Why choose a boarding school?

When you are deciding on a school for your child, you want to make the right choice and considering the boarding option widens the range of schools you can consider. If your preferred school is a long way from your home, you must decide if you and your child are prepared to undertake a long and tiring journey each day or perhaps compromise on a closer school from your list of "second favourites".

Families may choose boarding because the parents' work schedules mean that day school hours force their children to spend a long time with babysitters at the beginning or end of the day.

Your child also needs time for homework as well as to relax and play. Boarding houses have study areas where children can do their prep as well as common rooms where they can watch TV and play games together. Most schools also offer a range of clubs and societies for their pupils on everything from stamp collecting to car mechanics, and debating to canoeing. The bigger the school, the more there will be to choose from and children are able to try new activities that they might not find at or near their home.

Boarding schools can be expensive, but many of them offer scholarships. In addition, your transport costs and your home grocery bill will be much reduced.

The key to whether boarding school is right for your child is in your knowledge of his or her character. Does your child make friends easily? Does he enjoy activities away from home such as cub camp? Boarding schools today set out to be a home-from-home and standards of accommodation and pastoral care can be very high. All children are likely to feel home-sick at some stage and schools are well accustomed to seeing pupils through any wobbly moments. There will be a house master or mistress who is on call throughout the night and who is available to help with any problems your child might encounter.

Part-time boarding, in the form of weekly boarding or flexi-boarding, is a good choice for many families as it can offer an excellent compromise, enabling a happy outcome both for the child and the family as a whole. For children who are interested in boarding, but not quite sure whether they will like it, many boarding schools now offer Taster Days and Taster Sleepovers for prospective pupils. Visiting children are escorted by a current pupil and join in with lessons and games with their own age group.