Dorset Community Foundation offers bursaries

Local young people looking to access or continue their further education can apply for funding for things such as travel costs, equipment (IT or course-related) and special course-related clothing.

The Superior STEM Bursary Fund, established by local engineering company Superior supports students aged 16-21 with grants of up to £1,500 who are undertaking a STEM (science, technology, engineering or mathematics) course at either Bournemouth & Poole or Brockenhurst College. The fund supports students from a particular part of Dorset covering Bournemouth, Poole, Christchurch, Wimborne and the surrounding areas.

Support of up to £1,000 is also available from the Foundation’s own Bursary Scheme which funds young people aged 16-21 from across Dorset studying vocational courses on traineeships affiliated with the six local colleges (Bournemouth & Poole College, Kingston Maurward College, Brockenhurst College, Weymouth College, Yeovil College, Wiltshire College – Salisbury Campus).

Both the Superior STEM Bursary Fund and the DCF Bursary Scheme assist young people who are particularly disadvantaged.

Nathan (pictured), one of the young people previously supported through the Superior STEM Bursary Fund, has been offered a place at Emmanuel College, Cambridge. Nathan, who has always been excited by Maths and the Sciences, lives in Christchurch with his cousin and his mum who is a single parent on a low income.

The Superior STEM Fund is one of a number of corporate funds the Foundation manages for local businesses looking to support the communities they operate in. The Foundation established the DCF Bursary Scheme thanks to a legacy gift from a local retired teacher Marjorie Gordon who was passionate about education.