The Newton Bursary Fund is a registered charity administered by a board of trustees who use its funds to help children who are likely to benefit academically from the education offered by Newton Prep. Corporate as well as individual donations are accepted. The NBF is also generously supported by the PTA of Newton Prep, which runs a biannual fundraising auction.
We are proud of the Newton Bursary Fund as this enables a number of families to send their children to the School despite not being able to afford fees. Bursaries are awarded after a child has been assessed. The level of financial assistance is dictated by a means test. Bursaries are available for children entering the School from Year 3.
All details of the process and its requirements can be found in the Newton Prep Policy and Process for the Award of a Bursary, which is available on our Policies page.
NBF support can extend up to 100% of our day tuition fee, depending on our means-tested criteria. Smaller top-up bursaries are also available for families who are able to make more of a contribution towards school fees. Pupils who are entitled to 100% support may also be entitled to receive support with costs of uniform, text books, travel, music and other extra lessons, and educational visits. A number of our pupils receive some form of financial support.
All bursary support is means-tested annually, and parents who accept means-test top-up bursary places must understand that the level of support may reduce, or even end, if the household’s net income and net assets increase over our stated maxima for financial support. Equally, the level of support could increase if the family’s circumstances change for the worse.
Newton Prep is an inclusive community that encourages applications from pupils from a very diverse range of backgrounds and cultures. The Newton Bursary Fund (NBF) offers means-tested top-up bursaries to entrants to the school, primarily for those entering at Year 3 but, if circumstances permit, also at Years 4, 5, 6 and 7. Candidates will be expected to sit either internal entrance exams or block tests and to produce results in those exams or tests that demonstrate the candidate’s ability to contribute to and thrive in Newton's educational environment, and to benefit from the education that the school provides.
Before applying for support from the Newton Bursary Fund please consider the following points:
- Are you happy to provide the level of financial information required each year and to be interviewed in your own home?
- Are you committed to providing your child with a good atmosphere in which to study and are you prepared to support them in their academic study?
- Is the journey to and from Newton Prep practicable, having regard to the length of the school day and the amount of homework required?
- Are you prepared to make some contribution, however small, towards the cost of your child’s education?
- What impact will this have on other children within your family?
- What will happen after your child’s time at Newton Prep?
The process for applying for a Newton Bursary Fund bursary is as follows:
- Read the detailed information on this page
- Contact the Registrar (020 7720 4091 ext. 1207; [email protected]) to express your interest in financial support.
- Complete a school registration form
- Your child will be invited to sit an assessment and, if accepted, then you will be asked to submit a means-testing application form and supporting documents.
- Assessments take place in January.
- A home visit will usually be conducted.
- The decision of the NBF Trustees will be communicated to you.
Means-testing
The NBF Trustees require parents applying for means-tested top-up bursary support to complete an application form annually, and to provide documentary proof of income, such as a P60 or self-employed tax return. The Trustees also ask for proof of savings and capital assets, including the value of and equity in the family home and details of monthly mortgage or rental payments. The Trustees assess eligibility based on household income, but will make some adjustment to allow for other dependent children. The cost of living in London will also be taken into consideration. Parents are asked to declare that the information they are providing is both accurate and complete. If the information provided is subsequently discovered to be false or misleading, the NBF Trustees reserve the right to withdraw the means-tested top-up bursary. Support cannot be assessed without documentary evidence.
The NBF Trustees require a formal visit to be made to the family home of all applicants for bursary assistance before the initial offer of financial support can be made. There are several reasons for this policy:
- First, it gives the Trustees the opportunity to discuss all the various papers that have been sent to you in relation to your application for financial support in informal and relaxed surroundings so that you understand the system thoroughly. Bursary holders are important to the school. The commitment and support of the pupil’s family is very important to the Trustees and the School.
- The Trustees need to make sure that both parents or carers understand how the means-testing system works. Every school is different, and at Newton Prep, we want you to understand exactly what contributions you may be required to make on top of your child’s bursary.
- Papers can be checked and additional ones found relatively easily.
- Trustees can ask you additional questions based upon your family’s circumstances.
- The information presented on paper can be seen in its proper context.
- There is an opportunity to re-assure you, as parents, that the process of allocating financial support will be entirely confidential – known only by the Headmistress, Bursar and the NBF Trustees.
- The limitations to the NBF’s financial support can be explained. For example, the support for school trips given to 100% bursary holders (which may be subject to an annual cap) is restricted to trips with genuine educational value, such a Geography field trips and language exchanges, as opposed to the ski trip.
- The NBF Trustees will ask you if you have also applied for grants from outside trusts or bodies. Any support from a third party will be taken into account in calculating the level of our support.
- The home visit is concerned solely with the circumstances of the parents or carers. There is no need for your son or daughter to be involved; indeed it is best if they are not present.
For more information, please download the Home Visits Policy from our Policies Page
The Trustees are very proud of the achievements of the children the Fund has been able to help. Here is what some alumni/parents have to say:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/2016/05/10/independent-school-bursaries-can-transform-lives/
- An article in the Daily Telegraph written by alumni Johnny Thalassites
“Getting an NSF scholarship from Newton Prep was the most important event in my academic life. It meant that I could stay at a school that was the best place for me, as it was for so many others. I’m currently studying German and Portuguese at Oxford University. I didn’t start either of these at Newton, but it was Newton’s very enthusiastic approach to French and Latin that gave me the confidence to learn languages, as I fed off the obvious passion of my teachers.
Having a scholarship also reminded me how lucky I was to be at a place like Newton Prep, making me determined to make the most of the opportunities the school provided.
My teachers also helped to drive me towards the King’s College School scholarship exams. But even beyond that goal, Newton gave me the sense that my ambition and education could be limitless. If my teachers thought that I could go further than the syllabus, they had no hesitation in taking me there. And as much as I loved KCS and am enjoying Oxford, I haven’t found teachers as single-mindedly inspirational as I did at Newton Prep.” Alex, now 21
“As you may recall you kindly offered our son a scholarship to attend Newton Prep in 1997. It was a time of great financial strain for us and the scholarship made it possible for us to send [him] to Newton Prep.
After Newton [he] went on to attend Kings College Wimbledon, achieving 10A* GCSEs and 43 points (out of a maximum possible of 45) at IB.
He has now moved on to St John’s Cambridge where he is now reading Oriental Studies specialising in Chinese. We wanted to write and tell you of [his] progress, and to thank you personally for spotting [his] abilities and giving us the confidence to support him through his school career.”
“When we first approached Newton Prep I was concerned that our son, and ourselves, would be conspicuously poor and embarrassed. He has now completed nine years at Newton and I can say that this has never been an issue. Generally the children, teachers and parents are unaware of who receives financial support. As we’ve made friends at school and no-one has made us feel uncomfortable for inviting their child to play dates to our flat on a local housing estate."
Newton is like London, very open, unpretentious and accepting.
“[My daughter] joined Newton aged three, and left nearly ten years later... Without the incredible generosity of the bursary award, the compassion and respect for individuality, the journey would not have been possible.
The delicate balance of learning and compassion has given [her] many choices in life.
She is now looking forward to beginning her three-year course at Oxford University... [her] time at Newton Prep was truly inspirational and has taken her to where she is today.”
"We were encouraged not to let the lack of money stop us seeking a suitable education for our bright boy. It felt as if we were really sticking our necks out for something we knowingly couldn’t afford but, now that our son is completing Year 8, the final year at Newton, we can confirm that we have been supported all the way. "
With the help of the bursary fund and teachers, our son has secured an academic scholarship to King’s College School.
“From a very early age, my son has been interested, incredibly inquisitive and utterly engaged in the world around him. We are indebted to the Newton Bursary Fund for recognising this and allowing him to realise his potential.
He has flourished at Newton Prep, enjoying a wide range of subjects and activities that have stretched him and kept him on his toes.
He recently sat the 11+ exams at two schools and was offered very generous scholarships at both. We are so grateful to the NBF for its generosity and support throughout his time at Newton it has given him a fantastic start to what I hope will be an interesting and fulfilled life.”
"I want to say thank you again for ensuring that [my daughter] was able to stay at Newton with a bursary. Your kindness will always be remembered. She is enjoying her senior school and is very busy with music. She is playing in the symphony orchestra, a chamber group and singing in the choir."
- One of the current co-Chairs of the Newton Prep PTA
- Alison Fleming, Headmistress of Newton Prep
- Farhaan Walji, Director and former pupil
- Dr Farouk Walji, Chair of the Newton Prep School Council
- Simon Broxham, the Bursar, is not a Trustee but attends Trustees' meetings as the Clerk to the Trustees.
