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The Bramston Foundation transformational bursary programme helps young girls from any socio-economic background, including those who may be at risk of needing to access UK social care, or who are dealing with
other challenging issues such as being a young carer.
The Bramston bursary programme enables them to access a full boarding place.
It's the beginning of a journey that unlocks a world of possibility, vastly improves their self-confidence and future potential and opens up a brighter future. Support us to support them.
Building Active Lives at St Swithun's
The Bramston Foundation is also fundraising for a two-phase building project for indoor sports, to enhance and improve active wellbeing for students of all ages.
To find out more, pledge or donate, visit our
Building Active Lives page here
For any other queries on how you can help, please contact development@stswithuns.com / 01962 835734
Together we can unlock bright futures
"In 2019 we relaunched our transformational bursary programme and an ambitious goal to support transformational bursaries for young girls who are at risk of going into care or who are dealing with other multiple challenging issues in extremely disadvantaged circumstances. We resolved to try to fund and give a boarding place to two Bramston bursary recipients, in each senior school year. As of September 2025, we will have twelve girls in the school accessing a transformational bursary, and by September 2026 we hope to reach our goal of fourteen.
Through no fault of their own, and for a variety of reasons, children who need to access the care of a local authority often have a difficult journey ahead of them. It is not uncommon for these children to have to change foster homes during their senior education, including in their exam years and this sometimes means a change of their school too.
Even in the best of circumstances, growing up is a challenging time for any child, so I can only imagine how difficult it must be not knowing who you are going to live with next, possibly being separated from your siblings and not being able to forge long term friendships because of a frequent change of school. It is completely understandable that children in care struggle to perform academically.
Out transformational bursary programme was created to help provide an alternative option for bright young girls who may be on the edge of going into care, or who are dealing with multiple challenging issues from difficult circumstances.
St Swithun’s can provide a first class education, but more importantly - and the real key that unlocks a brighter future - is that we can provide a loving, stable and structured environment through boarding at the school. This is what can be utterly transformational for these children, providing them with lifelong friends and positive future prospects and mentoring.
We work with a number of partners to help identify girls who could flourish at St Swithun’s. Both the Royal National Children’s SpringBoard Foundation and Buttle UK have assisted us to identify girls who would benefit from what we can offer.
Through the Bramston Foundation, I am proud that we are keeping St Swithun’s open to a diverse and vibrant community, which will enrich all of our girls’ experiences and better prepare students for life beyond our school gates."
Jane Gandee, Headmistress
Unfortunately, the number of children in care is growing. Currently, there are 107,000 children in care in the UK and this has increased by 8% in the last five years. 43% of these children are girls. In Hampshire alone the number of children in care, recorded in March 2023, reached a new record high of 1,853. These girls need our help more than ever.
There is clear evidence that a boarding school place will help a girl achieve academically. We partner with Royal National Children's SpringBoard Foundation, who work with schools across the country to find boarding places for children from disadvantaged backgrounds. They found that 98% of children who have been given a fully funded boarding school bursary achieved 5 or more GCSE's at grades 9-4/A*-C compared to 35% of children in similar circumstances nationwide.
It's not just about the academic achievement. Many of these children have unstable living conditions and may have to move schools frequently. This makes it challenging for them to feel safe and create lasting relationships, which is vital for girls in their teenage years. The Bramston Foundation bursaries provide a stable home and school situation, and with the superb pastoral care and individualised attention St Swithun's supplies, these girls are able to thrive.
"I have grown so much more confident in who I am, and feel assertive and empowered. I feel equipped to tackle the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead, thanks to the school environment that actively encouraged independent thought, practicality and curiosity."
Bursary beneficiary of the Bramston Foundation
We need to raise circa £270,000 each year to support two girls through seven years of education at St Swithun's. We seek to reach our target through a variety of fundraising events, donations, deposit donations, grants and major gifts. One way you can help us is to join our 1884 Club where you agree to frequently donate a regular amount to the Bramston Foundation, giving our bursary fundraising a solid base of reliable income to support our beneficiaries.
Want to find out more? Take a look at our digital brochure.
If you would like to find out more about the Bramston Foundation bursary programme, take a look at our digital brochure for a more in-depth look into the work we do and the lives we change.
