Former Pupil Funds Transformational Bursaries

Four new Sixth Form bursaries are to become available at Bolton School Boys’ Division, thanks to a £100,000 donation from Old Boy Adam Crook.

Adam, who left Bolton School in 1992, has recently been promoted to the partnership at Goldman Sachs, the American investment banking firm, and the donation has been arranged through the Goldman Sachs (GS) Gives Fund. The fund can be used by Partners at their discretion to support charities and projects which meet key criteria, including social mobility – a key strategic priority for the School which it helps deliver through its bursary scheme.

From September 2021, and for the following three academic years, a bursary recipient will begin their studies in the Sixth Form of the Boys’ Division, having had their fees paid in full by the Adam Crook/GS Gives Bursary. The recipients will be chosen after consideration of their academic ability and their family’s financial circumstances, in line with the School’s bursary criteria.

Adam has strong personal reasons for wanting to make the donation. He reflected: ‘Looking back at my own family history, it’s only really in the last couple of generations that there has been genuine potential for social mobility, through access to education and a broader more meritocratic society. Education is transformational and for my grandparents, growing up in Bolton, today’s opportunities were just not available. Every child should have the opportunity to fulfil their academic potential and that shouldn’t just be a function of where you grow up or whether your parents can afford it.’

Looking back on his time at Bolton School, Adam said: ‘I do think the school offers something unique and truly opens children’s eyes to opportunities in the community and beyond. I would love to be able to support some of those children who can’t take advantage of these opportunities because of family circumstances.’

‘Being at a US firm, the ethos of donating to a former school or college is quite engrained. It made sense to me, along with some other things I am doing with Veterans’ charities, to give something back to my old school and community. The school Bursary Scheme does an excellent job broadening access to education across the community and I would encourage any former pupil, who finds him- or herself in a position where they are able to help, to consider contributing to this effort.’

Adam is looking forward to acting as a mentor to the recipients of the Adam Crook/GS Gives Bursary, if they would like this, and to offering them advice and guidance as they navigate their Sixth Form studies and beyond.

Headmaster of the Boys’ Division at Bolton School, Philip Britton, said: ‘These bursaries will make a difference not just to the young people who receive them but also to those in the communities they will be part of in later life as they live out the values that we promote here and use their talents for the greater good. There could be no better example of that than Adam’s own personal success leading to him giving these bursaries.’

During the last academic year, Bolton School spent £2.89m supporting bursary places for able students whose family circumstances meant they would otherwise be unable to attend. Currently 350, one in five, Senior School pupils receives financial help with their schooling, with one third of recipients – 6% of the pupil body – receiving fullyfunded bursaries. The School remains intent upon its long-term ambition to deliver needs-blind access to the transformational education it offers, and this gift will make a significant contribution to that aim.

To date, GS Gives has made nearly $1.8 billion in grants and partnered with 8,000 non-profitable organisations in 100 countries around the world.