to live out is a wider remit that makes this a social mobility school.

That is an aspiration we share with our parents’

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SCHOOL HOUSE PARTNERSHIP

TRULY TRANSFORMATIONAL Our aim is to provide a top quality education which can also help to drive social mobility, writes Alasdair Kennedy, Headmaster at Trinity School, Croydon

D

ifference in educational outcomes is stark in Croydon; one of the most socially and economically diverse of London’s 32 boroughs.

It is surrounded by Bromley and Sutton, both of which have selective state grammar schools. Looking at a six-year average, only ten per cent of students in the maintained school sector in the borough achieve AAB at A-level in subjects; grades which would enable them to access Russell Group universities. In Bromley, that doubles to 21 per cent and in Sutton it rises further to 34 per cent. In fact, Croydon ranks 28th out of the 32 London boroughs.

To place our students’ experience in context, I recently shared some key data points with them during an assembly.

The mean gross income of a UK worker is £29,600; their school fees are about £20,000 per year; to send one child to a school like theirs likely requires an income of at least £80,000; and only five per cent of UK families earn at this level. In other words, 19 out of 20 families could not access their school.

And the one out of 20 families who can are by no means typical of the world our students will enter at 18.

Furthermore, funding from central government and local authorities to pay for scholarships and bursaries ended in 2004. Independent schools have since struggled to stay accessible to a broad range of families and risk becoming

bubbles of economic privilege.

At Trinity, we want to disrupt this pattern of structural inequality and to play our part in closing the opportunity and achievement gap. Our bursary programme is a key which unlocks access to an outstanding academic education for families who lack the means to pay school fees but whose children are at risk of not fulfilling their potential.

Our focus is on truly transformational awards; means-tested bursaries in the region of 80 to 100 per cent of school fees. Currently one in six – some 170

– of our students receive bursaries. Our aim is to increase this to one in five. Our alumni and parents support this ambition through our Trinity Bursary Fund, which raises sufficient funds annually to support a further £350–400,000 each year for further bursary awards. We also receive additional funding from the John Whitgift Foundation endowment, capped at £2 million.

Alongside this, through our primary school partnerships we maintain links with a wide range of local schools to ensure that there is awareness of the availability of bursary awards, while actively seeking applications from areas in greatest need of academic support. We also work with a local charity to provide free tuition for primary school children identified as having outstanding potential; preparing them for entry tests for any selective schools in Croydon and neighbouring Sutton and Bromley.

Demand is rising, as are fees, so each year we need to expand our bursary offering. It is central to our ethos. At a time when an outstanding academic education is more sought after, but less attainable than ever, we aim to act as an engine of social mobility through education.

FIND OUT MORE Independent Day School for Boys Co-Educational Sixth Form Contact Trinity on 02086569541 or hmsec@trinity.croydon.sch.uk to discover more about the school.

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MONEY MATTERS SUMMED UP Worried about the impact of inflation on fees? These are the strategies you need now, says Sally Jones

PHOTO: GETTY IMAGES

T

Topping up the piggy bank

he current rollercoaster ride inflicted on our lives and finances by the perfect storm of the energy crisis, Covid and the war in Ukraine triggering huge increases in living costs and inflation, is hitting even the richest families in the pocket. Of course, there have been a few winners. But for every tech employee, enjoying healthy bonuses, there have been dozens of losers. Anyone in hospitality, tourism and high street retail, for a start and although these businesses are now rebooting, the losses incurred will have a longstanding impact on millions of families.

For those considering independent education for their children – or trying to manage the inexorably rising school fees of youngsters already in the system – the prospect can be terrifying. Seven years of boarding from the age of 11 at a big-name school can cost the equivalent of buying a Rolls Royce – up to £250,000 during the child’s time at senior school.

Even though numerous schools froze their fees when lessons migrated online and a few, such as Bryanston, even reduced them, many are now facing a barrage of requests for help with fees from desperate parents.

Rugby School’s Finance Director, Nicholas Winther, is responsible for the school’s bursary provision. ‘I handle the frequent hardship requests when parents lose their jobs, become ill or divorce,’ Winther explains. ‘During Covid, many people’s income dried up overnight and the Ukraine war will have a big impact, too. Rugby is lucky to have an extensive foundation plus investments and substantial legacies to fund hardship bursaries, so we’ve tried to be flexible, putting in place various support measures: sometimes giving people more time to pay or finding bursary funds to make up the shortfall. We’ve also had generous gifts from some existing parents to enable other children to continue their education here.’

Rachel Frier, bursar of Heathfield School, Ascot, a girls’ boarding and day school, with 225 pupils aged 11-18, has seen a similar pattern. ‘The parent debtor list has increased in the past two years,’ Frier says, ‘mostly due to the impact of Covid on their business and income. We set up a hardship fund

during lockdown and also offered parents more time to pay, giving them some breathing space. Parents are well aware that educating children at a good independent senior school – particularly if they’re boarding – is a big investment. Many are prepared to make sacrifices in order to prioritise their daughter’s education: some even move closer to the school so that the daughter can attend as a day pupil, saving boarding fees of between £15,000 and £20,000 a year.’

A recent census by the Independent Schools Council (ISC) showed that in 2020, schools provided £900 million in bursaries, £440 million of this meanstested and that the recipients received on average almost £10,000 a year, an increase of 5.2 per cent compared with 2019.

Overall, Rugby supports about 15 per cent of its pupils’ fees, through scholarships, bursaries and other discounts, with the emphasis increasingly on meanstested bursaries. As at many top schools, scholarships for academic, sporting or artistic excellence are now offered at five per cent, and prized for the award’s kudos rather than its monetary value – though scholars from cash-strapped families usually receive generous bursaries, too. Some well-heeled parents even donate their child’s scholarship discount to the Arnold Foundation which supports boarding places for those who can afford it the least.

At Rugby, 41 per cent get some financial assistance, compared to about 33 per cent in the independent sector as a whole; 58 pupils across the school have more than 100 per cent of their fees paid (to include extras), while 153 pupils receive 50 per cent or more in fee remission.

However, even with a bursary, most parents need a range of different strategies to cover the fees which now, with inflation again on the increase, are rising by a higher percentage than wages.

Doug Bonnar of the long-established financial planning firm SFIA, which specialises in advising families on managing school fees in a tax-efficient way, predicts a 4.5 per cent increase per year in overall fees.

‘There’s a number of measures families can take,’ he explains. ‘But if they aim to pay fees for more than SCHOOLHOUSEMAGAZINE.CO.UK | 27

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Girls at Heathfield School, Ascot

after the donation, Bonnar adds, to avoid being taxed on the sum, there is an exception to this rule. ‘Anyone, typically grandparents can make regular unlimited gifts exempt from IHT, for anything, including school fees, so long as they can afford the payments out of surplus income and it doesn’t affect their standard of living.’

Children can receive money from anyone except their parents via a trust, the simplest of which is called a bare trust. This is a gift that must be spent for the benefit of the child and is taxed at the child’s tax rate, not the parents’. One caveat, says Bonnar, ‘is that when the child reaches the age of 18, the money is theirs to control – something that can be managed by not making the gift too large. The donor can decide if the parents should look after this money while the child is under 18 and the trustees can spend the money on the child’s behalf Rugby School in any way they see fit.’ How does this work in practice?

One family Bonnar worked with wanted to send their two one child without some bursary support, it’s unlikely they can boys to an expensive senior school in Hampshire. ‘The keep up a comfortable lifestyle if their combined income is under parents couldn’t afford the fees,’ £150,000 a year.’ he explains. ‘They had a small business which didn’t produce Bonnar’s suggestions start with borrowing money for the much income, though they fees via a mortgage company. had some equity in property.

‘Take expert advice; don’t sort We restructured using pensions out the mortgage on your house and refinancing plus borrowing. before you work out the school ‘The grandparents owned Doug Bonnar, SFIA fees. These involve the second shares in the parents’ limited biggest outlay after your property company, so they gifted these to and it makes sense to combine them via a really good plan.’ the grandchildren, which helped. This was one situation where several Grandparents – and anyone except the child’s own parents, for different solutions were needed: the boys are thriving at the school and example, uncles, aunts or special friends – can gift money to the the parents are happy to be doing what they see as best for their sons.’ child, Bonnar says, and this can then be invested in their name to Catherine Morgan (catherinemorgan.com) is a widely-respected financial provide benefits including school fees. ‘Any income or gains from these coach and planner, and author of the best-seller, It’s Not About The Money investments are then taxed according to the child’s tax allowance, not (Amazon, £12.99). She recommends that grandparents set up a family business then name the children as shareholders. the parents.’ The gift can also reduce the amount of Inheritance Tax (IHT) due on the donor’s estate.’

‘The grandparents can put income-generating assets into the business,’ Although a donor making a one-off gift must survive for seven years says Morgan, ‘like property or investments. The dividends they receive

‘Take expert advice. Don’t sort out the mortgage on your house before you work out the school fees. These involve the second biggest outlay after your property and it makes sense to combine them with a good plan’

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WS NO IE LY AR P P RS ! A BU U S 23 I N 20 JO OR F

Potential is Our Passion Three 100% bursaries available for children to enter Eaton House Schools in Year 3 (age 7+) in September, 2023

Eaton House Schools are proud to have provided an exceptional education to our pupils since 1897 Based on two large sites in Belgravia and Clapham, our single sex schools for boys and girls are non-selective,* yet achieve outstanding results. We feed into Westminster, Eton, St Paul’s, Wycombe Abbey, St Paul’s Girls’ School, Winchester and other fine schools, winning many scholarships, awards and prizes each year.

The new initiative is Eaton House Schools’ first bursary scheme covering 100 per cent of school fees, as well as uniform.

The bursaries are available to individuals from the local community and individual incomes and circumstances will be taken into account. Candidates in Year 2 state primary schools are encouraged to apply.

The Eaton House Foundation, an independent charitable trust jointly conceived between parents and the schools, aims to make an ‘Eaton House education’ available to bright seven-year-olds with potential, who may not otherwise have such an opportunity. There are three bursaries available to children for entry into Year 3 at age 7+, free of charge.

Children receiving an education at Eaton House Schools will follow in the footsteps of former Prime Minister Harold Macmillan, actors Laurence Olivier and Eddie Redmayne, adventurer Bear Grylls and writer Philip Pullman. However, our most important legacy continues to be the many happy children who have discovered a love of learning at Eaton House, and who pass on their knowledge to future generations.

Join us!

Speak to our Head of Admissions, Miss Sam Feilding, on 020 3917 5050, or visit www.eatonhouseschools.com for more information on our bursary scheme. *Non-selective at 2+ and 4+ entry.

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from this then help to cover the school fees, which are tax-free so long as the children have no other earnings or income and can use their personal tax allowance.

‘For the 2021/22 year, this is £12,570. This gives grandparents the pleasure of helping their family during their lifetimes rather than through an inheritance.’

Morgan also suggests investing in an offshore investment bond as well as ISAs. ‘Most people know the benefits of investing in tax-free ISAs but it is well worth considering using offshore investment bonds too. Grandparents can invest a lump sum in an investment bond, name themselves as the trustees and the children as the beneficiaries.

‘The bond is then split into a few hundred policy segments which are encashed individually to pay for the school fees each year.’

She also suggests parents look at the new pension rules, as at the age of 55, a donor can take 25 per cent of their pension pot as a tax-free lump sum. This could be used to pay for independent school fees.

For high-rate taxpayers, taking it as a lump sum is tax efficient as they will have no additional tax to pay. ‘The rest of the pension can be left invested for their retirement income. It is vital to take expert advice before making major changes to your pension arrangements.’

As a parent, Morgan has first-hand experience of managing fees: her two sons are both at an independent school. ‘We currently fund the fees through revenue from my salary and dividend drawings,’ Morgan explains.

‘We started an investment account for the boys in our 20s and this money is currently invested in a combination of ISAs and Designated OEICs (Openended Investment Companies). This way they benefit from stock market growth and compound interest with monthly contributions.

‘We also have flexibility as the ISAs are in our names so we can choose to use the funds for ever changing purposes – perhaps a university fund later on. The OEICs will go to the boys if anything happens to us.’

Morgan and her husband also have an investment bond with regular contributions started in their 20s (£50 a month) in trust outside of their estate for IHT purposes, though isn’t necessary if an estate is unlikely to exceed the IHT thresholds. (The IHT threshold is £325,000 each, £650,000 for a couple plus RNRB (Residence Nil-Rate Band) of £175,000 each if a home is passed to direct descendants, so a couple could potentially have an estate of £1million without an IHT liability.)

The couple intends to employ the boys, managing social media for their business, once they turn 16.

‘They can then draw an annual tax-free salary which could help with fees.’

She says their experience of private school so far has been good: ‘Wide curriculum, travel opportunities, good home-schooling during lockdown and the longer school holidays give us more quality family time together. Every child’s needs are so different, I think opting for private education is a really personal choice.

‘One thing’s for certain: proper advance planning and savvy financial advice can save you and your family a fortune.’

TIPS FOR CASHSTRAPPED PARENTS

1

If you’re having financial problems, don’t bury your head in the sand,’ advises Rugby School’s Finance Director, Nicholas Winther. ‘Talk to your school bursar at once. We, and other established schools, are lucky to have the resources to help.’

2

Be honest in your application. ‘As a charity we must ensure the funds are well spent. Some people claim penury then drive off in a brand new car, or Google Streetview shows them living in a large house. That destroys trust.’

3

‘Consider paying a lump sum up front,’ suggests Heathfield’s Bursar Rachel Frier. ‘We offer a small discount if you – or another family member – pay some fees in advance: useful given that bank interest rates aren’t great.’

4

‘Apply for bursary provision in good time to avoid disappointment,’ says Frier, before girls sit the assessment in mid-October, so the school can assess how many need support and what budget it has to spend. n

PHOTO: GETTY IMAGES

Family savings

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Bursaries at 7+ 11+ and 16+ We offer one of the UK’s most generous fee-assistance programmes to academically able students, up to 100% fee reduction. latymer-upper.org/admissions/bursaries

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29/06/2022 09:38

Spreading community love, supporting Ukraine in its oppression

WORLD OF ACTION

T

he ongoing crisis in Ukraine has seen remarkable efforts by British schools and communities to help families in need. But this philanthropic approach to global concerns is not new.

Indeed, for many schools, taking a worldwide view of helping others is part of their DNA – and something increasingly offered via curriculums, too.

Julie Robinson, chief executive of the Independent Schools Council (ISC), recently praised schools across the UK for creating their own fundraising initiatives to raise money for Ukrainians in need, including pupils at the King’s School, Worcester, who released a charity single, sung in Ukrainian, to raise money – so far more than £6,500 – for those affected by the war. Meanwhile, at ACS International Schools, Hampton School, and Warwick School, there have been collections of supplies, including clothing, toiletries and other essential items for refugees.

At Alleyn’s School, in London, pupils, staff, parents, governors and alumni wearing blue and yellow – the colours of the Ukrainian flag – held a sponsored walk over a combined distance of 2,656 miles (the equivalent of walking from the school to Kyiv and back). And its pupil-led charity committee organised a movie screening and Easter scavenger hunt to raise funds for the Refugee Council.

The school is also working with other local schools to provide a bespoke curriculum, so that Ukrainian refugee children are supported to learn English and eventually maths as well. Teachers, recognising the emotional impact the crisis has had on children in the UK too, have also set up classes for existing pupils to learn about asylum seekers and refugees.

And it’s not just older children getting involved. At St Peter’s York, pupils in pre-prep have supported the citywide Sunflowers Kids Club, which supports Ukrainian children with language skills, and helps them

PHOTO: GETTY IMAGES

Victoria Lambert looks at the way war in Ukraine is inspiring schools to engage with global challenges

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SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES to settle. Seven-year-old Kate led the way by selling sunflower seeds. Phil Hardy, head teacher of St Peter’s Years 2–8, says: ‘Our pupils never fail to amaze me. I’m incredibly proud of Kate on the student council who thought of this lovely idea and raised funds so quickly.’

For Beneden pupils, wanting to take care of others in need is not unusual. Head Samantha Price says: ‘Historically our students have always had a keen interest in global affairs and supporting international causes.’

She adds: ‘The most obvious difference with the situation in Ukraine is that, as a school, we’ve been able to welcome four Ukrainian students into our community; they have joined us on full bursaries and we are delighted to have them with us for as long as they wish to stay. We are also inviting local Ukrainian people to gather here once a month, providing them with an opportunity to just get together, have a meal and enjoy the grounds.

‘As a school community, we also donated huge amounts of clothing and other goods to Ukraine, which our students, staff and parents were delighted to support.’

At Brighton College, Headmaster Richard Cairns says the school is looking forward to welcoming up to 15 Ukrainian children, ‘all of them driven from their homeland by this dreadful war.’ Pupils have been busy raising money – one boarding house collectively cycled the distance from Brighton to Kyiv, Ukraine, raising £4,000 for the Disasters Emergency Committee’s Ukraine Humanitarian appeal. And the school’s Amnesty International group arranged for pupils to send letters to MPs. ‘Pupils of all ages have been fundraising for the DEC,’ says Cairns, ‘and also writing to politicians from the outset urging them to do more, something that seems to be bearing fruit. Parents also have been wonderfully engaged, dozens signing up to accommodate refugees as best they can.’

Ukrainians are joining Bedales School in Hampshire, too. Headmaster Will Goldsmith says: ‘With the current war in Ukraine, we have committed to welcoming a significant number of refugee students across age groups and, as of September this year, we will have eight students (including two boarders) on fully funded places.’

He adds: ‘These students and their families are being housed by local

families, mainly current Bedales parents, and we are excited about the contribution they will make to our community and seeing them develop in their time with us. Their places are funded thanks to the very generous gifts of donors who already support other students on means-tested bursaries, along with support from the school itself.’

Bedales has a long history of supporting refugees, whether it be their partnership with the Rural Refugee Network (RRN) charity, taking in Syrian refugees through their GCSEs and A-levels on free bursary places or, further back, when the school welcomed an influx of Jewish students escaping Germany in the 1930s.

Moreover, in March, Bedales raised more than £50,000 for the RRN, collectively walking the equivalent of Syria to Steep in a day, and putting on an art sale to raise this considerable sum.

Benenden can point to similar initiatives. Price says: ‘There is a longstanding tradition of global outreach work but recent examples include a team of sixth-formers running a mentoring programme with a Nigerian school, a charity expedition to Nepal, and we supported the women and girls’ Afghan football team when they escaped from Kabul last year, sending clothing and other items such as computer equipment.

‘The students are regularly made aware of topical events around the world through various aspects of school life. This includes whole

PHOTO: GETTY IMAGES

Inside a St Peter’s York classroom

Make a difference day at Brighton College

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Working together at Benenden School

Awareness (GA) is taught as a distinct subject, culminating in Bedales’ most popular Bedales Assessed Course (BAC) and Sixth Form Global Perspectives Pre-U course. ‘The focus of GA is twofold,’ explains Goldsmith, ‘equipping students with critical 21st-century skills and providing them with an insight into global issues.

‘Activism and community service are at the heart of the BAC – students are led to becoming social entrepreneurs through ground-breaking project work which requires them to make actual change, within our own community, nationally or globally. GA students regularly lead assemblies and discussions, teach lessons in Bedales Prep and Pre-prep, as well as other local schools.’ A new course in Social Entrepreneurship and Innovation for the sixth form aims to expand these efforts further in the coming years.

For students at ACS International School Hillingdon, there is now Bedales pupils the chance to earn a Global Citizen Diploma (GCD). The school is the first in Europe to offer this school assemblies, year group qualification, which encouraages and boarding house gatherings, students to work towards the a student-produced global news world’s betterment. digest, and other student clubs ACS Hillingdon head, Martin and societies, including several Hall says he is ‘thrilled’ at the opportunity. ‘We’ve found such that focus on cultural issues.’

So, is there a more academic an effective and thoughtfully element to these worthy structured way of supporting and reinforcing our school’s enterprises? At Benenden, global awareness is taught in a formal values, especially given that the Will Goldsmith, headmaster, Bedales setting as one of the key pillars values of the GCD so precisely of the Complete Education that match our own,’ Hall says. ‘We underpins the educational experience at the school. Price explains: ‘We want every student to be an effective learner, a confident individual and a ensure through the curriculum that global issues are included across caring contributor. Above all this, through learning, we want all to make relevant subjects. a difference.’

‘We also offer a specific global awareness course for students in Year There is no doubt pupils benefit – not just academically. Samantha Price says: ‘The effect of these efforts is that it raises students’ awareness, 10 that lasts for two terms. It is drawn from the iGCSE syllabus and covers helps them to embrace certain issues and develop their own opinions. areas such as current affairs, global politics, international relations and They very often really engage with these issues and want to identify what sustainability. These issues are also covered through PSHE sessions and differences they can make. This, in turn, leads to a pleasing amount of we ensure that global issues are addressed, discussed and debated across a range of forums, including in debating club, through Equality Diversity student-led initiatives, such as charity fundraising events, special talks and Inclusion committees and Model United Nations. At Bedales, Global and publications.’ n

‘Ukrainian students are being housed by local families, current parents – we are excited by the contribution these pupils will make to our community and to see how they develop’

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SCHOOL HOUSE PARTNERSHIP

KS works very closely with The Chelsea Pensioners and often meet up to read poems together

WE BELIEVE IN GIVING BACK Knightsbridge School has its own code – the KS code – that ensures all its pupils understand the importance of making a positive contribution to their community

PHOTOS: BIRGIT TABBARAH

S

ince Knightsbridge School (KS) opened co-curricular clubs and offering its doors in 2006, it has grown from a staff training. Many KS pupils co-educational prep school for three to volunteer at the schools, some 11-year-olds to an all-through school that recently helped with sports now accommodates GCSE students. lessons for evacuee children During this time, the school has developed from Afghanistan. School the KS Code, a series of shared values that the captain Raika, who volunteers school’s multicultural community lives by. The at Marlborough Primary curriculum at KS allows students to pursue their School, described it as ‘the own individual path, from creative subjects to most humbling thing I have sciences, humanities, business and computing. ever done’.

The KS code reinforces the importance of KS understands the kindness and community, of being part of the importance of developing school family as well as the local community in each child’s unique qualities the area. All pupils at KS are encouraged to get as they embrace their own KS has supported 25 children with fully funded bursaries involved with fundraising for local future but knows it is equally charities and giving back to society. important that every child fully The Knightsbridge School understands the positive contribution that they Education Foundation (KSEF) was can make to society in their lifetimes. founded to support disadvantaged children in the local community to access a KS education. The school now raises funds for the KSEF to support 100 per cent bursaries to KS The KS code reinforces the – offering four fully funded meansimportance of kindness and community tested places a year, plus support with uniforms, music lessons and trips for older children. KS has so far supported 25 children through the school who have gone on to achieve fabulous results.

KS also has meaningful partnerships with two local primary schools – Ashburnham Community Primary School and Marlborough Primary School. KS raises funds for both schools and supports KS Seniors volunteering at Marlborough Primary school Place2Be activities in the schools, as well as providing access to SCHOOLHOUSEMAGAZINE.CO.UK | 35

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INSIDERS’ GUIDE

Expert advice on choosing the best school for a budding sports star. By Eleanor Doughty

I

f your child has a sporty side, how do you find a school that will really help them make the most of that? And how good is good enough to qualify for a scholarship or bursary? Our experts are on hand to explain.

THE PANEL: Nic Bond, Director of Sport, St Edward’s School, Oxford Katy Hudson, Director of Sport, Benenden School Russell McCluskey, Head of Sport, King’s College School Wimbledon Phil Greenaway, Director of Sport, Dulwich College

1

Is there a minimum standard of achievement needed to keep financial aid? Our sports awards

aren’t linked to bursaries and are worth £1,000 per annum. All sports awards applicants take an additional cognitive abilities pre-test. This ensures candidates, however talented in their field, will be able to access the academic opportunities and be comfortable academically. Parents sign a document confirming their child will take a full part in the life of the school, and continue to demonstrate effort and progress to the satisfaction of the director of sport.

Everything stays in place as long as the child doesn’t take their foot off the pedal academically – you can’t just play sport until the cows come home. Nic Bond

2

St Edward’s Oxford Ladies eight

If my child gets injured, what specialist care are they entitled to?

We have a physio clinic one night a week after school, and a well-resourced medical centre on site where we have multiple medical professionals, including paramedics.

We are looking at how we can expand the physio element, as ‘pre-hab’, rather than rehab.

Identifying something before it happens is so vitally important. Russell McCluskey

3

What contact do you have with Sport England to support further opportunities? We have a lot of coaches

who work with Sport England who will come in and support us, and some of our part-time coaches also work with Sport England to develop further links. We like to keep an eye on the initiatives run by UK Sport. Katy Hudson

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A Dulwich College team

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4 5

What commitments must they make back? Just as with any

other student we expect them to work hard, and we expect them to be great people, first and foremost. We expect them to learn lessons when they haven’t got it right and be a good member of the community. Phil Greenaway Can a sports scholarship lead to a professional career? Very

much so. We give pupils everything we can in pursuit of this and we get professionals in to talk about their pathways. Strength and conditioning is prominent, and we have got a wonderful facility for that. We also try through our fixture schedule to get academies from local teams to come and watch games, where they can then approach the pupils about joining their set-ups. Russell McCluskey

6

Kings’ College Wimbledon 1st XV rugby team against Caterham School

Can parents ever expect 100 per cent fee reduction? Yes,

absolutely. About 15 per cent of those we provide financial support to receive 70 per cent fee reduction or more. Some pupils will receive 100 per cent fee reduction and for some this might include books, equipment, and trips with the school that are part of their academic growth. Nic Bond

7

Do you have specialist physios for specialists who may play a lot? We don’t have specific physios

available for, say, cricketers or hockey players. All the boys are referred on to the physio service. That’s why the multi-sport philosophy is good – it’s not about the sport itself that they’re playing, but we want them to live really active lives. Phil Greenaway

8

What standard do you expect to be considered for a sports scholarship or bursary? We are looking for

talented sportspeople who have a great attitude and who are interested in developing themselves – they will make our best sports scholars, ultimately.

Attitude is as important as aptitude, and often it’s the attitude that decides how far they get. Katy Hudson

9

Are sports scholars also eligible for other awards – for example, music? Pupils

can hold a sport and academic scholarship together, but not a sport and music scholarship together.

This is because music and sport scholars need to make a particular commitment to that area. Russell McCluskey

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Agility training at Benenden School

10 11

Will a scholarship cover the cost of kit and equipment? No,

it’s not something that we cover. Phil Greenaway Do you encourage sports scholars to try new sports?

We expect our sports scholars to have the flexibility to try new sports. We play a lot of lacrosse at Benenden and a number of our sports scholars who come in at Year 9 haven’t played before, and they pick it up quickly.

We’re big believers in trying new sports and giving the girls a taste of different things – like volleyball or football. Katy Hudson

12

What pastoral support and advice is there for sports scholars? Our

pupils meet with members of the sports department on a bi-weekly basis to check in, and so we can ensure that they are managing their load adequately. This doesn’t just look at sport within school but addresses the load on award-holders from an external sports point of view, too. We also have a mentor system where senior pupils are linked with younger pupils: they meet on a termly basis to chat through any problems, and ask any questions that they don’t feel comfortable asking a member of staff. We get in speakers and put on workshops for pupils, and we have a psychologist that comes in to do group work so pupils can book private sessions if they wish. Nic Bond

TOP TIPS We don’t look for specialisation – we look for somebody who will give rugby a go, and play tennis, cricket, and basketball. We assess them on intangibles – those traits you look for in your best sportspeople: teamwork, communication, sportsmanship. Russell McCluskey I encourage parents to look at the school that is right for their child rather than the finance on offer. Don’t get hung up on sports scholarships – it’s hard to predict at 11 or 13.

We are in danger of over-professionalising sport for pupils in schools. Phil Greenaway Applying for a sports scholarship can be difficult, as athletes change so much during the years they’re trying.

Don’t worry if you go through the process and you don’t get the outcome you want. It doesn’t mean your child won’t get lots of support, and end up being a brilliant sportsperson. Katy Hudson Sometimes parents and pupils think having a sports award might pin you to one area, but we ensure pupils enjoy a range of activities, so sports awards holders sing, dance and play musical instruments too. Nic Bond n

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Will you help answer a child’s call for help?

No child should suffer abuse. But too many children are struggling alone with fear, violence, or neglect.

The NSPCC help millions of children through Childline and our school visits. We’re in every community, and we will keep fighting for young people whatever the future brings.

A child calls Childline every 25 seconds, and it is only with your support that we can be there for every child who needs us.

Together, we can change children’s lives. Together, we can stop abuse.

Please, search ‘NSPCC’ to donate today.

©NSPCC 2022. Registered charity England and Wales 216401. Scotland SC037717 and Jersey 384. Photo by Tom Hull. The children pictured are models.

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SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES

YOU’RE WORTH IT Scholarships don’t just carry kudos, finds Anna Tyzack. They are a powerful way to identify and encourage raw talent

Brighton Girls head Rosie McColl (right) showing off her skateboarding skills

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Inside St Edward’s Oxford art class

T

he proud parents of Eton College’s top scholars used to dodge paying school fees entirely, but today scholarship pots at Britain’s public schools are slim.

With the focus now on lending financial support to those who really need it via bursaries, scholars are lucky to save their parents five per cent on fees – many schools, Eton included, have scrapped non means-tested financial awards altogether.

‘I’m a big believer in fairness and widening access,’ maintains Alastair Chirnside, warden of St Edward’s Oxford, where the annual financial award attached to scholarships is now just £2,000, and £1,000 for an exhibition. ‘Those that shine at scholarship interviews at a young age often do so because of what they’ve had access to – the system needs to be fair.’

This does not mean, however, that fewer scholarships are being

awarded. The offering is broader than ever with academic, sport, art and drama scholarships now accompanied by awards for STEM, chess and individual sports including cricket, golf, swimming and riding; Brighton Girls’ School in Sussex even offers a skateboarding scholarship. According to the Good Schools Guide, certain schools still offer esoteric scholarships to the children of clergy, doctors, armed forces and single parents.

The Independent Schools Council (ISC), which represents more than 1,300 independent schools in the UK, reports that last year more than 59,000 students were awarded a non-means tested scholarship, each receiving an average of £3,380 per year. While bursaries have their own means-tested application process, many schools are more inclined to award a bursary to a child who has gained a scholarship.

The modern scholarship focuses less on financial reward and

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more on developing a pupil’s raw talent for the future. Many schools now offer scholars’ mentoring programmes, designed to inspire and promote continued scholarship and ensure pupils achieve a place at a prestigious university or drama school or a place on a national team.

‘It’s not about privilege but high expectations and opportunities to stretch oneself,’ explains Martin Priestley, headmaster of The Leys School in Cambridge.

Academic scholars at Sherborne Girls in Dorset, where the maximum non-means-tested award is £3,000, participate in seminars, discussions and debates reserved for the most able students, while at Brighton College in Sussex, chess scholars are offered the highest possible level of coaching to develop their skills.

Meanwhile, the drama scholar at Truro School receives one-to-one coaching to audition for the National Youth Theatre and Drama School and in the sixth form they’ll have the opportunity to perform at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and work with professional directors. The recipient of the Rachael Heyhoe Flint Cricket Award at Malvern College benefits from specialist cricket coaching, and Bradfield College football scholars are part of a highly regarded intensive football programme.

Suzie Longstaff, headmistress of Putney High

School in London, believes that modern scholarship should encourage rigour, analytical skills and an entrepreneurial style of thinking – all of which are required at university. ‘Taking ownership of your learning is a key ingredient in the recipe for scholarly success,’ she says.

It’s not acceptable for scholars to enjoy elevated status and extra support without giving back to the school community, though, Chirnside points out. At St Edward’s Oxford, scholars are expected to provide motivation and promote scholarliness across the whole school community and it’s the same at Sherborne Girls – scholars are expected to show leadership in and out of the classroom. At The Leys School, a scholarship is a responsibility to set a fine example in their conduct around the school.

‘An Eton scholar I met said it was one of the worst things to have happened to him – he was celebrated so greatly that aged 13 he thought he’d arrived,’ Chirnside explains. ‘A school has to be alive to the elitism of scholarships – you don’t want to applaud a child so loudly that they think they’ve cracked it.

‘One only has to attend a school reunion to see that the most successful are not always the scholars – scholarships are a means to an end, not the end itself.’

So what makes a good scholar? According to

The Leys pupils

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Mixed tennis teams from Sherborne School and Sherborne Girls

as it is to push your child to try for a scholarship, this should only be done if their prep school supports your decision.

The scholarship syllabus is tough on children, Chirnside warns; the ideas and concepts they are dealing with are harder, and if their understanding is shaky, they will find themselves struggling in their first year of senior school. ‘It’s better for them to enjoy their childhood rather than sweating through endless additional work,’ he says.

Besides, there is no longer just one chance for your child to be made a scholar. Increasingly schools are awarding them to deserving pupils at other junctures as well as the traditional 12+, 13+ and sixth form windows.

For example, at Wellington College in Berkshire, the seven highest A Putney High class academic accolades – named scholarships – along with sport, art, dance with teacher, Dr Shawcross and drama scholarships, are awarded at the end of Year 9, once teachers have got to know the intake, Louise Orton, senior deputy while at Sherborne Girls’, head of Sherborne Girls, awards are made to pupils who a scholar is someone who is have excelled in their GCSEs. endlessly curious, realises there ‘They don’t need to sit a is no such thing as a stupid scholarship exam – by this stage question, and is committed to we know who our scholars are,’ raising standards – their own Orton says. and that of the community.

St Edward’s Oxford awards While schools and parents honorary scholarships at the can teach an applicant what end of each year to pupils to expect at a scholarship who show a commitment to Louise Orton, senior deputy head, Sherborne Girls interview or exam, familiarising work hard and a willingness them with past papers and to inspire and serve others.

If a scholarship does not come your way, it’s worth remembering, offering interview practice, it’s impossible to coach them – they adds Chirnside, that scholarships per se are not important when it either have the X-factor or they don’t.

‘We prefer them not to be prepared,’ Orton says. ‘They need to comes to university applications; in tertiary education it’s the scholarly show a love of learning, curiosity and an ability to problem solve approach that counts. when handling something new.

‘Universities recognise the individual rather than any kind of ‘Our best interviews are with the least prepared candidates – a award,’ he explains. ‘Scholarship is a way of life and scholarliness should be encouraged within the school community as a whole.’ n scholar knows themselves and for this reason they shine.’ Tempting

‘Potential scholars need to show a love of learning, curiosity and an ability to problem solve when handling something new. Our best interviews are with the least prepared candidates – they shine out’

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“There is genius in every child” Everythings Education is now part of the GMA Group and specialises in Scholarships and Bursaries.

We deal with the whole child, put together an educational pathway for the child and SWOT analysis.

This helps us to match the child with the right school and university. We have relationships with schools around the UK, USA and Canada.

We have been successful with applications to Eton, Winchester, Cheltenham Ladies’ College, Shrewsbury and many more.

Need the right school for your child? Get in touch.

07426 219991 ecwalker@everythingseducation.com www.everythingseducation.com www.elainecunninghamwalker.com

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CLASS Acts Do bursaries change lives? Beyond belief – and in lots of surprising ways, as these former and current pupils confirm

Pupils at Royal Hospital School

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EMILIJA SHARPLES, The Royal Hospital School (RHS), Suffolk ‘Living abroad, I appreciate the boarding community’

I joined RHS in Year 7, with support from a Greenwich Hospital Bursary, as my father has served over 30 years in the Royal Navy. I joined as an academic and art scholar and am currently a full boarder from Luxembourg. I have lived abroad most of my life with my family and particularly appreciate the full-boarding community at RHS. After completing my GCSEs, which I got seven grade 9s and three grade 8s in, I will be going on to study English, history and psychology A-levels, in addition to an online course in film studies.

I want to study English, history or film at university.

I’ve also achieved grade five in piano while at RHS and hope to take grade five guitar next year. I particularly like being a member of the school’s Combined Cadet Force. One thing I appreciate about RHS is the range of opportunities available. It has allowed me to find new passions to pursue and helped me to manage my time as efficiently as possible, two things which I will surely value in the future. I enjoy the creative arts immensely; I have participated in both dramatic productions and musical performances at RHS, the highlight of which would have to be gig night!

AYISHA ALLI, Christ’s Hospital, West Sussex ‘It’s given me so many opportunities’

Christ’s Hospital (CH) has made me dream big and, as a result, my hopes for the future follow suit. The impact on my education and life experience has been extraordinary.

The most important things I have learnt are the power of resilience, perseverance, teamwork and enjoying yourself in the moment. Being at CH provided me with many opportunities like being able to do a range of sports; gaining work experience with British Airways; challenging myself by going mountain hiking; experiencing the thrill of flying an RAF glider plane, and more. It’s up to you to take these chances and experience as much as you can. Many of my friends at home are not at college or university, CH gave me the chance to progress to a top university – I now attend Loughborough – which is exciting. Hearing from former pupils about their journeys after CH inspires me further. The education I received at CH made me realise that whatever goal I want is attainable if I work hard for it.

If I hadn’t been able to attend CH, I believe I would still work as hard but there would have been less support in overcoming obstacles. I wouldn’t have the teacher support that CH gives, the online resources and the external competition. I think, without CH, I would believe less in my goals and just hope for the best, rather than going out to get the best.

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LAUREN GREEN, Wells Cathedral School, Somerset ‘I’ve had solid support the whole way through’

Lauren says: ‘Wells was my home from Year 10–13; I joined on a bursary looking for a school that combined high academic standards with really strong creative arts. I wanted to get top grades and a place at Edinburgh or King’s College, London but I also play guitar, piano and sing. It was important for me to combine both. At Wells, your peers are brilliant musicians and so productions are almost professional level. As well as joining in with music events like pop concerts, my main interest is in musical theatre so I got involved with the drama department quickly. But it’s not just about performance; I even had the chance to help organise a music festival, and designed the official wristband. What struck me first when I joined was how strong teacher-student relationships were; I always felt they were my friends and helpers, not authority figures. And the boarding house staff were kind and caring too. You really appreciate having someone to talk to when you need them. That friendly approach runs throughout the school; I found it easy to make friends and find my feet when I started. Now I’ve left, I am conscious that there has been that solid support all the way through, checking we’re OK and happy. I’ll certainly miss it.’

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DAN HATTON, Royal Grammar School Guildford ‘I threw myself into school life!’

I joined RGS Guildford on a bursary in 2004. At the time, I didn’t know what to expect. I remember feeling excited at starting a new school, but also nervous because I didn’t really know anyone there.

That changed soon after I joined – I threw myself into life at the school, playing sport, having discussions in class, trying new things, and getting involved. I met some incredible people doing this. I now live in London and work as a freelance product manager, a musician, and I run a business in the mental health space. But when I look back and consider what I took away from my time at the RGS, that sense of community is the thing that stands out to me. Some of my best friends to this day are the friends I made at RGS, and I doubt I would have had some of the experiences I have had – both from an education standpoint and personally – had I not gone to the school.

I loved my time as a bursary student, but it was not without challenges. My advice for anyone taking a bursary to a fee-paying school is this: seek the support you need to thrive at school.

I found it difficult to be surrounded by people from a different socio-economic background to myself. Though times have changed since I was at school, and diversity and inclusion is now rightly at the forefront of most company agendas, that does not mean that those on a bursary won’t feel these differences. I urge schools to focus on ways to positively integrate and support their bursary students.

JAMES ELLIS, St Peter’s York ‘I received so much support in getting to medical school’

Life at school was a big personal change. Joining at the age of 16, this was my first time away from home. Despite this, the fellow boys in the house and the house mistress were all welcoming to new arrivals. The routines certainly took time to get used to; particularly the early starts which I’m sure Mrs Williams, Linton House mistress at the time, would agree with! There were many memorable times throughout my two years of school and living in the boarding house.

After my A-levels, I moved on to King’s College, London to read medicine. With the academic aspect of the degree aside, thanks to a placement at St. Thomas’ Hospital, I was part of the national Covid vaccination effort. School shaped me in the immediate respect that the careers department was particularly supportive in mine and my peers’ journeys to medical school. On a more personal note, I believe the school developed me to become a more independent and rounded person following my experiences from boarding, which gave me a significant advantage when settling into university in my first year. In the current day, a significant proportion of students attending independent schools like ours receive a margin of financial support through the form of bursaries. It must be noted that my experiences would not have been made possible without some financial support from the school, which I am very thankful to have received. n SCHOOLHOUSEMAGAZINE.CO.UK | 49

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LONDON SCHOOLS

Portland Place School

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LONDON | SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES 2022/23

Alleyn’s School

V

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Co-educational excellence in a caring community. Help with school fees is available.

We offer a range of scholarship awards and means-tested bursaries at 11+ and 16+, including the W.J. Smith Award for exceptional musical promise.

Around 10% of Alleyn’s Senior School pupils receive means-tested financial assistance. Much of that help sees families pay no fees at all.

Register now for September 2023 entry at 11+ and 16+.

www.alleyns.org.uk 020 8557 1500 | Townley Road, Dulwich SE22 8SU

Located in the heart of the city, we offer an outward-looking, forward-thinking education that prepares our pupils for life.

Bursaries are available to pupils joining CLS, assisting parents of academically bright boys who would otherwise not consider private education.

cityoflondonschool.org.uk

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SCHOLARSHIPS A level and GCSE Preparation for Russell Group universities Personal tutors 54% A*A grades

ashbournecollege.co.uk | 020 7937 3858 SCHOOLHOUSEMAGAZINE.CO.UK | 51

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SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES 2022/23 | LONDON

Devonshire House Preparatory School

Devonshire House offers academic scholarships to children entering Year 3 (7+) and Year 4 (8+) who demonstrate exceptional ability through their performance in the Scholarship Examination.

2 Arkwright Road, Hampstead, NW3 6AE Tel: 020 7435 1916 Email: enquiries@dhprep.co.uk Website: www.devonshirehouseschool.co.uk

Follow us @DHSPrep

Apply for a free or subsidised place 200 pupils at Dulwich have free or subsidised places. Find out more and how to apply by scanning the QR Code below.

Bursaries of up to 100% of fees

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LONDON | SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES 2022/23

A full-boarding school for boys aged 13 to 18, founded in 1572 under a Royal Charter granted by Elizabeth I.

Nearly 250 of our pupils benefit from school fee assistance every year. www.harrowschool.org.uk

Admissions Office Harrow School, 5 High Street, Harrow on the Hill, Middlesex HA1 3HP Tel: 020 8872 8007 Email: admissions@harrowschool.org.uk

#whywelovehornsby

#Sparking Imaginations

To visit our school, call 020 8673 7573 or visit www.hornsbyhouse.org.uk Hearnville Road, SW12 8RS Telephone 020 8673 7573 school@hornsbyhouse.org.uk

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SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES 2022/23 | LONDON

Top boys’ or co-ed school in the UK The Sunday Times Parent Power 2017-2022

AN IB AND A LEVEL SCHOOL · BOYS 7-18 · GIRLS 16-18 020 8255 5300 · kcs.org.uk

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LONDON | SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES 2022/23

Scholarships and bursaries available Tel. +44 (0)1923 845514 Email. admissions@mtsn.org.uk

Merchant Taylors’ School, Sandy Lodge, Northwood, Middlesex HA6 2HT

www.mtsn.org.uk Moor Park (Baker Street 35 minutes) Coaches: Hampstead, Highgate, Ealing & St John’s Wood

Excellence, integrity and distinction since 1561

For boys 3 - 18

The family school of choice Providing an outstanding co-educational experience for children aged 3 - 18.

We offer a variety of Open Morning events throughout the year, plus various bursaries and scholarships.

020 8657 4433 www.royalrussell.co.uk

Under 30 minutes from Central London

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SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES 2022/23 | LONDON

Scholarships and Bursaries available at 11+ and 16+ To find out more, visit www.stdunstans.org.uk or email admissions@stdunstans.org.uk 020 8516 7200 - London, SE6 4TY

Having launched the School House Green Champion Award, School House will be creating more awards for brilliant initiatives in Sustainability, Pastoral Care and other Compassionate Areas of school communities WATCH TH IS S PACE

schoolhousemagazine.co.uk Email camilla@schoolhousemagazine.co.uk for more information

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LONDON | SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES 2022/23

Transforming boys’ lives through education…

Whitgift is one of Britain’s finest independent day and boarding schools for boys aged 10 to 18. Set in 45 acres of parkland, we offer pathways for IB and A Levels. To find out more about our School, please visit our website.

INDEPENDENT BOYS’ SCHOOL OF THE YEAR 2020

admissions whit ift co u

| T elephone: + 4 4 ( 0) 2 0 8 6 33 9 9 35 | hit ift School

alin

ar

www.whitgift.co.uk

South ro don

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COUNTRY SCHOOLS

Kingswood School, Bath

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COUNTRY | SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES 2022/23

GET BADMINTON OUR COMMUNITY Whole School Open Day Saturday 1 October 2022 Book your place online now | admissions@badmintonschool.co.uk | badmintonschool.co.uk

This is where you light your fire find your magic learn to love your mind

bryanston.co.uk/yourplace

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SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES 2022/23 | COUNTRY

DISCOVER YOUR TALENT AT CRANLEIGH WIDE RANGE OF SCHOLARSHIPS AND BURSARIES AVAILABLE REGISTERING NOW FOR 2024 AND 2025

ADMISSIONS@CRANLEIGH.ORG OR WWW.CRANLEIGH.ORG | 01438 276377

We are free thinkers.

We are courageous.

We are kind.

An extraordinary Pre-Prep and Prep School in Oxford where children discover and develop their talents inside the classroom and beyond. To get a feel for the spirit of the Dragon, book onto one of our termly open days on our website, or through our Admissions team admissions@dragonschool.org / 01865 315 405.

www.dragonschool.org

w

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I discovered my creative side

at T he Leys Scholarships

Achieve the exceptional at Cambridge’s leading co-educational boarding and day school for ages 11-18 www.theleys.net

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Academic Music Choral Sport Art STEM Drama 29/06/2022 16:13:43 22/09/2022 14:35

SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES 2022/23 | COUNTRY

SCHO LA AND B RSHIPS URSAR IES AVAILA BLE

www.k

Visit

esbath

for det

ails

.com

At d’Overbroeck’s, our teachers get to know every student who joins us as an individual. They build a relationship of mutual respect, and work together to unlock each student’s full potential.

Find out how your child can make their mark on the world and how we’ll make every moment of their education count.

START YOUR ADVENTURE HERE

SIXTH FORM OPEN EVENING FRIDAY 7TH OCTOBER SENIOR, JUNIOR & PRE-PREP OPEN MORNINGSATURDAY 8TH OCTOBER

doverbroecks.com

For Ages 3-18. Please register at kesbath.com or call 01225 820 399

A life-shaping education Haileybury offers a holistic education with personalised curriculum pathways for A levels and the IB Diploma Programme.

Established in 1862, Haileybury is a top co-educational boarding and day school for 11–18 year olds on a historic 500 acre campus in Hertfordshire, just 20 miles north of London.

For more information or to attend an upcoming Open Day, visit haileybury.com

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“

Being at Lancing has allowed me to be my best.

BOOK YOUR VISIT AT LANCINGCOLLEGE.CO.UK 2 Country Schools.indd 63

Be inspired Be brilliant Be you 22/09/2022 14:35

SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES 2022/23 | COUNTRY

EXCELLENT EXCELLENT

ISI inspection ISI inspection SIXTH FORM OPEN EVENING Wednesday 28 Sept 6pm to 8pm SIXTH FORM OPEN EVENING WHOLE SCHOOL OPEN MORNING Wednesday 28 Sept 6pm to 8pm Saturday 8 Oct 9.45am to 12 noon WHOLE SCHOOL OPEN MORNING Saturday 8 Oct 9.45am to 12 noon Day, Weekly and Full Boarding for Girls 11-18

To book, email registrar@heathfieldschool.net Day, Weekly and Full Boarding for Girls 11-18

heathfieldschool.net | +44 (0) 1344 898343 To book, email registrar@heathfieldschool.net

heathfieldschool.net | +44 (0) 1344 898343

Where potential meets opportunity An exceptional coeducational, full boarding education for 13-18 year olds

For details of admissions, scholarships and bursaries:

+44 (0)1672 892300 email: admissions@marlboroughcollege.org or visit: www.marlboroughcollege.org 5138 Country and Town House 129.5x195_[2].indd 1

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A community where you can flourish

DISCOVER OUR RANGE OF SCHOLARSHIPS pangbourne.com/scholarships Contact the Admissions Team: pangbourne.com | admissions@pangbourne.com | 0118 976 7415

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SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES 2022/23 | COUNTRY

DISCOVER BRILLIANCE millfieldschool.com/open-days

MILLFIELD & MILLFIELD PREP’S OPEN EVENTS 4 MARCH, 6 MAY 7 OCTOBER 2023

SOMERSET GIRLS AND BOYS, BOARDING AND DAY FOR AGES 2-18

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KIND HEARTS

FIERCE MINDS

STRONG SPIRITS

Queen Anne’s is an independent school for girls aged 11 to 18

Academic, Art, Drama, Music and Sports scholarships available Day, full boarding and flexi boarding Generous discounts for British Armed Forces FIND OUT MORE:

Means-tested bursaries and transformational Red Cloak Awards at up to 100% A Microsoft Showcase School 35 acres in the heart of Caversham, Berkshire

qas.org.uk

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ING I G AT N AV

S U CC

ESS

NAVIGATING SUCCESS DISCOVER YOUR PATHWAY

An ambitious and supportive boarding education based on the stunning Suffolk coast.

JOIN US FOR AN OPEN MORNING OR TASTER DAY Scholarships and Bursaries available ROYALHOSPITALSCHOOL.ORG Independent / Co-educational / Boarding & Day / Ages 11-18

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SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES 2022/23 | COUNTRY

Queen Ethelburga’s Collegiate

Sport scholarship days 8th & 9th March 2023

Academic scholarship days 24th & 25th January 2023 Set in more than 220 acres of beautiful North Yorkshire countryside

Welcoming day students from 3 months to 19 years and boarders from Year 3

www.qe.org

www.qe.org | admissions@qe.org | 01423 333330 | York YO26 9SS

O P E N D AY S 2 0 2 2 /2 0 2 3 13 + B O A R D I N G 2022: 12 November, 26 November 2023: 14 January, 4 February, 18 March 16 + ( 2 0 2 4 E N T R Y ) 2023: 4 March

w w w.r u g b y s c h o o l.co.uk

RUGBY SCHOOL

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EXTRAORDINARY POTENTIAL We know that every boy is an individual. We want each of our boys to find his own voice, to follow his own path. Our boys have the potential to surprise us and to surprise themselves.

For information about support with fees Find out more at

rgsg.co.uk An exceptional independent education for boys aged 3 to 18

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SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES 2022/23 | COUNTRY

Visit Shrewsbury The Independent School of the Year 2020 Boarding and Day School for Girls and Boys aged 13-18

admissions@shrewsbury.org.uk | shrewsbury.org.uk 01743 280 552

Start your journey now at:

shrewsbury.org.uk/open-days WINNER

Independent School of the Year 2020

SHORTLISTED

Boarding School of the Year

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WINNER

Community Outreach Award 2020

06/07/2022 15:56

Stowe is educating a generation of Change Makers ready to transform the world.

Yes, we teach pupils how to excel in exams, but we also teach them how to collaborate, how to solve problems and how to think critically. We equip them with the skills, resilience and ideas they need to adapt and thrive in a world that’s changing faster than ever before.

Scholarships and Bursaries are available.

We are Change Makers stowe.co.uk

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Roedea

Girls 11-18 Day / Boarding

OPEN DAYS 1 October 2022 4 March 2022 Book Your Place jco@roedean.co.uk

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REGISTRATIONS OPEN Scholarships and Bursaries offered

85.3% of GCSE grades awarded 9-7 (equivalent to A*-A) roedean.co.uk

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SC H O

SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES 2022/23 | COUNTRY

Individual attention,

academic achievement.

The results speak for themselves: outstanding public examination results (90% A*- A at A Level and 60% grades 9-7 at GCSE) place us well above the national average and prove the effectiveness of our small class sizes and individual attention.

Apply now for our next intake. Limited places available.

Sixth Form Scholarship applications for 2023 close on the 31st of October.

01787 278141 Stoke College 1/2p School House Magazine.indd 1

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For details of open events or to arrange a private visit

Independent Co-Ed Day and Boarding for 11-18 year olds

admissions@stokecollege.co.uk

stokecollege.co.uk

14/04/2022 07:42

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SC H A OL RA AR N SH G E IPS O F D AV IS AIL CI PL ABL IN E ES IN .

All

that they can be.

A SPRINGBOARD TO A LIFE OF PURPOSE A leading Catholic co-educational boarding and day school for pupils aged 3-18 years, set in 1000 acres of beautiful countryside.

Only two hours from London & one hour from regional international airports.

2022 | Open days

Sixth Form Open Evening | 22nd September Prep School Open Day | 8th October College Open Day | 15th October

Register here

Scholarship sittings start in November 2022 DISCOVER MORE AT: WWW.STONYHURST.AC.UK

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FROM TOP SPOTS

TO OLD SPOTS

The UK’s International Mathematical Olympiad (IMO) team is made up of the country’s top six school-age mathematicians. Two Tonbridge boys were selected to represent the UK at this year’s competition in Oslo.

This is only the second time in two decades that two IMO members have been chosen from the same school.

Also known for their intelligence are our Old Spots – a versatile breed of pig that are great favourites here in our School Orchard, and along with our bees provide valuable lessons of a slightly different kind.

For more on Scholarships and Bursaries see: tonbridge-school.co.uk/admissions/scholarships-bursaries

Arrange a visit: admissions@tonbridge-school.org tonbridge-school.co.uk

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DIRECTORY

New Beacon School

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LONDON | SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES 2022/23

London 51

Alleyn’s School Townley Road, London SE22 8SU T: 020 8557 1500 alleyns.org.uk

51

Ashbourne College 17 Old Ct Pl London W8 4PL T: 020 7937 3858 ashbournecollege.co.uk

51

City of London School Queen Victoria Street, London EC4V 3AL T: 020 3680 6300 cityoflondonschool.org.uk

52 Devonshire House Prep 2 Arkwright Road, London, NW3 6AE T: 020 7435 1916 devonshirehouseschool.co.uk

29 Eaton House The Manor Girls’ School 58 Clapham Common Northside, Losndon SW4 9RU T: 020 3917 5050 eatonhouseschools.com 29 Eaton House The Manor Nursery 58 Clapham Common Northside, London SW4 9RU T: 020 3917 5050 eatonhouseschools.com 29 Eaton House The Manor Prep & Pre-Prep School 58 Clapham Common Northside, London SW4 9RU T: 020 3917 5050 eatonhouseschools.com 6

52 Dulwich College Dulwich Common, London SE21 7LD T: 020 8299 8432 dulwich.org.uk

Godolphin & Latymer School Iffley Rd, London W6 0PG T: 020 8741 1936 godolphinand latymer.com

29 Eaton House Belgravia Nursery 3-5 Eaton Gate, London SW1W 9BA T: 020 3917 5050 eatonhouseschools.com

53 Harrow School 5 High St, Harrow HA1 3HP T: 020 8872 8000 harrowschool.org.uk

29 Eaton House Belgravia Prep & Pre-Prep 3–5 Eaton Gate, London SW1W 9BA T: 020 3917 5050 eatonhouseschools.com

53 Hornsby House Hearnville Road, Balham, London SW12 8RS T: 020 8673 7573 hornsbyhouse.org.uk

55 Royal Russell School Coombe Lane, Croydon London CR9 5BX T: 020 8657 4433 royalrussell.co.uk

54 Kew College Prep 24–26 Cumberland Road, Kew, Surrey TW9 3HQ T: 020 8940 2039 kewcollegeprep.com 54 King’s College Wimbledon Southside, Wimbledon Common, London SW19 4TT T: 020 8255 5300 kcs.org.uk 35 Knightsbridge School 67 Pont Street, London SW1X 0BD T: 020 7590 9000 knightsbridge school.com 31

31

Latymer Upper School King St, London W6 9LR T: 020 8807 4037 latymer-upper.org Latymer Prep School 36 Upper Mall, London W6 9TA T: 020 7993 0061 latymerprep.org

55 Merchant Taylors’ School Sandy Lodge, Northwood HA6 2HT T: 01923 820644 mtsn.org.uk

56 St Dunstan’s College Stanstead Road, London SE6 4TY T: 020 8516 7200 stdunstans.org.uk 8

St Philip’s School 6 Wetherby Place, South Kensington, London SW7 4NE T: 020 7373 3944 stphilipsschool.co.uk

25 Trinity School Shirely Road, Croydon, London CR9 7AT T: 020 8656 9541 trinity-school.org 57 University College School Hampstead Frognal, Hampstead London NW3 6XH T: 020 7435 2215 ucs.org.uk 57 Whitgift School Haling Park, South Croydon, London CR2 6YT T: 020 8688 9222 whitgift.co.uk

IBC MPW London 90–92 Queen’s Gate, London SW7 5AB T: 020 7835 1355 mpw.ac.uk

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SCHOLARSHIPS & BURSARIES 2022/23 | COUNTRY

Country 59 Badminton School Westbury Rd, Westbury-on-Trym, Bristol BS9 3BA T: 0117 905 5271 badmintonschool.co.uk 59 Bryanston School Blandford, Dorset DT11 0PX T: 01258 452411 bryanston.co.uk 2

Christ’s Hospital Horsham, West Sussex RH13 0LJ T: 01403 211293 christs-hospital.org.uk

62 King Edward’s School, Bath North Rd, Claverton Down, Bath BA2 6HU T: 01225 464313 kesbath.com 63 Lancing College Lancing, West Sussex BN15 0RW T: 01273 452213 lancingcollege.co.uk 61

The Leys School Cambridge CB2 7AD T: 01223 508900 theleys.net

71

Roedean School Roedean Way Brighton, Sussex BN2 5RQ T: 01273 667500 roedean.co.uk

74 67 Royal Hospital School Holbrook, Ipswich IP9 2RX T: 01473 326200 royalhospitalschool.org 68 Rugby School Lawrence Sheriff St, Rugby, Warwickshire CV22 5EH T: 01788 556216 rugbyschool.co.uk

60 Cranleigh School Horseshoe Lane, Cranleigh, Surrey GU6 8QQ T: 01483 273666 cranleigh.org

64 Marlborough College Bath Rd, Marlborough Wiltshire SN8 1PA T: 01672 892388 marlboroughcollege.org

60 Dragon School Bardwell Road, Oxford OX2 6SS T: 01865 315400 dragonschool.org

66 Millfield School Butleigh Road, Street, Somerset BA16 0YD T: 01458 442291 millfieldschool.com

70 Shrewsbury School The Schools, Shrewsbury Shropshire SY3 7BA T: 01743 280500 shrewsbury.org.uk

65 Pangbourne College Pangbourne Road, Reading, Berkshire RG8 8LA T: 011889 842101 pangbourne.com

5

62 d’Overbroeck’s 333 Banbury Road, Oxford OX2 7PL T: 01865 688600 doverbroecks.com 62 Haileybury Haileybury, Hertford SG13 7NU T: 01992 706200 haileybury.com 64 Heathfield School London Rd, Ascot SL5 8BQ T: 01344 898343 heathfieldschool.net BC Hurtwood House Holmbury St Mary, Dorking, Surrey RH5 6NU T: 01483 279000 hurtwoodhouse.com

66 Queen Anne’s Caversham 6 Henley Road Reading RG4 6DX, T: 01189 187300 qas.org.uk 68 Queen Ethelburga’s Thorpe Underwood Estate, York YO26 9SS T: 01423 333300 qe.org 69 RGS Guildford High St, Guildford Surrey GU1 3BB T: 01483 880600 rgsg.co.uk

70 Stowe School Stowe, Buckingham MK18 5EH T: 01280 818000 stowe.co.uk

7

Sherborne School Abbey Road, Sherborne Dorset DT9 3AP T: 01935 812249 sherborne.org

St Peter’s School, York Clifton, York, YO30 6AB T: 01904 527300 stpetersyork.org.uk

75 Taunton School Taunton School, Staplegrove Road, Somerset TA2 6AD T: 01823 703703 tauntonschool.co.uk 76 Tonbridge School High St, Tonbridge, Kent, TN9 1JP T: 01732 304297 tonbridge-school.co.uk 77 Wells Cathedral School 15 The Liberty, Wells, Somerset BA5 2ST T: 01749 834200 wells.cathedral.school

St Edward’s Oxford Woodstock Rd, Oxford, OX2 7NN T: 01865 319200 stedwardsoxford.org

72 St Mary’s Calne Calne, Wiltshire SN11 0DF T: 01249 857206 stmaryscalne.org 72 Stoke College Ashen Lane, Stoke by Clare, Sudbury Suffolk CO10 8JE, T: 01787 278141 stokecollege.co.uk 73 Stonyhurst College Stonyhurst, Clitheroe Lancashire BB7 9PZ T: 01254 827073 stonyhurst.ac.uk

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TAILORED NOT UNIFORM When it comes to a good education, one size does not necessarily fit all.

At MPW, one of the UK’s best known names in fifth and sixth-form education, we offer a distinctive alternative to traditional schools.

A levels and GCSEs in over 45 subjects Retakes, Easter Revision courses and Year 12 transfers Personal tutors providing individual academic and pastoral support Oxbridge-style tutorial groups with nine students or fewer Excellent results and progression to top tier universities Best in class inspection reports from the ISI and Ofsted

MPW allows you to excel both academically and personally.

Pastoral support coupled with personalised lessons and the continuous assistance from all members of staff have made my experience extraordinary and have shaped my future in the best way possible!

Polina (MPW London) achieved A*A*A*A* at A level. Now reading Accounting and Finance at King’s College.

Discover MPW for yourself – visit www.mpw.ac.uk or call us to book your visit.

London 020 7835 1355

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Birmingham 0121 454 9637

Cambridge 01223 350 158

13/09/2021 16:44

YES, IT’S A CRYING SHAME…

…that she left it too late to apply for Hurtwood House, because it’s simply the best for acting, dancing, singing, film-making – “A utopia for creative minds” – as the Good Schools Guide says.

And crucially, this exciting school is equally successful academically. In fact, it’s statistically one of the top co-ed boarding schools in the UK. So, if you’re looking for a really exciting and rewarding change of school at 16 – don’t leave it too late.

Contact Cosmo Jackson or visit our website for more information.

T: 01483 279000

E: info@hurtwood.net

hurtwoodhouse.com

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