Scholarships
Scholarships are competed for annually by new entrants to the Senior School. They are awarded following the Entrance Examination Day (in late January / early February), and all entrance candidates are considered automatically. There is no additional Scholarship test for which to prepare.
In addition, Scholarships may be awarded to pupils entering the Sixth Form (both from within and from outside the school) on the basis of the performance up to GCSE and results of the Entrance Test for external applicants.
Academic Scholarships
These are awarded on the basis of academic performance and promise.
Instrumental and Choral Awards
These are offered following an audition and tests, and potential candidates (typically Grade 3 standard at 11 and Grade 5 at 13) are recommended to contact the Director of Music, Mr Mark Mawhinney. An Organ Scholarship is also offered at Sixth Form level.
Sporting, Art and 'all-rounder' awards
These may also be made to those who show outstanding potential which will enrich the life of the school.
The Awards made annually include a major St John’s Scholarship for pupils living within the parishes of Barnard Castle and Startforth, and a Macdonald Scholarship for Sixth Form entry.
Barnard Castle School Assisted Places
The School is able to offer a small number of means-tested awards to outstanding pupils from homes where the income would not otherwise be sufficient to enable them to attend. Fee remission operates on a sliding scale, up to 100%. Candidates take the normal Entrance Examination, but parents who think they may qualify for assistance are invited to contact the Bursar, Mr Alastair White, for guidance in advance and the appropriate application forms.
Bursaries
These are sometimes available to pupils already in the School, whose parental circumstances change dramatically mid-way through a course. These awards are means-tested, usually short-term, on a compassionate basis and entirely at the discretion of the School.
