Fund-raising for our bursary campaign has made a St Paul's education possible for seven new students who joined year 7 in September on full revenue bursaries, according to the campaign's latest report launched on 20 November. Five new members of year 12 and eight of the year group's current students are also receiving bursaries.

The campaign's most significant achievements included the establishment of a new bursary syndicate, thanks to the generosity of the parents of 2010's leavers, and the pledge of £158,000 to the bursary endowment fund – an investment that provides for permanently renewed bursaries.

Members of the St Paul's family – governors, alumnae, parents and donors alike – have also contributed to the report, speaking about what St Paul's has meant to them. "My friends and classmates have inspired me with their achievements, from climbing champions and ballet dancers to maths genii and talented writers," says Annie MacIver, a bursary student who moved on to read history at St Hugh's, Oxford in 2009. "The most amazing thing, however, is the sense of humour, humility and normality that Paulinas maintain despite their talents."

"We are now using both sources of funding for bursaries, the revenue donations and the endowment, to their maximum capacity," says the foundation director Rosemary Torrington. "We would like to increase our endowment fund in this coming year to help us offer bursaries in perpetuity.