Beacon Bursary Fund

The Beacon Bursary Fund is a registered charity (number 310643) independent of The Beacon but affiliated to it. The current Trustees are; Ms R. Garrett-Bowes, Ms F. Mayhew, Mr A. Hoekema and Ms C. Langley, Ms B. Myers, Ms K. Berens and Mr F Muzika serves as Clerk to the Trustees.

The Fund’s purpose is to provide financial assistance for the education of pupils at The Beacon whose parents or guardians run into temporary financial difficulties, and who may otherwise have to withdraw their son from school at a time that might be detrimental to their educational progress. Assistance is usually offered only until the time that a family’s financial stability is sufficiently restored to meet the fees, or until a pupil can be moved out of the independent sector with minimal disruption to his studies, and rarely extends beyond a year. The Fund does have the power to offer assistance to parents of former pupils of The Beacon if they are unable to meet the fees of their secondary school but, as a practical matter, the secondary school itself usually provides appropriate help.

The Fund derives its income from parental donations (made as a voluntary contribution on the termly fee invoice), Gift Aid and investment income.

Applications for Assistance from the Fund

The application procedure is as follows:

• Enquiries regarding possible assistance from the Fund should be made in the first instance to the Clerk to the Trustees, Mr Frank Muzika, on dfo@beaconschool.co.uk or 01494 736168.
• Please click here to download the application form and notes for guidance. Please be assured that this information will be kept confidential at all times; it will only be seen by the Trustees and their Clerk. If appropriate, a meeting will be set up between you and the Trustees to discuss your position. You will be notified, usually within two weeks of the meeting, of the Trustees’ decision regarding the level and term, if any, of the assistance offered.

The Funding Offer

The offer is made in the form of “a percentage of fees and reasonable extras” for a specified number of terms. “Reasonable extras” usually means that:

• The Fund will pay for all charges that are driven by the curriculum or which form a necessary part of being at the school. This includes official outings.
• The funding will not cover charges for extra, non-curriculum related items, such as breakfast club, late-stay provision, school bus fares, Music lessons, books or instrument hire, the replacement of damaged or lost items, school photographs or optional school trips (for example skiing). Other exclusions may also apply.
• The Fund cannot pay parents’ contributions to the Beacon Bursary Fund itself or the School Fees Insurance Scheme.

Based upon these principles, you will receive at each term end a fee bill listing all charges and showing a deduction of the amount that the Fund will pay, making clear the net amount that remains for you to pay. It is a condition of the funding that all amounts owing by the parents are paid by the due date i.e. the first day of the term to which the fees invoice applies. All terms and conditions of the parent contract as displayed on the school website continue to apply, unaffected by bursary arrangements.