Care Experienced and Vulnerable Children programme eligibility and application criteria
Our Care-Experienced and Vulnerable Children (CEVC) programmes provide transformative educational opportunities for children who are in care or whose home circumstances might characterise them as being ‘on the edge of care’. The programmes are part-funded by the Department of Education.

School places can be funded entirely by school bursary funding, or co-financed as part of arrangements between schools, RNCSF and local authorities.

Boarding school programme
A boarding school education can offer transformational benefits and opportunities to children facing a wide range of vulnerabilities in their home circumstances or whose early childhoods have been traumatic.

We broker boarding places at schools around the UK and provide continuing support to help children transition to and thrive throughout their school journey.

Eligibility

• Children in Care (CiC)
• Previously Looked-After Children (PLAC)
• Special Guardianship Order (SGO)
• Unaccompanied Asylum-Seeking Children (UASC)
• Children on a Child-Protection Plan (CPP)
• Children on a Child-in-Need Plan (CIN)
• Young Carers (with significant caring responsibilities)
• Children with significant children’s services involvement (“edge of care”)

(please note, carers of non CiC will be means tested)

We require that referrals for boarding places should come from children’s services professionals working with a family. We feel that these professionals are well placed to support parents or carers through the application process.

Day-school programme
We recognise that boarding will not be the right option for some looked-after children/young people. That’s why we have extended our CEVC programme to offer opportunities at leading independent day schools to those children in care for whom this is a more appropriate option.

Eligibility

• Children in Care (CiC)
• Previously Looked-After Children (PLAC)

(Please note, carers of PLAC will be means tested)

Referrals for day places for Children in Care must come directly from either social workers or Virtual School professionals only.

Referrals for Previously Looked-After Children can come directly from carers. In such cases, we require references from a social or children’s services professional to support any application.

We encourage you to apply as early as possible for the greatest chance of securing a school recommendation. However, we also advise that no school placement is 100% guaranteed and stress that you continue with applications to state school options in parallel.

The majority of our places are for children entering Year 7 and 12, though we do have limited availability for entry at Years 5-9.