10 minute read
A priceless education
SIMON BALDERSON, Deputy Head Academic at Westonbirt School, Gloucestershire outlines the financial paths open to families who would otherwise struggle with the cost of school fees
At rst glance, the cost of independent education looks prohibitively expensive for all but the most well o . However, when one considers the various bene ts provided in the all-encompassing approach to education embodied by many independent schools, especially those with a boarding community, it can be signi cantly more cost-e ective than it might initially appear. Add to that the discounts o ered by virtually all independent schools as bursaries and scholarships, as well as funding available from charitable organisations, and the entire proposition seems much more enticing. e fee structure at most independent schools is fairly similar, usually being charged by the term. Some charge a at fee, whereas others increase as the child moves through the school. Whatever the structure, it’s o en worth speaking to the bursar, if a di erent payment plan would suit you. Schools will o en try their best to be accommodating and, particularly over the recent pandemic, many will have o ered discounts, established hardship funds, or deferred payments for families who needed to respond to nancial changes brought about by a change in circumstances.
Around the clock
e overall cost of education is always worth considering, when thinking about whether to send your child to an independent school. Many independent schools provide wraparound care, with breakfast clubs, a longer school day, and a variety of sport, music, clubs, societies, and activities which would incur a cost outside of school. e exibility of being able to drop your child o early or pick them up later in the a ernoon, knowing s
Westonbirt o ers wraparound care for its students, from afterschool clubs to music lessons
Boarding pupils have allocated time in the evenings for homework
that they’ve had an active and ful lling day, is hugely important, and compares favourably to the logistical challenge many families face in ferrying their children between multiple external clubs. At Westonbirt, swim squad and breakfast and politics club start at around 7.30am, while the boarders’ book club, runs late into the evening. Weekend activities are also open to all day pupils, giving families plenty of options, when they need to be exible.
Town or country?
House prices will o en be signi cantly higher in the catchment area of good state schools and so many families pay the cost of education in a mortgage, rather than directly to the school. e pandemic has prompted many families to consider a move to the countryside, and they can be pleasantly surprised by the di erence in house prices compared to London, and o en with an outstanding school on the doorstep.
Boarding, of course, comes at a much higher cost than a day place, but with the peace of mind that your children are being cared for 24 hours a day, with a rich programme of sport and activities, time for completing their homework and socialising with their friends in the evenings and weekends during term time. Many schools have increased the provision of weekly and exi-boarding over recent years, allowing families access to the many bene ts of boarding, but giving much more exibility to spend quality time with their children.
Bursaries and scholarships
ere are multiple routes to nd support for independent school fees and many schools are happy to assist families in nding these. Scholarships and exhibitions are available in most schools for outstanding candidates in maths, music, sport, drama, or whatever the individual school has chosen to focus on. Each school has its own character and pro le, which will a ect the nature and value of scholarships, but families might expect to receive a ve to 10 per cent discount on fees (although they may go much higher in certain schools), usually with some extra provision, such as sports coaching or music lessons built in to the award.
Strathallan School o ers exceptional arts facilities
Support system
Godolphin & Latymer showed huge generosity of spirit during the pandemic, ensuring its success as inner of the utstanding esponse to ovid a ard
The Bridge outreach programme helped support learning across 40 state primary schools
Goldolphin & Latymer’s new outreach Bridge programme quickly moved online, with nearly 40 primary state school students logging on to sessions via live Google Meet using iPads provided where necessary. e school’s Higher
Education Undiscovered Subjects event, introducing university subjects not normally taught in schools, was relaunched as a series of online lectures which were well-attended by students from its state partner senior schools.
Debating continued to ourish online:
Godolphin hosted debating workshops for year seven and eight pupils from local state schools and its teams regularly competed remotely against other teams, including schools from the US and Spain. e Ancient World Breakfast
Club, with more than 200 members from the local community, moved online, allowing for speakers from across the world, and generating more than 4,000 podcast listens. e local community was also invited to the school’s virtual Christmas Stallholders Bazaar.
Its Friday Lunchtime Recital series went virtual on SoundCloud and has received over 40,000 plays. Students,sta , parents and alumnae competed in the Weekly Wellness Workout challenge, together running, cycling and scooting all the way to Australia! e Daily
Dolphin student newsletter and video messages from teachers kept pupils connected and spirits upli ed while sta enjoyed a Weekly Wellness
bulletin. Little Ones was also launched via Google Meets for sta with small children to share tips and support each other. e school’s alumnae newsletter was published weekly during the rst lockdown, and Christmas and birthday cards were sent out to some of its oldest Old Dolphins. A record number of parents also signed up for Godolphin & Latymer’s online quiz nights.
In the wider community, the school linked up with Certitude, one of London’s leading adult social care providers, to supply PPE to sta in care homes, and the 1st XI Hockey Squad ran 3,000km in 30 days to raise more than £9,000 for NHS Charities Together. Students made face masks for the local community, laundry bags for the NHS Rapid Response Appeal and volunteered with local community groups to support vulnerable people; one student was featured on the BBC news report, Corona Kindness. DofE students contributed 3,224 hours of voluntary service to the local community; pupils and teachers collected and donated food to the local Hammersmith and Fulham Foodbank, presents for the Salvation Army Christmas Appeal and raised funds for Children in Need.
Students supported Ready Tech Go, Battersea Power Station and Wandsworth Council by donating used laptops and tablets for children who didn’t otherwise have access to the internet. e Head Girl set up Mentor Jr and recruited fellow sixth formers to provide free online mentoring and tutoring to local primary school pupils. Lower sixth students set up the online Pulsar Science Magazine for primary-age children to support their interest in science and help with their learning.
Scholarships and exhibitions are often available for outstanding students at independent schools
Candidates can expect to go through a selection process, with at least one or two interviews, as well as a test relevant to the subject they’re applying for.
In addition to scholarships, bursaries provide a means-tested element, to provide assistance to families who need nancial support. ese can be anything up to 100 per cent of school fees, depending on the school and the candidate.
Families will o en be asked to undergo a nancial assessment, sometimes conducted by an external company, to establish what the right level of support is. Some schools will have established endowments, with the particular purpose of supporting bursaries, whereas others might nd funding from their alumni association or other groups. At Westonbirt, our alumni association, through its memorial bursary, has doubled the number of children it supports as a direct response to Covid-19 and the need to support parents. ere are many trusts and charities which also support children through independent education. e Royal National Children’s Springboard Foundation, for example, has a link with the Boarding Schools’ Association, supporting children who are either in care, or have been identi ed by their Local Authorities as being ‘in need’, to access boarding school bursary places. Each of these trusts will have a particular focus, possibly to support choral singing, or families from the armed forces, and will have their own application procedures. However, it’s well worth investigating these options to help fund your child’s place.
UCS in London o ers music scholarships
Sandroyd is a registered Pony Club Centre and riding school
CASE STUDY HOW I DID IT
Westonbirt alumna, Hattie shares her experience of achieving her academic dream of a bursary for her sixth form studies at the school. Having achieved top grades in her A-levels, she’s now studying a degree in architecture at University of Edinburgh
When did you apply for a bursary? In the autumn term, when I was in year 11 at a state secondary school.
What did you know about bursaries?
Only a small amount, but I knew it was the only way I could achieve my dream of going to Westonbirt for sixth form so I did my research!
Did you apply for a bursary at any other schools?
No, I only applied to Westonbirt.
Do you have bursary provision for the entirety of your school life?
The bursary funded me through my sixth form years at Westonbirt.
What qualities do you have to have to consider applying for a bursary?
I think you have to be motivated, as it does take more e ort to apply for a bursary but for me that e ort more than paid o . It was really my only option for studying at Westonbirt and it was my dream to do that. I also think it helps if you’re confident, but it also helps build your confidence.
Which members of sta knew that you had a bursary and did the other pupils know?
Some members of sta knew and some peers, but it made absolutely no di erence to my experience of being a student at Westonbirt, and I was in no way defined by it.
What impact has receiving a bursary had on you and your family?
The impact on my life has been huge! I’ve been lucky to experience both the state and the independent sectors for secondary education and so I have direct comparisons of both. For me, an independent education at sixth
I THINK YOU HAVE TO BE MOTIVATED, as it does take more effort to apply for a bursary, BUT FOR ME THAT EFFORT MORE THAN PAID OFF. I ALSO THINK IT HELPS IF YOU’RE CONFIDENT
form has given me an amazing set of friends and connections from all walks of life and cultural backgrounds, I literally have a global address book now! I think that will prove a great stepping stone to university life, as I know that I will meet many di erent types of people when I go on to study architecture at the University of Edinburgh this year, and I feel well prepared for that now.
What was one of the main di erences between your previous school and Westonbirt?
The teachers at my state school were great, but the small class sizes at Westonbirt meant that teachers had so much more time for giving me individual attention, and I believe it’s that one-to-one approach that has helped me to gain the grades I did at A-level, meaning that I can now pursue my dream of studying architecture at Edinburgh!
Anything else?
Also, my close connections with the alumni association at Westonbirt and the bursary they o ered have meant that I’ve become the year group rep for our leavers’ year and am tasked with keeping in touch with the school and the alumni association, which is a great opportunity and a role I shall enjoy enormously.
