Private school bursaries

Imposter67

We have just been through the admissions process for a local private school for our only child. All the time we were told that we could apply for a bursary when a place was offered. We got a letter offering a place at full fees. When we contacted them for a bursary form, they said all bursaries had been allocated and we did not qualify as our child had not done well enough in the test and that financial circumstances are not the only factor.

When we asked them to clarify the process, they said it is clear from their literature that the test is the criteria for bursaries, despite the phrase "means-tested" appearing several times. I thought a discount for exceptional performance in a test was called a scholarship?

We are middle income and it will be a struggle to pay full fees. Does anyone have any similar experiences with private school bursaries? I am disappointed as we feel the school has not been straight with us or given us a fair chance and it's literature is obfuscatory and misleading. Our financial circumstances are not even being considered.