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This bursary is for Home/UK undergraduates ordinarily resident in England who have experience of being in local authority care, are irreconcilably estranged from their family or have unpaid caring responsibilities.

If you are a new Home/UK undergraduate student starting at City in 2021/22 and can demonstrate you fall into any of the following three categories, you may be eligible for the City Cares Bursary:

  • You live or have lived in care and are still receiving support from your local authority
  • You are irreconcilably estranged from your parents (as assessed by Student Finance England)
  • You have unpaid caring responsibilities.

In all cases, you must also:

  • Be resident in England ordinarily
  • Have residual household income of £42,611 a year or less as assessed by Student Finance England (SFE) by 31st October 2021
  • Be 25 years old or younger on the 1st September 2021.

How to apply

There is no application form for this bursary. Eligible candidates will be contacted by the Designated Member of Staff (DMS) in October 2021. Receipt of the bursary is dependent upon students attending an Induction meeting with the DMS and submitting relevant evidence before January 2022.

If you think you may meet the criteria for this bursary and have not disclosed potential eligibility to UCAS or the university, or if you have questions about appropriate evidence, please contact CityCaresSupport@city.ac.uk.

When applying for student finance through Student Finance England (SFE) please give your consent to share your financial information with City, please follow the three steps below:

  1. Apply for Student Finance through Student Finance England (SFE)
  2. Provide your household income to Student Finance England
  3. Both you and your sponsors/parents/partner/guardians must give consent to share your household income with City, University of London. Your consent must be activated on your Student Finance England account before/on 31st October 2021. For any queries on giving your consent please contact Student Finance England directly on 0300 100 0607.

When your offer to City becomes Unconditional (i.e. after you receive your results), you will be contacted asking for evidence of your care leaver/ estrangement status. You will then automatically be considered for an award (provided you meet the eligibility criteria listed above).

For more information about the Widening Participation and Outreach Team and the work they do, email wpteam@city.ac.uk or read about the range of available wellbeing support at City.

Value

The bursary is worth £3,500 per progressive academic year, for a maximum of three years.

Notification and payment

Eligible students will be contacted in January 2022 by their City email address. Payments will be made in two equal instalments in January and April each year.

Students given the City Cares Award maybe be eligible for The Lord Mayor of London Scholarship for Academic Excellence but not the City Education Grant or Sanctuary Scholarship.

Terms and conditions

The following terms and conditions are valid for entry in the 2021/22 academic year:

  1. Eligible students must be registered at City by 31st October 2021. You must also have had your household income assessed by Student Finance England by this date, otherwise we cannot count it as part of our assessment and you will not be considered for an award
  2. Eligible students must attend an Induction with and submit evidence to, the DMS by January 2022
  3. Students must be new entrants to Higher Education (i.e. have not previously studied part or all of an undergraduate degree programme before)
  4. Students must be starting the first year of their degree as a new student (i.e. those starting in Year 2, Year 3 and Year 4 are not eligible)
  5. The award is available to undergraduate students who are ordinarily resident in England. Students who normally live in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland are not eligible
  6. Students whose tuition fee status’ are reassessed in the middle of their degree or who restart a degree will not be eligible
  7. Students awarded the City Cares Award are not eligible for Sanctuary Scholarship or the City Education Grant
  8. Awards do not need to be repaid
  9. The award is payable for a maximum of three years and will be paid in two instalments in January and April each academic year. You must be enrolled full-time to receive the grant in 2021/22 and each subsequent year. In each subsequent academic year your household income as assessed by Student Finance England (SFE) must remain within the eligible threshold which is £0 to £42,611 to retain the grant in subsequent academic years
  10. The award will not be paid during part-time or full-time repeat academic years, during any dormant/suspended periods, during a placement year or study aboard year
  11. The following categories of students are not eligible:
    • Students directly continuing from one course to another (for example, from a foundation degree or HND on to the final year of an honours degree)
    • Students transferring in from another institution
    • Students undertaking a postgraduate qualification
    • Part-time students studying at less than 25 per cent intensity of the full-time equivalent course
    • Any other students whose fees are paid or part-paid through a sponsorship arrangement.