If your school is able to offer a place supported by a bursary (equivalent to 100% of the school fees), to a child of a refugee family, you can contact the Children Missing in Education officer (CME) at your local authority. CME officers have a duty to find school places for any children living within their local authority, including refugees and asylum-seekers, who contact them. The CME officers normally then work with local state schools, but if they are aware of places in independent schools, they will be happy to refer students there too. This reduces the pressure on the local state schools, and is also a good way for independent schools with charitable status to demonstrate their commitment to public benefit.
If your school could consider offering a bursary to a Ukrainian student, complete the form for the CME officer so they have some idea of what your offer would constitute (gender, age range, English proficiency, special ‘talents’ of the child). The form should be completed and sent to the CME officer’s contacts in your local authority. You will find a list of CME officers, including their contact numbers and email addresses here.
Both the Good Schools Guide and the Independent Schools Council are interested to know the extent to which schools are responding to the needs of Ukrainian refugees. Please keep in touch by emailing refugees@goodschoolsguide.co.uk. We would also be delighted to receive questions and comments.
- Ralph Lucas, Editor in Chief of The Good Schools Guide
- Julie Robinson, CEO of the Independent Schools Council
The Good Schools Guide have identified further initiatives of how independent schools can help Ukrainian refugees, including:
Click here for more information.
Need help? Perhaps you suspect your child has some learning difficulty and you would like advice on what you should do. Or perhaps it is becoming clear that your child's current school is not working for him or her, and you need help to find a mainstream school which has better SEN provision, or to find a special school which will best cater for your child's area of need. Our SEN consultancy team advises on both special schools, and the mainstream schools with good SEN support, from reception through to the specialist colleges for 19+. Special Educational Needs Index
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