Access Fund for schools

Eligibility  

To be eligible for the Historic Royal Palaces Access Fund for Schools, your school must be: a state funded primary, secondary or special school or unit. Applications from schools who have both of the following characteristics will be prioritised: at least 30% of students eligible for Pupil Premium; at least 15% of students with special educational needs (these characteristics will not be considered in relation to Special Schools and units).  

Allocating fund places  

Assuming booking requests meet the eligibility criteria, fund places will be allocated on a first come first served basis. Individual schools may bring up to 105 students (maximum number of school sessions that can be booked by a single school is 3. These may be spread over more than one day and Palace if necessary).   

Notification of successful and unsuccessful applicants 

The closing date for applications for the Autumn and Spring Terms is Friday 22 May 2026. Historic Royal Palaces will email all applicants by Friday 5 June 2026 to let you know if you have been successful or not in receiving a grant from the Access Fund for Schools. 

Travel Subsidy  

It will be the successful school’s responsibility to invoice us for their allocated travel funds. This can be done from six weeks prior to the visit date and full instructions will be given upon a booking. If funding is not claimed within six weeks of the visit, travel funding may be forfeited.  Agreed travel amounts may change if the total number of pupils booked for is significantly different to the amount applied for. SEND schools and units are entitled to the upper amount of funding within their geographical band even if their total pupils is below 36. Likewise, SEND schools and units in London are eligible for Band 2 funding.   

If travel subsidy funding has already been claimed prior t the visit date, and the visit does not then go ahead, Historic Royal Palaces are eligible to request a refund for the full travel subsidy amount.   

Primary Purpose of Trip  

In order to claim the full funding amount and travel subsidy, an education visit to an Historic Royal Palaces site must be the primary purpose of the group’s trip. While groups may choose to take part in other activities during the trip, travel costs which relate to those activities will not be subsidised and must not be included in the claim.  

Minimum and Maximum Numbers  

A minimum number of 10 pupils is required for a successful application (exceptions may be made for SEND pupils and units booking for a SEND session. The maximum number of pupils we may fund per academic year, per school is 105.   

Site Familiarisation  

In order for your students to get the most out of the visit, the lead teacher(s) should attend a Teacher Familiarisation session either at your chosen site or online prior to your school visit. The Familiarisation Day includes free entry to the chosen site. Alternatively, you may attend an online familiarisation visit. An information pack will be sent to all successful schools to help with planning the visit. They will also be offered 2 teacher planning passes in order to visit the site in advance to conduct their risk assessment. It is your responsibility to ensure that this takes place.  

Student/teacher ratios  

We would like to remind you that if you choose to bring any additional adults on the school visit above the stated ratios of 1:5 for KS1, 1:10 for KS2-4 and 1:15 for KS5, you will be charged for them and an invoice will be sent to the School once your numbers are confirmed.   

Sessions  

A large number of expert-led sessions are available at the Tower of London, Hampton Court Palace and Kensington Palace for KS1 - 5 students and you are required to attend one of these sessions as part of your visit. If you are successful in applying for an Access Fund for Schools grant, every pupil in your group must participate in the session that you choose. Most sessions are run three times a day. There is 1 SEND session available at the Tower of London, and 1 at Hampton Court Palace. These sessions last approximately 75 minutes but can be adapted to suit the needs of your group.  

Late arrivals  

Due to the number of sessions presenters deliver during the day please be aware that if you are between 15 and 30 minutes late you will receive a shortened session. Groups who are more than 30 minutes late may forfeit their session  

If you are late on the day of your visit you must call us on 0203 166 6646 to confirm your estimated time of arrival. We will then discuss your options with you.  

No-show fees  

Your deadline for cancelling or amending your booking is 42 days (6 weeks) prior to your visit date. If you need to make any amendments to your booking (including reducing or increasing numbers) or need to cancel for any reason you must let us know by email before this date. If you inform us of a cancellation less than 42 days prior to your visit or if you fail to attend on the day of your visit, you will be charged the full cost of the visit   

Cancellations and Amendments  

Your deadline for payment, cancelling or amending your booking is 42 days (6 weeks) prior to your visit date. If you need to make any amendments to your booking, or need to cancel for any reason, you must let us know in writing before this date. If you inform us of a cancellation after this date you will be charged for your visit.  

Evaluation  

In order for Historic Royal Palaces to understand the impact of an Access Fund for Schools visit on your school and to ensure that we can raise more money to support the fund in the future, we may ask the lead teacher to complete and return an evaluation form on the day of the visit. We may also ask you to take part in a more in depth evaluation project.   

Photography  

Historic Royal Palaces reserves the right to photograph schools participating in visits through the Access Fund for Schools. Should Historic Royal Palaces need to make use of these photographs for reporting or marketing purposes, we will seek permission from your school at a later date. To find out more about how we collect and use personal data, please see Historic Royal Palaces' Privacy Policy  

Supervision Ratios  

Early Years Foundation Stage = 1:4 (free adult spaces available up to 1:2)  

Key Stage 1 = 1:5 (ages 4 -7)  

Key Stages 2, 3 & 4 = 1:10 (ages 7-15)  

Key Stage 5 and up = 1:15 (16 +)  

Pupils and students must be supervised at all times according to our supervision ratios. You are responsible for ensuring that all adults in your group are aware of the supervision requirements. Please refer to our Essential Information packs for more information. Adult supervisors are responsible for the behaviour of pupils. If pupils misbehave or are not adequately supervised, Historic Royal Palaces (Historic Royal Palaces) has the right to ask the whole group to leave the site. You are responsible for any damage caused to Historic Royal Palaces property by any member of your group during your visit. Our staff reserve the right to refuse entry to groups who do not meet these ratios, with no possibility of a refund.  

On the Day  

Palace routes, exhibitions, and on-site experiences are subject to changes and occasional last-minute closures. We cannot give refunds for such closures.