How to apply

Once you are enrolled, you will be able to apply for Financial support from the Bursary fund via our Bursary Management System using your student I.D number. A registration email will be sent to activate the Bursary application form. Follow the instructions below to complete the application, upload evidence of household income and track the status of an application.

STUDENT BURSARY APPLICATION

Additional information

The General Bursary Award

For 2023/24, if your total annual household income is £31,500* or below you may be entitled to financial support of up to £1,050* per year, including transport to students who live outside a 2-mile radius of College. The Bursary is tiered dependent on each students’ individual needs focusing on those students who face the greatest financial barriers to participation. Students must use the allocated funds to pay for support that has been identified as necessary to help students to participate in education.

The Bursary is available to eligible students whose total household income does not exceed the threshold for eligibility and they are in receipt of the following:

  • Income support
  • Income based Job Seekers Allowance
  • Income related Employment Support Allowance (Must be received in conjunction with Disability Allowance)
  • Personal Independence Payment
  • The guarantee element of State Pension Credit
  • Support under part 6 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
  • Earned wages from a job
  • Self-Employed earnings (we may request evidence of your company registration or tax return form)
  • Child Tax Credit
  • Working Tax Credit
  • Universal Credit

Transport Bursary

The Transport Bursary is available to students qualifying for the General Bursary to help towards the costs of a bus pass if the student lives outside a 2 mile radius of college.

Targeted Bursary

The Targeted Bursary offers financial support for students who are in care, a care leaver, in receipt of income support, Universal Credit or disabled and in receipt of Employment and Support Allowance, Universal Credits and Disability Living Allowance/Personal Independence Payments. For eligible students the award provides funding to the value of £1,400 per year (£140 over ten months), as well as additional transport costs for students living outside a 2-mile radius of college.

Free Meals Allocation

To be eligible for a free meal in the academic year 2023-24 you must be aged between 16 and 18 on 31st August 2023. If you turn 19 during your year of study you will remain eligible for a free meal until the end of the academic year. Free meals are targeted at disadvantaged students. To qualify, you should be in receipt of, or have parents in receipt of, one or more of the benefits listed above with an annual household that does not exceed the Government threshold, dependent on benefits.

Sarah Cowley Educational Trust

For young people aged 16-24 who are resident in the Borough of St Helens

Other help

  • Extra financial support available in extenuating circumstances
  • Additional Bursary support for Students requiring assistance towards curriculum essential trips such as Geography and Modern Foreign Languages*
  • Loan equipment essential for completion of course work*

*Subject to the availability of funds and the number of eligible applicants