St Christopher School is committed to ensuring that pupils who would benefit from an education at St Chris are not excluded from entering the School owing to their financial circumstances by
offering means tested financial support with school fees to pupils who meet the School’s admissions criteria.
This support is known as a Bursary. Bursaries are awarded in the form of a fee discount ranging from 5% – 100% in cases of proven need, depending on the individual circumstances of the individual.
St Chris is also committed to ensuring that no current pupil should have to be withdrawn part-way through a stage of their education owing to unforeseen financial difficulties, by offering means tested hardship support.
St Chris has charitable status and therefore the Governors have an obligation to ensure that the limited pool of available funds is used prudently to support parents who otherwise would not be able to send their child to the School.
Parents of new pupils entering the School from the age of 9+ (Year 5) who are of limited financial means, can apply for a Bursary award.
Bursaries are not offered to pupils on admission to the Nursery or Junior School in years Reception to Year 4. Current pupils moving up to Senior School from Junior School at 11+ are eligible to apply. Overseas applicants are not normally eligible to apply for a Bursary.
St Chris prioritises those pupils already living in the vicinity of the School, particularly those in the socio-economically deprived postcodes of Letchworth.
As a guide, the following criteria provide an outline of the circumstances in which a household might be eligible for Bursarial support:
St Chris considers that the following would not be consistent with the receipt of a Bursary award:
These lists are not exhaustive.
In the first instance, please register your child via the School’s online admissions portal and indicate that you would like to apply for a Bursary on the Registration Form.
You will then be sent a link to the secure online Bursary Application Form. This must be completed by Friday 29 November 2024 for all year groups for those pupils looking to join the School in September 2025.
Means-testing is conducted in partnership with a third party Bursary Assessment Associates.
Parents are required to fill in an online form, provide evidence of their financial circumstances and a representative from Bursary Assessment Associates will either visit you at home or meet with you online. The application process is covered in detail in our Bursary Policy.
Bursaries are reviewed annually and the award may be varied upwards or downwards, depending on financial circumstances.
The Bursary application process is separate to the admissions process. However, Bursaries will only be offered to pupils who have met the admissions criteria for entry to the School. Where demand for Bursaries exceeds funds available, awards will be made on the basis of our assessment of an applicant’s potential, including, but not limited to, their performance in our entrance tests. Each pupil to whom financial support is offered must, in the opinion of the Head, be likely to make sound academic progress following admission, possess the potential to develop the quality of their work, and benefit from participation in the wider, extra-curricular activities on offer at the School.
Scholarships are merit-based and involve an assessment such as an entrance exam or an interview and portfolio assessment.
Scholarships and financial assistance are not connected and have a separate application process. However, it is possible for a pupil to receive a scholarship in addition to financial assistance.
Click here for further information about the Scholarships we offer.
Pupils who are awarded a full (100%) Bursary will also be offered support with extras such as lunches, educational trips, transport to school, and exam fees. Pupils on lower Bursary awards are expected to pay for extras, however St Chris endeavours to minimise additional costs to parents.
Further details are available in our Bursary Policy.
Once St Chris has assessed whether the pupil meets our admissions criteria, parents will be advised of whether their child has been offered a place at the School, whether or not a Bursary will be available, and the confirmed Bursary offer to be awarded should the parents accept the place for their child at St Chris.
We will endeavour to inform parents as soon is as reasonably possible within the Bursary application process if they clearly fall outside the criteria for Bursary support so that families can decide whether or not to proceed with an application.
Parents of existing pupils whose ability to pay the fees has declined significantly owing to unforeseen circumstances may apply for a hardship award.
Such awards are granted on a termly basis and priority will be given to pupils in the GCSE or A-Level years. In exceptional circumstances where parents require assistance for more than one term it is necessary to re-apply.
In the first instance please speak to the Director of Finance and Operations, Simon Holmes (dofo@stchris.co.uk) if you wish to apply for a hardship award.
The Robertson Bursary Trust was set up by the Robertson family, who have for many years been part of the St Christopher community as pupils, active Old Scholars and Governors.
Each year The Robertson Bursary Trust funds places for pupils to attend our Sixth Form, up to a maximum of 100% fees remission. Fee assistance through the Trust can cover day or boarding fees.
The deadline for submitting Fee Assistance applications for entry into Sixth Form is the same as is detailed above under the question “How do I apply for a Bursary?”
If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact our Director of Finance and Operations, Simon Holmes (dofo@stchris.co.uk), who can address all queries about financial assistance with fees.
Our full Bursary Policy can be found here:
