Supporting You Financially

Students must be aged 16 or over but under 19 at 31 August 2024 to be eligible for help from the bursary fund in the 2024 to 2025 academic year.

Students aged 19 or over are only eligible for discretionary bursary if they are continuing on a course they began aged 16-18 or have an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP).

Students aged 19 or over are not eligible for an enhanced bursary in any case.

Students must have good attendance.

Support will be subject to evidence of effort, good attendance and work performance.  Students will be expected to adhere to the college Code of Conduct and support may be withheld if students become subject to formal disciplinary action (this will be advised by a member of Senior Management during any disciplinary meeting).

Students should show that they have a financial need (see application for details). If there are no relevant costs to meet then college may refuse an application.

Students qualifying for an enhanced bursary may receive support up to a value of £1,200 per year. Students with a financial need may be eligible for an enhanced bursary if they are either;

• in care
• care leavers
• receiving Income Support, or Universal Credit in student’s own name (if you need help obtaining relevant evidence, contact your Work Coach).
• receiving either Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) or Universal credit in student’s own name AND either Disability Living Allowance (DLA) or Personal Independence Payments (PIP) in students own name. (you must be in receipt of both benefits and provide evidence for each one).
• an unaccompanied asylum seeking child (UASC) – under 18 only. See separate ‘Further information for Asylum Seekers’ section for details.

Students qualifying for enhanced bursary may still be eligible to receive some discretionary bursary provided they also fill the criteria for discretionary bursary and have significant financial need.  Contact the Student Finance team for further details.

Discretionary bursary is assessed on household income. Applications will only be successful if gross household assessed income is £30,000 or below, for those receiving Tax Credits. For households receiving Universal Credit, assessed net income should be £24,000 or below to qualify.

Household income is usually classed as the income of parents/guardians only. Income information is not required for any additional adults living at the same address eg. Grandparents or adult siblings.

If receiving Universal Credit…

You should provide the latest three monthly statements, these must be consecutive and the most recent available. All pages of each statement showing a full breakdown must be provided, these can be found by logging on to your account and clicking the hyperlink for each month. If you are having difficulty accessing your monthly statements contact the Job Centre for assistance.

If you have been receiving Universal Credit for less than three months please provide all statements you have available and notify student finance by email of the start date.

If not receiving Universal Credit…

• Disability Living Allowance/Personal Independence Payments (PIP)
• Child Benefit
• Childcare element of Working Tax Credits
• Disability element of Working/Child Tax Credits
• Housing Benefit/Council Tax Benefit
• Rent from lodgers/letting rooms
• Child maintenance
• Bank or Building Society interest

Free meals will automatically also be awarded if the student or parent/guardian are in receipt of any of the following;

• Income Support
• Income-based Jobseekers Allowance
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
• Support under part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
• The guarantee element of Pension Credit
• Child Tax Credit (provided they are not entitled to Working Tax Credit and have an annual gross income no more than £16,190 as assessed by Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC))
• Working Tax Credit run-on – paid for 4 weeks after someone stops qualifying for Working Tax Credit
• Universal Credit with net earnings not exceeding the equivalent of £7,400pa

Free meals will be equivalent to £3 per day. Credit of £15 will be available on student ID cards and the UPAY app, and will be refreshed each week. Any remaining credit will be lost at the end of each week.

We are pleased to announce that the Travel Grant will continue for 2024/25.   The Travel Grant will consist of either an allowance towards a New College bus pass or grant payments to help with the cost of public transport or other travel.  Applications will automatically be assessed for a Travel Grant when an application is submitted to the Bursary & Free Meals Scheme. *Please note terms and conditions apply, evidence of travel costs will also be required.

If you (the student) are a young parent in receipt of Care to Learn then the college bursary may be able to provide further help with childcare costs where these costs exceed the weekly maximum rate for the Care to Learn scheme.  Please contact Student Finance for further information.

Support will be provided in 2 ways. You may receive credit for our online store so you can purchase bus passes, revision guides, books and equipment and other college items. You may also receive payment for items where receipts will be requested.

Payments can only be made by BACS transfer into a bank account held in the student’s own name.  If there are special circumstances why a student cannot hold their own bank account this must be discussed with Student Finance before the application is submitted. You will be unable to submit an application without providing student bank details. 

For any bursary payments students receive in cash, college may request receipts as proof of purchases to support their studies.  It is the student’s own responsibility to keep receipts for the duration of year.

Provided a student meets the required criteria and has financial need they will be eligible to receive a maximum of £1,200 in support over the academic year 2024/25. Students may receive a reduced award or may be refused an award dependant on the student’s financial need.

Any support awarded will be subject to evidence of effort, good attendance and work performance. Students will be expected to adhere to the college code of conduct and support may be withheld if students become subject to formal disciplinary action (this will be advised by a member of senior management during any disciplinary meeting). Support amounts will be made based on the actual participation needs of each individual student.

If a student withdraws from college, support will be stopped from the date of the withdrawal. College reserves the right to ask for any monies paid in advance to be returned.

Calculations can be provided on request for information on why an application has been declined. Contact Student Finance for details.

To appeal a decision, a cover letter should be sent along with any relevant additional supporting evidence. Appeals are referred to the Trust Finance Manager in first instance. Any further query is referred to Trust Director of Finance.