At the end of the summer, Paddington Academy was contacted, unexpectedly, by a couple who had looked at our website and our results and wished to donate money for a bursary for some of our Sixth Form students to support them at university.
They have very generously offered to support five students a year, each of them for the entire three years of their degree, at £3,000 each per year. We then devised an application process, following which the donors made their selection from the applications submitted. Students had to be applying to universities outside of London to qualify, as these students are in greater need of financial support to cover accommodation and living costs.
This is an unprecedented opportunity for our students and a very good way of encouraging students to apply to a wider range of universities, to increase their chances of attending a good university and to broaden their horizons. This is particularly the case for girls, who at the moment (according to statistics) are far less likely to apply outside of London than boys.
The five successful students were informed of their award last week. They are: Diana, Qamil, Yunus, Yussef and Jonald.
A very well done to each of them and needles to say how much we appreciate the generosity of such benefactors.