The college may be able to offer financial assistance to students with household incomes below £30,000.00 per annum, and those who are care leavers or in local authority care. Further details on the 16-19 Discretionary Bursary Fund, Vulnerable Bursary, Free Meals, Transport assistance for EHCP students and Care to Learn can be found below.
A student must be aged 16-18 on 31 August 2026 to be eligible for help from the bursary fund in the 2026 to 2027 academic year. Students aged 19 or over are only eligible to receive a discretionary bursary if they are continuing on a study programme they began aged 18 on 31 August 2026 or have an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP).
In order not to delay your application for the September start, we encourage returning and new student to apply early. Please note that students will need to apply for financial support every year of study, regardless of having a previously successful application. When completing your application, you must provide the required evidence as stated on the application, failure to do some could delay your application. Funds are limited and cannot be guaranteed, applications will be processed on a first-come, first-served basis.
Financial Assistance Declaration 2026-27
Please ensure you have downloaded, saved and understood the 2026-27 Declaration for Financial Assistance before applying.
Students can apply for financial assistance towards the cost of travel to College as well as costs related to the course(s) they are enrolled onto (e.g. course materials/equipment/uniform and compulsory trips).
The following guidelines apply:
If the student's family are in receipt of means tested benefits with a household income of £30,000.00 or below, the student may be awarded a grant of up to 70% towards the cost of transport.
Financial assistance may be available towards transport, compulsory trips and course materials/equipment.
Funds are limited and cannot be guaranteed. Applications will be processed on a first-come, first served basis.
All applications must provide evidence of one of the following in the form of downloaded/scanned PDF documents.
BENEFIT |
EVIDENCE |
| Universal Credit |
Assessed by earnings from up to three of your most recent downloaded Universal Credit statements. Monthly statements must not exceed earnings of £2,500.00 and an annual net earned income of no more than £30,000.00. |
|
Income Support |
Letter (all pages) from DWP/Jobcentre Plus dated within three months of application and showing breakdown of income support payments |
| Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance | Letter (all pages) from DWP/Jobcentre Plus dated within three months of application |
| Income-related Employment and Support Allowance | Letter (all pages) from DWP/Jobcentre Plus dated within three months of application |
| State Pension Credit |
Letter (all pages) from The Pension Service dated within three months confirming Guarantee Pension Credit. |
| Employment |
Provide a recent Council Tax Bill (or tenancy agreement) dated 2026- AND three-months wage slips AND a recent P60, dated April 2026 for each adult in the household. |
|
Self-employment *If not eligible for a P60 |
Provide a recent Council Tax Bill (or tenancy agreement) dated 2026 AND an accountant’s letter stating projected earnings for 2026-27 OR all pages of your HMRC SA302 certificate for the tax year ending 5 April 2025. We can accept the HMRC Tax Bill (available when you log in to your account) but NOT the tax return. |
The Vulnerable Bursary is a grant of up to £1,200.00 for students who may have difficulties in completing their course because of financial considerations.
Each application will be individually assessed and funding will be awarded dependent on the student's actual financial need. To be eligible for financial assistance from the Vulnerable Bursary you must meet th eligibility criteria, be an enrolled student as defined by the College and aged 16-18 on 31 August 2026. Students aged 19+ on 31 August 2026 are not eligible for bursaries for vulnerable groups.
The defined vulnerable groups are students who are:
The Department for Education (16 to 19 Bursary Fund) defines ‘in care’ as children looked after by a local authority on a voluntary basis (section 20 of the Children Act 1989) or under a care order (section 31 of the Children Act 1989). Section 22 of the Children Act 1989 defines the term ‘looked after child’.
A ‘care leaver’ is defined as:
Only students who meet this definition are eligible if they have a financial need.
Students must be aged 16-18 on 31 August 2026 or aged 19-25 with an EHCP and live in a household in receipt of one the benefits listed below. Eligible students will be allocated £4.50 (this may increase or decrease depending on funding) to your cashless account each college day. The £4.50 can be spent in either the Rotherfield or the Deanfield canteen. If you are going on a college day trip or will be attending a work experience placement students can contact the Chartwells manager in advance to organise alternatives.
Free Meal transitional protections (i.e. students receiving free meals at school) are ending at the end of the 2025-26 academic year. To receive free meals from the start of September 2026, students (or their families) MUST meet the new eligibility criteria as detailed below for the 2026-27 academic year.
Please note, the new Free Meal criteria will effect any of our current Free Meal students at The Henley College returning for another year of study. Your eligbility will NOT roll over into 2026-27 and you will need to check your eligibility and reapply.
Proof of benefits cannot be demonstrated by bank statements and we cannot recognise any other benefit other than those mentioned below. Evidence must be submitted in the form of downloaded/scanned PDF documents, all pages of the letter/statement must be included and uploaded through the Student Bursary Portal.
BENEFIT |
EVIDENCE |
| Universal Credit |
Your most recent downloaded Universal Credit statement - all pages are required and must be dated within one month of application. E.g. applying in June, the statement must be for June - July 2026. Please note that if you are applying for the Travel Bursary you will be required to download three of your most recent monthly statements. Further details can be found in the above 16 - 19 Discretionary Bursary section. |
| Support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 |
Asylum seekers will need to provide a National Asylum and Support Service (NASS) support notice or IS96 document including details of authority providing support under part IV of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999. You will be required to supply a letter from the Home Office confirming receipt of this support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 with the below details included:
|
| Income-related Employment and Support Allowance | Letter from DWP/Jobcentre Plus dated within one month of application confirming eligibility or Income Support payment book. |
| The guarantee element of Pension Credit | Pension Credit M1000 Award Notice letter from DWP dated 2026. The letter must clearly show details of any guarantee Pension Credit in payment. |
Students should apply for transport assistance through their local county council.
Visit our Transport page for more information on travel to The Henley College.
If the Local Authority declines travel assistance, please check if you're eligible for financial assistance. You must be able to provide your latest Personal Transport Budget agreement document. Please ensure to read the Financial Assistance Declaration document before applying.
C2L provides funding for childcare to help young parents (defined as those aged under 20) continue in education after the birth of a child (or children). The scheme provides funding for childcare whilst the young parent is engaged in a study programme and cannot provide care for their child. It can also help with young parent with any additional travel costs involved in taking the child to the childcare provider. C2L can also provide funding for childcare whilst young parents are on work/industry placements as part of their study programme.
The maximum amount available from C2L to pay towards childcare costs is £180.00 per week.
EVIDENCE TYPE |
DETAILS |
| Child Benefit Award Notice | The young parent must be the main carer and in receipt of Child Benefit for the child they are claiming CL2 for. The award must include all pages and be dated 2026. |
| Child's Birth Certificate | You must provide a copy of the child's birth certificate. This must be a scanned PDF document. |
| Ofsted registered childcare provider |
The childcare provider must provide evidence of being registered with Ofsted. Where a childcare provider is related to the child, the childcare provider must:
|