The Charities Act 2006 brought with it some important changes for educational charities like Cheltenham College as well as for charities established to relieve poverty or to advance religion. Until the new Act, it had always been automatically presumed that such charities provided what the law refers to as 'public benefit'. Since the introduction of the Act we must demonstrate that we do.

An important element of providing public benefit is ensuring that access to the education we provide is not unduly restricted by, say, the ability to afford the fees we charge.

At Cheltenham College, we've long been committed to widening access by providing bursaries for a number of pupils who, without such help, might not otherwise be able to attend. We currently have around 50 such pupils attending both our Junior and Senior Schools and making very full and valued contribution to life here. Please download our 'Bursaries – Widening Access' document for more information.

Public benefit doesn't, of course, end with bursary provision. At Cheltenham College we do a great deal more and are constantly looking for new opportunities. For example many of our teaching staff set and/or mark public examinations - still more of them write or contribute to educational texts and periodicals. We host specialist teaching conferences and training courses and we make our facilities available to local maintained schools where we can. Further afield, the work of College staff and pupils supports an orphanage in Romania and provides important resources for a school in Kenya.