The National Archives Education service is delighted to introduce our new bursary scheme, encouraging even more students to take part in exciting onsite workshops. Learners of all ages get the unique chance to get ‘hands-on’ with history, exploring original historical documents in a facilitated session at The National Archives in Kew. From iconic records such as Elizabeth I’s signature to the Empire Windrush passenger list, students can experience the excitement of seeing a real piece of history. With expert guidance from our history educators, they will investigate the past, developing their skills in evidential understanding.
Support with travel/ teacher cover
EligibleUK schools who are successful in applying to our bursary scheme will be given £500 to go towards the cost of the educational visit. This can include travel or other costs such as teacher cover. The workshops themselves are all free of charge.
To apply, your school will need to be a state-school and meet at least two out of three of the below criteria:
- Schools with a higher-than-average percentage of students eligible for free school meals*.
- Schools based outside of the borough of Richmond.
- Schools that have not previously used The National Archives education service.
Applications for the second round of our bursary scheme will open at 9am on the 6th January 2025 and close at 5pm on the 13th January. Due to the high demand we encountered during the first round, bursaries that meet the criteria will be picked by ballot. Successful applicants will be notified via email on the 14th January 2025.
Applications for the bursary scheme have now closed.
If you have any questions regarding the bursary, please contact elspeth.mcgregor@nationalarchives.gov.uk
We advise that you have an idea of which workshop/s you’d like to book beforehand as priority booking will be available until public bookings open on 20th January (you can browse our onsite workshops here). This forthcoming round of bursaries is for bookings to be made in Summer Term 2025. Note that there will be bursaries for future terms available, with this page updated as and when they become available.
If you have successfully applied for and received a bursary from The National Archives, you will be eligible to re-apply to the programme eighteen months after the date of your funded visit.
* This is based on being above the national average as shared by the UK government.
The National Archives Education Bursary Scheme is supported by The National Archives Trust, with contributions from Francesca Barnes, the Bisset Trust, Epsom College History Department, Dr P. Kay and Ms A. Jackson Kay, Simon Lough, the Maurice & Vivien Thompson Charitable Trust and Kit and Anthony van Tulleken.