Study at a Private Boarding School in England

The finest private boarding schools in Europe

For generations, England has been recognised as having the finest private boarding schools in Europe. The schools have built up excellent reputations based on strong traditions and very high standards which prove very attractive to students and their parents.

Many private boarding schools in England achieve exceptional academic success, whilst others specialise in either music, sports, drama and arts or special needs.

Catering for all student abilities

It is often people's impression that independent schools teach only highly academic children. For some high profile Public Schools this is correct but there are many private schools offering education to more average ability students.

There are many reasons why parents choose to educate their children in private schools, among them private schools tend to offer smaller class sizes which can lead to increased attention for their child. Parents also consider there are benefits to be gained by mixing with other children from more wealthy families. Almost all schools have some form of selection process to ensure that pupils are suitable for the courses they offer.

Private Boarding School in England

Excellent pastoral care

All the private boarding schools we recommend provide excellent pastoral care in the form of house parents, matrons, and a tutor caring for each child. Life and the learning process is very structured for students with great care being taken to develop each child's social skills, as well as supporting them through all activities.

Exceptional facilities

There are hundreds of private boarding schools in England, many living up to the image of an impressive building in beautiful rural surroundings with exceptional facilities, including some with their own equestrian centre, farm or even a helicopter pad.

Barnes experience in securing a place for you

We have a very experienced and knowledge- based view of a large number of private schools in England that we have worked with over the years. Taking great care in understanding your child's needs we are able to suggest schools to really suit your child. After giving our recommendation to the school about your child we fully prepare them for the selection process, including the interview, at their chosen schools, thus giving them the best chance possible to secure a place.

Unlike other companies we do not charge an arrangement fee for our skill and administration in obtaining a suitable offer for a student.

In summary

  • Aged 11 - 18 years old
  • GCSE, A Level and International Baccalaureate
  • Normally full academic year required
  • No arrangement fee is payable to BARNES for placements of one year or more *
  • Boarding school fees between GBP 28,500  and GBP 40,500 per year depending on the school, plus a Guardianship agreement**

* If the application is for less than one year, an application fee of £450 (£600 if a visa is required) is payable to reflect the difficulty in placing students for less than one year.
** GUARDIANSHIP SERVICE FOR BOARDING SCHOOLS
All boarding schools require foreign students to have a UK-based Guardian, which can be a friend or relative of the student, who lives in England. A guardian for a student at a boarding school has to be prepared to care for a student in the holidays and any weekends when the student has to leave the boarding house (exeat weekends). They also have to assist a student with their travel arrangements and be available in case of an emergency. If you do not have an adequate relationship, please contact us and we can offer you two different levels of Guardianship agreements (fully included in all packages where a student lives with a BARNES host family).

Visas

From 1st January 2021 all students that do not have the right to abode in the UK will need to follow the new UKVI rules for entering the UK to study -  https://www.gov.uk/check-uk-visa . Barnes is used to supporting students that need a visa to study in the UK.
Visas are not always necessary where a student studies in the UK for less than 6 months (EU/Swiss students do not need a visa for a study period of up to 6 months). Where a visa is necessary the time taken to apply for this needs to be taken into account when considering start dates. Private schools are allowed to set their own English tests as long as they are a sponsor of Student (Child) visas.

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