Whitgift Foundation bursaries

[Sandymum]

Does anyone know what impact equity in your home has on bursary applications for Whitgift Foundation schools please? I mean, if you were on a low/medium income and fell within their published scale to qualify for financial help, would having £300-400k equity in your home mean they wouldn't offer a bursary? We can't borrow any more on our incomes so can't remortgage to release funds, so the only option would be to downsize - would you be expected to do that even if your house wasn't exactly a palace anyway, eg from a 3 bed semi to a flat for the purposes of paying fees?

Thank you!

[anotherdad]

Their website suggests that each application is reviewed and assessed on its own merits, so I doubt there's a formula for balancing home equity and income and if there is, I can't see that they would publish it because it would set a precedent for all following applications.

The school wouldn't expect you to do anything, but it would be a brave decision to commit to years of education on the basis of an initial assessment that worked for you because they review each case every year. They also say that the level of bursary will vary because they want as many families to benefit as possible. That means that whilst you may have a viable bursary for the first year, you might find the fees unaffordable in subsequent years. What would you do then?

My advice would be to consider a different school if it's a financially marginal decision.

[Sandymum]

Thank you. This has been one of my fears - years of worry about the scrutiny of finances each year and what the decision would be and the impact on the family. I just wondered if anyone had had any real-world experience of this situation eg been told they needed to move house to release funds etc.

[anotherdad]

I would be very surprised if the school had told anyone how to manage their financial affairs. I think all they would do is announce the bursary level they had decided upon and leave you to determine whether you could afford it and how to do so.