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16-19 Bursary

The Education & Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) continues to provide the Bursary Fund to help 16 to 19 year olds continue in full-time education, where they might otherwise struggle for financial reasons.   

Bursary awards are used to provide learners with specific financial support to enable them to remain in education. They are intended to help learners with the essential costs of participating in their study programme, which could include financial assistance for; – 

  • Essential books
  • Essential equipment
  • Home to school transport
  • Field trips, and
  • Other course–related costs etc.

Bursary awards cannot be made to; – 

  • Support general household income
  • Support extra-curriculum activities where these are not essential to the learners study programme, or
  • Fund learning support services such as counselling, mentoring or extra tuition.

The ESFA requires us to assess the actual financial needs of individual learners when making bursary awards. Therefore, learners will need to specify clearly within their application how much funding they consider they require and how it will be spent. We are no longer able to provide certain groups of learners, such as those in receipt of free school meals, with a standard, fixed-rate bursary award, as each award must be assessed on its own merits. 

Learners must meet the age and residency criteria, as set out below, to be eligible for help from the bursary fund for 2026/27 academic year. 

Age

For 2026/27 bursaries, learners must be aged 16 or over, but under 19, at 31st August 2026. Learners 19 (or over), are only eligible to receive a discretionary bursary if they are continuing on a study programme, they began aged 16 to 18 or have an Education Health Care Plan (EHCP) 

Learner programme, (or over), are unable to qualify for bursary awards targeted at vulnerable groups. 

Residency

Learners must meet the residency criteria as set out within the ESFA’s funding regulation (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/advice-funding-regulations-for-post-16-provision). For the vast majority of learners within our school this will mean that you have been resident in the UK for the 3 years preceding 1st September 2026 and you have either indefinite leave to enter or remain or have the right to live in the UK. 

Financial Information for Discretionary Bursary Award Assessments 

We recognise that those learners in receipt of Free School Meals or whose families are in receipt of Universal Credit and have a household income of under £28,000 per annum (inclusive of benefits), are more likely to have a greater need for a discretionary bursary award that other learners, although all learners who have a genuine need for financial assistance to remain in education are encouraged to apply. 

Details of all annual household income and entitlement to benefits will need to be declared as part of the application process, together with supporting documentation to confirm your figures. 

Bursaries for Learners in Defined Vulnerable Groups

Learners, who meet the criteria and have a financial need, can apply (as part of the main application) for a bursary for vulnerable group. The defined groups (listed below), reflect that these learners are unlikely to be receiving financial assistance from parents or carers, so they need a greater level of support to enable them to remain in education. Awards of up to £1,200 per annum are available, but the level of award provided will be based upon an assessment of the financial support each learner needs. 

The defined vulnerable groups are learners who are:- 

  • In care
  • Care leavers
  • Personally in receipt of Income Support or Universal Credit, because they are financially supporting themselves.
  • Receiving Disability Living Allowance or Personal Independence Payments (PIP) in their own right.

The ESFA requires us to obtain proof that learners meet the criteria for the bursary for vulnerable groups in full i.e. that they are in receipt of the specified benefits in their own name or that they fully meet the definitions for in care/care leavers. We must ask for evidence from each learner and retain copies for audit purposes. 

There is no guarantee of funding (even for students in defined vulnerable groups) as bursary awards relate to financial need. Students with no participation costs would not receive any funding.

Payments will only be made if students maintain above 90% attendance for registration and lessons and successfully meet their target grades.

If learners have a need for financial assistance to remain in education for the 2025/26 school year and meet all the qualifying criteria for the bursary scheme, please complete the online application form and email evidence to Mrs J Horby (6th Form Office) no later than Monday 30th September 2026. 

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