Before completing your application form, please read the following guidance notes.
Who can apply for this scheme?
For this scheme you must meet the following basic criteria. You must:
- Have enrolled for the first year of an undergraduate degree at the University of Nottingham (UK Campus) in Autumn 2024
- Be studying for a first undergraduate degree
- Have Home funding status (see definition below)
- Have a 2022/23 household income between £0-£35,000, as assessed by Student Finance (see definition below)
- Not be receiving NHS funding for your course
- Not be receiving external sponsorship for your course e.g., from industry/employers (University Core Bursaries and Government grants do not affect your eligibility)
Scholarship Information
The Stoneygate Award is a major scholarship for undergraduate students entering the university in September 2024.
The award offers financial support totalling £9,000 over the duration of their course. There are three awards available for three academically able students who have overcome personal barriers to progression to reach their goal of attending university. This new Stoneygate Award was established in 2023 thanks to the generosity of The Stoneygate Trust and is intended to assist students with their essential living costs whilst studying, it is not intended to be used towards tuition fees.
The primary criteria for the award, in addition to the basic criteria outlined above, are:
- The applicant to have faced barriers to progression represented by living in an area where participation in higher education is low or by having received free school meals.
- A strong academic ability (a minimum standard of ABB at ‘A’ Level or equivalent) indicating that they are likely to achieve a first or upper second-class degree.
The university supports equality, diversity and inclusivity and recognises that financial difficulties can be a barrier to studying. The ability to offer financial assistance in the form of scholarships and bursaries is one of the mechanisms put in place to help overcome this barrier. We are also keen to target these scholarships at those students who can show they are motivated and ambitious to make the most of their time at university and after they graduate. This will be an additional, key consideration in assessing applications.
Please see below for details of the supporting evidence you will need to provide.
Successful candidates will be expected to maintain a high academic standard throughout their degree and agree to be subject to bi-annual reports on their progression being submitted to the Stoneygate Trust including updates from their Personal Tutor. They will also be expected to provide their own annual statement reporting on their progress, explaining the extent to which the award has enabled him or her to overcome their personal barriers to progression.
What does “living in an area of low participation in higher education” mean?
Your home postcode, as submitted in your application to study at the University of Nottingham, will be used to assess you against the Indices of Multiple Depravation (IMD) to identify those who come from an area within quintile 1 on the indices (the lowest 10% on the depravation index).
You can check which quintile your postcode falls within using the IMD postcode lookup to find your IMD Decile, enter your postcode in the lookup tool and click ‘get deprivation data’. The data for your postcode will be available as an xlsx or csv file. To open in Excel, download the xlsx file. Column F of the spreadsheet indicates your Index of Multiple Deprivation Decile.
What does “having free school meals” mean?
You were known to be eligible for free school meals (FSM) at the end of Key Stage 4 (Year 11) and/or at some point in the six years prior to this point.
What evidence do I need to provide to demonstrate that I have “a strong academic ability indicating that [I am] likely to achieve a first or upper second-class degree”?
This is evidenced on the basis of your achievements to date. Please detail your relevant exam results in Question 14. A minimum standard of ABB at ‘A’ Level or equivalent (e.g., BTEC Extended Diploma DDM) is expected.
What should be included in your “Supporting Statement” (Question 15)?
In your supporting statement, you should detail what difference, if successful, this award would make to you. You should consider its potential impact on your situation, both financially and in other ways, such as your personal and academic circumstances and the benefit to you after you graduate.
An assessment panel consisting of professional services staff will consider your scholarship application. When making their decision, the panel will take into consideration the following:
- Has the applicant overcome barriers on their educational journey? Such as but not limited to: a long-term medical/health condition or a disability (including mental health); disruption in the home environment, examples may include but not limited to care leavers, caring responsibilities and estrangement; issues arising due to race, ethnicity, gender identity or sexual orientation.
- Has the applicant clearly demonstrated their commitment to personal development through participating in activities outside of formal study? We are looking for you to show us how taking part in activities outside of your formal education has helped you develop as a person. Examples of activities might include volunteer or charity work, leadership roles in organisations (e.g. Brownies/Scouts), providing support for community and/or faith-based events, fundraising or awareness-raising activities for local groups, or extra-curricular activities within school (e.g. mentoring of younger students, supporting student campaigns or initiatives), involvement in music or sport, or independent informal study of any new subjects.
- Has the applicant identified and articulated how the scholarship will enhance their university experience and help them to achieve their future ambitions or career goals? We are looking, in particular, for applicants who can explain the difference the scholarship will make to them, not just the opportunity to study at the University of Nottingham. Please also tell us what you are motivated to do after you graduate and how this scholarship will help enable you to achieve this.
If you prefer, you can record your answer to question 15 via Microsoft Teams or Microsoft Word where the software will automatically transcribe your answer. You can then upload the transcript of your answer directly to the form on question 16. Instructions on how to do this can be found via the Stoneygate supporting statement alternative format guide.
What is a “Home Student” (Question 8)?
Your student finance company (i.e., Student Finance England, Wales, Northern Ireland or the SAAS) will decide your residency status. To be classed as a ‘Home’ student you must have been ordinarily resident in the UK for the three-year period prior to the start of your course. Students granted refugee status and European migrant workers may also be eligible. If you are unsure of your status, contact the Student Finance company for further information.
What is “Household Income” (Question 11)?
The “Household Income” figure used by the university in relation to award eligibility is the figure calculated by Student Finance when you apply for your government support funding (Student Loans and Grants). It is the gross income of all those in your household (e.g., your parent/s or your partner) during the 2022/23 tax year (6th April 2022—5th April 2023), before tax and national insurance deductions but minus a few allowable deductions. More information is available on the UK Government website.
The Student Loans Company should automatically share your income information with the University, unless you chose to opt out. For more information about this, read the Privacy Notice in the accompanying notes to your Student Finance application. If you opt out of data sharing with Student Finance your financial information will not be shared with us and you will not be eligible for this fund.
As the deadline for this award is prior to the start of your course at Nottingham you will need to declare your household income for the period April 2022—March 2023. This figure will be checked against that supplied by Student Finance at the time of your registration at the University to ensure it is a similar figure to that you have declared and that it doesn't exceed the £35,000 eligibility threshold. Please note that if offered an Arts Alumni Scholarship Award this offer will be conditional on you meeting the income threshold criteria and entry onto the course of your choice.
How will the Award be paid?
If successful your total award of £9,000 will be paid over the expected duration of your undergraduate course: i.e., £3000 per year if on a three-year course, or £2250 if on a four-year course.
Your annual payment will be divided into three approximately equal instalments over the academic year. Year one payments will be in December, January and May with payments in subsequent years made in October, January and May.
When is the closing date and when will I know if I’ve been made an award?
The closing date for submitting this form is 1st July 2024.
Applications will be considered once the closing date has passed and all applicants will be informed by email (provided on their application) of the outcome of their application within 4 weeks of the closing date.
Successful candidates will receive a provisional notice of an award on the condition that they receive an offer to study for an undergraduate degree course at the University, that they meet the conditions of that offer, that they register on the course in September 2024, that they still meet the eligibility criteria at that time and that the household income figure provided by Student Finance is between £0 and £35,000.
The University of Nottingham’s safeguarding responsibilities
The University of Nottingham has a responsibility to comply with legislation regarding the safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults and will consult with local relevant bodies if it feels that the welfare of an individual is at risk. The information provided in this application will be treated confidentially, but in making an application you accept that you understand the university’s policy on safeguarding. Full information on the university’s Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy can be found on our website.
Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
The University of Nottingham is focused on embedding equality, diversity, and inclusion in all that we do.
As part of this, we seek to reward and recognise our diverse staff and student population, and therefore encourage applications from all communities, particularly those with protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010. For more information, please see our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion web pages. If you have any questions about your application in relation to EDI issues, please contact the Funding and Financial Support team.
How to appeal
All applications to funds administered by the Funding and Financial Support team are assessed according to agreed guidelines.
If you are unsatisfied with the outcome your application, you should initially contact the team to discuss your concerns (see contact details below). If after an explanation of the assessment, you believe there has been an error or procedural inconsistency you can ask for the outcome to be reviewed by emailing the Funding Manager, detailing the basis of your appeal.
Please send your email to john.hudson@nottingham.ac.uk and copy in financialsupport@nottingham.ac.uk.
Appeals must be lodged within 2 weeks of the date of the email notifying you of the initial outcome. You will be contacted within 7 working days of receipt of the appeal with confirmation of the outcome.
Please note that this appeal process specifically relates to the outcome of a particular funding application. It provides a process by which to question that outcome in the context of the relevant criteria and assessment guidelines. The Funding and Financial Support Management’s decision on such appeals is final. Where wider issues or questions are raised, these will be dealt with in accordance with the appropriate university procedure or policy.
Further details can also be found on our website.
More information
If you have any questions about completing this application form or want more information about any area of student support funding, then please submit an online enquiry. We can provide information and advice on all aspects of student finance including Government and university student support funds.
