Proposed changes to the bursary fund and scholarships and prizes fund

Proposed changes to the City of London School for Girls Bursary Fund and City of London School for Girls Scholarships and Prizes Fund

1.  The City of London School for Girls Bursary Fund (registered charity number 276251) (the Bursary Fund) and the City of London School for Girls Scholarships and Prizes Fund (registered charity number 276251-5) (the Scholarships and Prizes Fund) are charitable funds associated with the City of London School for Girls.
2.  They are administered by the City of London Corporation as charity trustee, which makes decisions in relation to them through the Board of Governors of the City of London School for Girls (CLSG).
3.  The Bursary Fund can be used to provide bursaries and other forms of financial assistance for pupils whose parents would not otherwise be able to afford to pay for them to attend (or continue to attend) CLSG. The Scholarships and Prizes Fund can be used to provide scholarships, prizes or other suitable rewards or marks of distinction to pupils at CLSG, former pupils of CLSG, and/or pupils of other schools with whom CLSG has cooperated.
4.  It is now proposed to:
   • To merge the two charities together into one charity called the CLSG Bursary and Awards Fund, and
   • To change the charitable purposes of the new merged charity, so that the funds currently held by both charities can be used to provide financial assistance to pupils (and prospective pupils who have been offered a place at the school) in the way that the trustee thinks most effective. There is scope to continue to fund scholarships (among pupils and former pupils of CLSG and pupils of other schools with whom CLSG has co-operated) as at present.
5.  The step reflects a similar step which was taken several years ago at the City of London School. It is considered that an immediate outcome will be that further funds will be available to support bursaries at the school (while there will remain flexibility to support scholarships), and that the cost of administering the combined charity will be lower than the cost of administering two separate charities, allowing more funds to be spent on beneficiaries.
6.  In order to make these changes, the City of London Corporation, as trustee, must seek the consent of the Charity Commission to amend the charitable objects of the Bursary Fund, and take steps to merge the Scholarships and Prizes Fund into the Bursary Fund to make a single charity. It also plans to take steps to update the governing documents of the funds.
7.  Before the Charity Commission will agree to provide its consent to the changes above, it will expect us to consult with those who may have an interest in the changes.
8.  This summary is intended to inform you in relation to the proposed changes. If you have any comments on the proposed changes then we would like to hear from you.
9.  If you would like to make any comments on the proposals (whether you support the proposals or you have concerns about the proposals) please let us know by email to Nick Basye at basyen@cityschools.org.uk. The deadline for responses is 4^th October 2024.