SLE’s mission is to help families identify and win offers from the best British independent schools. Here we share expert tips to finding the best schools and submitting the strongest boarding school applications.This guide will take you through the step-by-step process SLE has developed whilst helping hundreds of students find and enrol in their best fitting school.
SLE’s mission is to help families identify and win offers from the best British independent schools. Here we share expert tips to finding the best schools and submitting the strongest boarding school applications.
This guide will take you through the step-by-step process SLE has developed whilst helping hundreds of students find and enrol in their best fitting school.
First, you’ll need to have an overview of how the land lies. In particular, you need to know when it is possible to start, the application timelines, and the costs involved.
Independent boarding schools do not have a rigidly shared application format. However, you can use the following as some general guidance to plan ahead:
British independent boarding schools follow the same standard entrance points as day schools. Your correct “Year group” is assigned based on your child’s age on September 1st.
There are a few standard entrance points when schools are open to new applications. Ideally, you will target one of the following:
These are usually the youngest ages at which you can start at a British private boarding school.
i) A stand-alone Prep (preparatory) school. These teach pupils up until the age of 11 or 13, at which point students have been suitably prepped to progress to a (usually top-end) senior boarding school.
ii) A Prep school which is linked to or even on the same grounds a specific senior school. These are often called “all-through” schools.
For some Prep boarding schools you will need to enquire about registering at birth. For most, it will be sufficient to enquire once your child has started Reception (age 4.)
Age 11+ is a common time to begin senior school boarding, and growing in popularity. You’ll usually need a good 18 months run at it in order to meet the deadlines and go through the assessment processes.
13+ is the good old traditional starting age for senior boarding. But prepare to be shocked if you are new to this – for some schools the 13+ registration deadline falls 3 to 4 years before entrance!
In short, a lot of schools will ask students to sit a pre-test in Year 6 (age 10/11), followed by the school’s own unique entrance assessments and interviews. Needless to say the process is too convoluted to go into now, so we’ve set aside a whole 13+ application guide for the pleasure.
But don’t panic. This three year run-in is primarily for a number of the elite traditional boarding schools, and many reserve openings for late applicants. So, if you are late, there will still be plenty of options – it’s just that the longer you leave it the narrower this field of options becomes.
Options really begin to thin out around 2 years before entrance, so please call us if this applies to you.
Schools aim to fill beds at 11+ and 13+, so entrance at 14+ is not always available. Whilst there will always be options out there, you’re much better off seeking guidance immediately – an expert will be able to quickly identify suitable schools that are most likely to have an available bed.
Some schools even offer an age 15+ entrance point, but this is usually a one year GCSE or pre-A-level programme which is primarily in place for newly arriving international students.
Also known as “sixth form”, age 16+ is a time of huge movement within the boarding school sector. Many students will start boarding for the first time, and those who have already spent 3, 5 or more years at one boarding school might switch school for a new challenge, specialism or environment.
Application windows open about 18 months ahead of the starting September. The majority of schools hold entrance tests and interviews around the October prior to the year of enrolment.
Boarding fees tend to be cheapest for the youngest students, rising for senior school, and peak in sixth form. Location will also have some bearing, as will academic results and reputation/brand.
Nowadays, it is fairly rare to find senior boarding schools under £30k per year. The average is around £40k, and over £50k per year is not as rare as it used to be.
Before you moving on to Step 2, make sure you have completed the following tasks:
Identify your target boarding entrance point.
Forecast a ball park figure of the total fees. See SLE’s Fees guide if you require more detail on funding and planning.
Once you’ve mapped out these most basic practicalities, you can start thinking in more depth about your requirements.