Best Schools - Oxford’s vice chancellor says independent schools are identifying the most academically gifted from

Oxford University’s low proportion of state school admissions is an indictment of the schools themselves for failing to push their brightest pupils, its vice-chancellor has suggested.

Professor Louise Richardson who was appointed Oxford’s first-ever female vice-chancellor three years ago, expressed frustration over the “obsession” with Oxford and Cambridge and the relentless demands on them to correct the “huge inequities” in society.

“The reality is that independent schools are identifying these smart, poor kids. They are bringing them in, giving them scholarships and educating them, and then they apply to us, and we take them.

School Fees Charitable Trust widens criteria for grants

The School Fees Charitable Trust has announced that families with children in their last year at prep school now have the opportunity to apply for a grant if they suffer a sudden and unforeseen change in circumstance – such as the death of a parent – and are unable to pay their fees.

Previously, only children in their final year of GCSEs or A-levels qualified for grants.

Launched in 1991, the trust has paid out grants totalling more than £2 million to over 1,000 families.

School Fees Charitable Trust is funded by SFS Group, through sales of their school fees insurance, paying out a predetermined sum to cover fees if a parent dies or becomes critically or terminally ill.

SFS Group’s managing director, Clare Cave, said: “We are thrilled that grants from the School Fees Charitable Trust can now help even more families who have suffered a serious ordeal.”