Independent schools will soon have to prove how they provide a public benefit if they wish to retain their charitable status. Schools may have to show that they offer bursaries or share their facilities with the local community and benefit people on low incomes. These were the recommendations laid out in a consultation paper from the Charity Commission published on Wednesday 7 March 2007.
Mr Simon Marsden, Clerk and Treasurer at Bolton School, was confident that the School would meet the new criteria, thus allowing it to retain its charitable status and an accompanying range of tax benefits. He commented:
"Ever since the School was re-endowed by Lord Leverhulme in 1913 we have sought to offer an education for all able pupils, irrespective of their financial circumstances. This year our bursary fund has grown to £1.4 million, allowing 269 pupils in the Boys' and Girls' Divisions to receive assistance with their fees; 85 of these receive full fee support. We are hopeful that by September 2007 we will be able to offer 300 bursary-assisted places. Across the boys’ and girls’ schools over 15% of the pupils come from families whose annual income is below the national average.”
The School is also comfortable that it will be able to demonstrate that its facilities and expertise benefit the local community. The sporting facilities are used for local and county-level clubs and activities in athletics, cricket, football, lacrosse, netball, rugby, tennis, swimming and water polo. It also opens up its facilities to local children in other schools through an annual Sports Festival for local primary schools, which last year ran over 2 days and involved over 200 children from 29 local schools; an annual Science Fair, hosted at the School, which last year involved 20 local primary schools; and the annual Patterdale Challenge for 8 local secondary schools, which takes place at the School’s Outdoor Pursuits Centre on the shores of Lake Ullswater. The School also hosts Bolton Wanderers’ Football Academy.
The School offers expertise and shares best practice in many academic subjects; teachers and groups visit the local community and the School also hosts a variety of subject related events. There is an annual Maths Challenge for Year 6 pupils and this year the School will host a new Gifted and Talented Regional Event for Year 10 students.
The School also undertakes a huge amount of charity work - both in terms of time and money - at a local, national and international level.