Helping bright children attend some of the best independent schools in the UK
THE AWARD
Neil was born and raised in Oxford. When Neil was seven, his father, a university administrator, died suddenly of a heart attack, leaving him and his older brother Richard to be raised by their mother, an English teacher. Both Richard and Neil won 11+ places at Magdalen College School, Oxford, then a Direct Grant school, giving both of them a high-quality education without cost to their family (a cost which the family could not have borne).
The ending of the Direct Grant system, and the abolition of most state Grammar schools in the 1970s, has deprived generations of academically able children of the same opportunity to be fully stretched at schools with cultures which encourage learning and academic success.
Today, Neil intends to offer that opportunity to other bright children whose families would like them to study at outstanding independent schools. The Record Charitable Trust's scholarship programme is an attempt, in a very small way, to provide additional social mobility at a time when, for far too many children, the wealth of their family predetermines their own success in life.
Andrew attended a large comprehensive school in Birmingham before reading English at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge. He was Master of Magdalen College School, Oxford, for ten years before becoming Head Master of King's College School, Wimbledon, for over thirteen years. He is currently Honorary Principal of King’s College School, Bangkok, and an educational consultant focusing on school improvement. His interests include researching the life and works of Charles Dickens and he has given lectures on Dickens in the UK and the USA. He has a broad interest in UK education and, in 2020, he was awarded an OBE in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours List for services to education.
Sue is an experienced Head, Principal of The Grammar School at Leeds since 2016 and before that, leading The British School of Brussels. An English graduate with a Masters in Educational Leadership, she has taught in maintained and independent schools, in co-educational and single sex schools and in selective and comprehensive schools. As such, she has a wide knowledge and experience of the educational sector stretching over 30 years. Sue is an experienced school governor, serves as an ISI Inspector, is involved in several partnership projects and has recently been elected Chair of HMC for 2023-24.
Alex is the Head of Bancroft’s School in North East London, having previously been Head of Wolverhampton Grammar School. A modern languages graduate from Cambridge University, he started his teaching career at Trinity School, Croydon, in the mid-1990s and saw the great benefits to pupils and school alike of the Government Assisted Places Scheme. Since the demise of the scheme, he has maintained a significant commitment to the identification and promotion of bursary pupils through his roles as Head of Modern Languages at Hampton, Deputy Head (Academic) at Mill Hill and Director of Projects at North London Collegiate, and as a defining feature of his career in Headship. Alex has also been a state school governor and serves as an ISI Inspector.
The funds we have available are necessarily limited; they currently enable us to sponsor around seven full fees (or equivalent) per annum, but not more. In selecting our school partners, we have tried to ensure each of these schools is committed to supporting bright children from a range of backgrounds. We have deliberately selected school partners from the north, south, east and west of England to achieve a greater geographical range. Of course, these schools understand that the restricted number of awards means that not all schools will be able to offer a Record Scholarship in September 2023.
They will take account of two key factors:
Yes, subject to the terms and conditions of the contract between the Trust and the awarding school, all Record Scholarships are funded throughout the child’s expected career at their school. However, if the child leaves the associate school before the end of their anticipated school career (ie, before the end of Year 13), whether because they have decided to attend a different school or for some other reason, such as permanent exclusion by the associate school, the Scholarship is almost certain to be concluded at this point, too.
Families or individuals do not apply for Record Scholarships. Only the 15 associate schools can propose children for these awards.
