How will my Care Leavers Bursary be paid?

Your Care Leavers Bursary will be paid to you in three instalments in the first year of your course. You will be contacted via email by end of October 2018, to be asked to complete an online survey to establish how you would like the flexible payments made.

Remaining payments will be paid during year two and three.

Instalment 1

Your first instalment will be My Beds, which is £300 card credit and £50 print credit.

Once you have registered and received your student ID card, you will be able to register with John Smith's and will be able to spend your £300 My Beds credit online.

Your £50 print credit will be preloaded onto your student ID card.

Instalment 2

The second instalment is made up of two payments which are a £500 cash payment and a £825 flexible payment, both due to be paid at the end of February.

Instalment 3

The third instalment is made up of two payments which are a £500 cash payment and a £825 flexible payment, both due to be paid at the end of April.

What is My Beds?

Credit is loaded automatically onto your My Beds card. You will receive an email from John Smith's confirming the available credit on your card.

You can purchase a wide range of items with My Beds credit: books from your reading list, IT equipment, bags, sports equipment, tickets/tokens/vouchers, Go Global and Aspire Gym. You can purchase items online at www.johnsmith.co.uk/bedfordshire

If you don't spend all the credit on your card, it will remain on your card for continuing years until graduation.

How will I receive my cash payment?

If you receive a student loan, we will pay any flexible payments into the same bank account, through the Student Loans Funding Portal. To change bank accounts you will need to contact Student Loans Company well in advance of the due payment date. Your cash payments will be made by cheque and need to be collected at SiD or Student Money Advice.

All NHS students and students not receiving a student loan will be paid by cheque for the flexible element. The cash payments will be made on the last working day of the month in which it is due.