Foresters Provide Much Needed Financial Support to UK Students

    BROMLEY, ENGLAND, September 18, 2014 /24-7PressRelease/ -- One hundred and fifty students will be starting university later this month with a much-needed contribution to the financial costs of their further studies via the Foresters Scholarship Programme.

Member-focused financial services organisation Foresters is committed to supporting and enriching the lives of its members, their families and their communities. Their Scholarship Programme gives students renewable scholarships awarding them for their outstanding educational achievements and volunteering projects in their community.

Steve Dilworth, Managing Director Member Network UK, says: "With the cost of further education continuing to rise in the UK, it's great that Foresters can give students some financial strength in achieving their education goals.

"Over the last 25 years, the UK Foresters Scholarship Programme has been a great success, with applicants year on year establishing a phenomenal commitment to their academic studies and volunteering in their communities."

In addition, every year a stand-out student is given a 'Student of the Year' award. This is based on their work in the community, including any volunteering work and fund raising. This student also receives an additional monetary award for the first year of their studies.

Arpan Sekhon from Bedford is the UK's 2014 Student of the Year and will be attending Birmingham's Aston University to study an MPharm in Pharmacy (which is a four year course).

18 year-old Arpan has been extremely active in her community, carrying out around 700 hours of community service/volunteering in the last 24 months.

She has been doing volunteer work with national charity The Sikh Missionary Society youth camps since 2005.

Arpan has also coordinated free language classes for children run by a local charity; helped parents to raise around GBP5000 for Papworth Trust in Cambridge and, with her family, raised over GBP10k for Macmillan Cancer Support in the Asian community.

She says: "This scholarship will be a huge financial help. It will definitely make studying easier and more accessible. I will be able to focus on my studies and achieve better results instead of spending a significant amount of time finding and doing part-time jobs.

"Being a full-time student imposes a great financial burden ... this scholarship will ease a great deal of pressure and has also given me motivation to succeed. The money will be used to purchase essential equipment and textbooks, and to fund the cost of general university life and travel expenses that will also allow me to spend time occasionally with my family and the local community that have been an integral part of my life."

For nearly 25 years, Foresters UK has awarded more than 1300 scholarships to students who have shared their commitment to helping their community and who have proved a solid academic performance. In total, over GBP2.1 million has been awarded in financial support in the UK.

An example of a successful graduate this year who received a Foresters Scholarship is George Eden from Peterborough who earned a 1st class honours in Civil Engineering.

Children/grandchildren of Foresters Members, or students who hold their own Foresters plan, can apply until the 30th January 2015 for the Foresters Scholarship Programme for the 2015-2016 academic year.

For more information regarding the Foresters Scholarship programme visit Foresters.

At Foresters we believe in enriching the lives of our members, their families and the communities they live in. We're member-based, family-focused, and community spirited.

Our products benefit both your family and your community. We champion the well-being of families through quality financial products, unique member benefits and inspiring community activities.

We share our financial strength with over one million members across the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States. Throughout our 140-year history, our purpose has been to enrich the lives of members, their families and communities. The priorities remain today and will guide our future.

As an example, our work with Cash for Kids in their 2013 Mission Christmas Appeal helped over 278,000 children to have a better Christmas. The whole campaign raised GBP8m and involved 1,463 Foresters volunteers.

Forester Life is responsible for funds under management of over GBP3bn* and is part of Foresters, the international financial services organisation.

Internationally, Foresters has over GBP14bn* funds under management and has been assigned an 'A' excellent rating by A.M. Best.**

Safeguarding our members' interests is at the heart of what we do. Being financially strong and responsive, with sound governance and continuing professional service have always helped us to protect our members' benefits.

*As at 31st December 2013

**An 'A' excellent rating is assigned to companies that have a strong ability to meet their ongoing obligations to policyholders and have, on balance, excellent balance sheet strength, operating performance and business profile when compared to the standards established by A.M. Best Company. In assigning Foresters rating A.M. Best stated that Foresters outlook rating is 'stable', which means it is unlikely to change in the near future, assuming Foresters financial strength is maintained and operations grow. A.M. Best assigns rating from A++ to F, A++ being superior and A and A- being excellent ratings. This rating was assigned on 3rd July 2013. Our International Head Office is located at 789 Don Mills Road, Toronto, Canada M3C 1T9.

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