HSBC UK pledges £2m to support 30 new Stormzy Scholars at the University of Cambridge over next 3 years
The scholarships will fund the tuition fees and maintenance costs (equivalent of £20,000 per student each year) for 10 new students each year over the next three years, for a degree course of either three or four years’ duration.
The combined support of HSBC UK, the #Merky Foundation and an anonymous donor means the University is set to welcome a total of 13 Stormzy Scholars in the autumn.
The move represents a significant expansion of The Stormzy Scholarship programme, launched in 2018, which to date, has supported six Black students through their Cambridge education.
In June 2020, Stormzy’s #Merky Foundation announced it would be donating £10 million over ten years to charities and other organisations committed to tackling racial inequality in the UK. HSBC UK’s donation is in addition to #Merky Foundation’s initial commitment, with the Foundation encouraging other companies to follow suit and join them in pledging.
The Stormzy Scholarships are credited with helping Cambridge to attract more applications from a traditionally underrepresented group. In 2017 the University admitted 58 Black British students to undergraduate degree courses. In 2020, this had risen to 137. This represented a 50% increase on the previous year and in turn was coined ‘The Stormzy Effect’.
Stormzy, said: “For 30 more Black students to have the opportunity to study at Cambridge University - the same year our initial 2018 scholars graduate - feels like an incredible milestone. Thank you to HSBC UK for their significant donation and of course, Cambridge University for always backing our mission. I hope this scholarship continues to serve as a small reminder to young Black students that the opportunity to study at one of the best universities in the world is theirs for the taking.”
The first two Stormzy Scholars graduated this summer with a high 2:1 and 2:1.
The University of Cambridge’s Senior Pro-Vice-Chancellor, Professor Graham Virgo, said: “We are enormously grateful to HSBC UK for supporting the #Merky Foundation in funding the degree courses of an additional 30 Black students over the next 3 years.
“Since the Stormzy Scholarships were announced in 2018 we have seen a significant increase in the number of Black students applying to study here and being admitted and we are very proud to see the first two students supported by the scheme graduate this year. We’re confident that they are starting out on an exciting journey which may not have been possible without the generous support of philanthropists like Stormzy. With the launch of our Foundation Year, for admission next year, we will be in a position to support a lot more students who have experienced educational disadvantage on their path through higher education.”
Ian Stuart, Chief Executive of HSBC UK, said: “Education is a great equaliser and a powerful force for change. We are incredibly proud to support the growth of the Stormzy Scholarships at the University of Cambridge, helping remove barriers to higher education as part of our wider commitment to support racial equality in the UK.”
All Stormzy Scholarship applicants will also have the option to explore work experience, skills development and mentoring opportunities with the bank.
To be eligible for a 2021 award applicants must have a confirmed place to start at Cambridge in October, and be a home student (UK) of Black or mixed race heritage. Applications must be submitted to the University no later than Friday 27 August 2021. The students will be selected from a list of applicants by a panel of University staff and experts from higher education. The President of the University’s student African-Caribbean Society also sits on this selection panel.
Students from low income families can apply for awards of up to £3,500 a year from the Cambridge Bursary Scheme. In the 2019/20 academic year, almost £8.5m was distributed to a total of 2,711 students.
Media enquiries to:
Paul Seagrove, Communications Manager, University of Cambridge
Email: paul.seagrove@admin.cam.ac.uk
Mobile: 07845 052995
Rachel Campbell, Publicist, Stormzy and #Merky
Email: rachel@wired-pr.co.uk
Aurora Bonin, Media Relations, HSBC UK
Email: aurora.f.bonin@hsbc.com
Mobile: 07438 850833
Notes to Editors:
- About the University of Cambridge:
The University of Cambridge is one of the world’s top ten leading universities, with a rich history of radical thinking dating back to 1209. Its mission is to contribute to society through the pursuit of education, learning and research at the highest international levels of excellence.
The University comprises 31 autonomous Colleges and 150 departments, faculties and institutions. Its 24,450 student body includes more than 9,000 international students from 147 countries. In 2020, 70.6% of its new undergraduate students were from state schools and 21.6% from economically disadvantaged areas. Cambridge research spans almost every discipline, from science, technology, engineering and medicine through to the arts, humanities and social sciences, with multi-disciplinary teams working to address major global challenges. Its researchers provide academic leadership, develop strategic partnerships and collaborate with colleagues worldwide.
The University sits at the heart of the ‘Cambridge cluster’, in which more than 5,300 knowledge-intensive firms employ more than 67,000 people and generate £18 billion in turnover. Cambridge has the highest number of patent applications per 100,000 residents in the UK. - About the #Merky Foundation:
#Merky Foundation is a registered UK charity founded in 2019 by British musician Stormzy – Charity number 1186891. #Merky Foundation - a subsidiary of Stormzy’s company #Merky - provides funding to organisations, charities and movements that are committed to fighting racial inequality, justice reform and black empowerment within the UK.
Stormzy is an award-winning musician from Thornton Heath, South London. His two albums to date; ‘Gang Signs & Prayer’ and ‘Heavy Is The Head’ both finished at #1 in the UK album chart and were subsequently nominated for the prestigious Mercury Music Prize. Last year he headlined Britain’s prominent music festival, Glastonbury.
His remarkable ascent has been accompanied by his honest and relatable character. A true spokesman of black empowerment and social activism, Stormzy is one of the UK’s most inspiring figureheads who has consistently stood up for people from all areas of life; encouraging his fans and listeners alike to speak openly about their beliefs and fight for their rights. In July 2018, Stormzy announced #Merky Books, an imprint within Penguin Random House UK, dedicated to publishing the best new fiction, non-fiction and poetry, and in August 2018 he announced ‘The Stormzy Scholarship’, an annual studentship to fund black British students to go to the University of Cambridge. In June 2020, Stormzy announced that he pledges £10 million, over 10 years, to organisations, charities and movements that are committed to fighting racial inequality, justice reform and black empowerment within the UK.
For more information on #Merky Foundation and Stormzy’s recent pledge please visit www.merkyfoundation.org.uk. - About HSBC UK:
HSBC UK serves around 14.5 million customers across the UK, supported by 32,000 colleagues. HSBC UK offers a complete range of retail banking and wealth management to personal and private banking customers, as well as commercial banking for small to medium businesses and large corporates.
HSBC Holdings plc, the parent company of HSBC, is headquartered in London. HSBC serves customers worldwide from offices in 64 countries and territories in its geographical regions: Europe, Asia, North America, Latin America, and Middle East and North Africa. With assets of US$2,984bn at 31 December 2020, HSBC is one of the world’s largest banking and financial services organisations.
For the latest news and updates, visit the HSBC UK newsroom: https://www.about.hsbc.co.uk/news-and-media