16 to 19 financial support
- the 16 to 19 Bursary Fund: pays a bursary of up to £1,200 a year to support young people in one of the defined vulnerable groups to participate in education. It also enables institutions to make discretionary awards to those young people they assess as facing the greatest financial barriers to participation.
- free meals in further education: provides meals for eligible young people (they or their parents receive one of the qualifying benefits).
16 to 19 Bursary Fund
The 16 to 19 Bursary Fund supports the most financially disadvantaged 16 to 19 year olds and those young people who most need help with the costs of staying in education.
Who can apply for a 16 to 19 Bursary Fund?
There are 2 types of 16 to 19 bursaries:
- a vulnerable bursary of up to £1,200 a year for young people in one of the defined vulnerable groups
- discretionary bursaries that institutions award to meet individual needs, for example, transport, books and equipment
Oriel High School will administer the Bursary Fund awarded within the Education Funding Agency’s 16-19 Bursary Fund Guidelines. We aim to have clear and transparent processes including an appeals procedure. All recording along with evidence of eligibility will in addition follow Oriel High School’s procedures/guidelines.
Applicants must be under 19 on 31st August 2025
Vulnerable bursary
Students in one or more of the groups below can apply for a vulnerable bursary of up to £1,200.
The eligible groups are students who are:
- in care
- care leavers
- getting Income Support (IS) or Universal Credit (UC) in place of Income Support in their own right
- getting Employment Support Allowance (ESA) or Universal Credit and Disability Living Allowance (DLA) or Personal Independence Payments in their own right
Discretionary bursary
Discretionary bursaries are awards made by institutions to individual students. They are targeted on overcoming the individual barriers to participation a student faces.
Based on the information received and if financial hardship is identified, the student will be eligible to apply for re-imbursement of travel costs upon submission of evidence e.g. Travel Tickets/Weekly Pass.
In addition, if other barriers are identified, students assessed as being eligible for the discretionary element, can also request financial assistance. This could be for equipment, school trips etc. the level of financial assistance available will vary according to the level of hardship identified.
Students may apply for a discretionary Bursary if:
The family is in receipt of one or more of the following (evidence of benefits received must be sent with the application):
- Income Support(IS) or Universal credit (UC)
- Employment & Support Allowance (Income Related)
- Child Tax Credit with annual Inland Revenue assessed income:
- Priority 1 – below £18,000
- Priority 2 – between £18,000 and 22,000
- Priority 3 – between £22,001 and £26,000
- Guaranteed element of State Pension Credit.
Application
In both cases the young person will complete an application form and will provide the required evidence as listed on the Bursary Fund Application Form 2025/26. The application will take no longer than 15 working days to process (upon receipt of the required evidence). If the application is unsuccessful, the young person will be made aware of the outcome in writing within 20 working days.
Further details and guidance is available at the government website: