What is state boarding? In what way can it offer a superior experience to a local day school? How can it deliver excellent quality at a lower cost than an independent boarding school?
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ven most educational professionals are clueless about state boarding, a hidden gem in the country’s educational system. Believe it or not there are 35 state boarding schools spread in a footprint right across the country, and they house nearly 4,500 boarders, in most cases alongside a number of day school students from their local area. They include the Defence 6th form College at Welbeck, and institutions as diverse as Hockerill Anglo-European College in Essex with it’s focus on the International Baccalaureate; The Wellington Academy and Holyport School, both relatively recent off-shoots of high status independent schools; The Duke of York’s Royal Military School in Dover; or The Harefield Academy, where boarding in part provides students with an opportunity to attend an illustrious football academy. The simple premis of state boarding is that our parents pay for their child’s board and lodging while their day school education is state funded. This means that boarding fees tend to be around the £10,000 mark per year, whereas independent schools may be charging that amount per term.
Customer satisfaction surveys tend to produce results most businesses would kill for. In a recent independent poll in summer 2014, 93% of respondents said they would say their child was fairly happy or very happy in his or her boarding house. Given this relates to some relatively young students perhaps away from home for the first time, this is pretty remarkable. 95% of respondents said they would recommend their child’s state boarding school to other parents. This is not just down to the quality of care and the happy environment that we can create. Most parents of boarders said that a key driver in their choice was that boarding gave the opportunity for their child to access an excellent academic education which would not be available near the family home or posting. State boarding schools include some which are academically selective in intake; but also others which achieve in the top 10 schools in the UK in GCSE results in spite of having no selection whatsoever. State boarding schools are disproportionately likely to have top academic outcomes, as well as an extra curricular offer which reflects the fact that many students are on site 24/7. Finally, state boarding provides a rich experience in terms of developing confident young people able to deal with peers from all manner of backgrounds. The profile of boarders is diverse. Over the whole of the UK 75% of state boarders are permanent UK residents;
but the remainder will be UK passport holders or those with rights of residence who may be living from Spain to Hong Kong, to the near East, to literally the children of missionaries working somewhere up the Orinoco river. While some boarders come from affluent families, many do not; while some stay for the whole time, others spend weekends at home; and many have a much richer ethnic demographic than the communities they sit
in. We find this makes a huge difference to our students’ ability to function as confident young adults in University and beyond. If you’d like to find out more about the UK’s state boarding schools, a great start point is the SBSA website at SBSA.org.uk Good luck! >> Written By: P.Storrie, St George’s School
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Welcoming service families for over 100 years St George’s is a school where students pleaseseeour website: live in a cosy, traditional boarding house. canFor learn inmoreinformation an exceptional environment and St George’s School was OFSTED rated “Outstanding” in Sept 2014 and is based close to London and regional airports; just half an hour from ENQUIRE NOWABOUT ENTRY SEPTEMBER 2014 For St Pancras train IN station.
www.stgeorges.herts.sch.uk Member of SBSA – Termly Fees currently £3,650 For application forms and further information please email: boardingadmissions@stgeorges.herts.sch.uk or call 01582 716256 or visit our website: www.stgeorges.herts.sch.uk
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