Winchester College receives £10 million donation to support affordability for families

Winchester College has announced a landmark £10 million donation from philanthropist Paddy Dear. The donation will be utilised to help Winchester College continue to attract outstanding talent from a broad cross section of society.

Paddy Dear, who was a pupil at the school from 1974-1979, has established The Paddy Dear Bursary Award which will provide means-tested bursaries covering between 20% and 70% of fees, alongside the school’s existing transformational bursary support of up to 100%. The Award is specifically designed to address affordability, assisting families who are able to contribute towards school fees but cannot support the full cost of an independent education. The fund has been established through an initial ring-fenced £10 million endowment, with annual donations made to Winchester College. The funding will support two new awards annually from 2026, rising to ten funded pupils by 2031, with the fund endowed to run in perpetuity. Awards will be open to UK citizens at both 13+ and 16+ entry and may be held alongside academic scholarships or other awards, as part of the College’s wider commitment to broadening access through both partial and full fee bursary support. Paddy Dear said: “The bursary I received from Winchester College changed my life. It enabled me to have an incredible education, which shaped the way I think, learn, and approach life. I have never forgotten how transformative that support was.”

Mr Dear continued: “Education is one of the most valuable things we can give our children and society. It underpins opportunity, responsibility, and progress. If institutions like Winchester College are to thrive and deliver excellence, their pupil bodies must reflect a broad cross-section of society – not just those who can afford the full fees or those who need 100% support. My hope is for Winchester College and its unique approach to education to be accessible to talented pupils looking to have their minds challenged and stretched, irrespective of their family financial circumstance.”

Ms Elizabeth Stone, Headmaster of Winchester College said: “Many families wrongly assume that bursaries are only for those needing full fee remission. Our average fee remission is 72% and in addition to offering awards of up to 100%, many of our bursaries provide partial, or ‘top-up’ support. We are extremely grateful to Paddy and the many donors who support our bursary programme and help us to uphold our founder’s vision that original thinking, talent and potential should not be limited by circumstance.”