Adrian Underwood Education Consultant
School visits: questions and answers School visits can take many forms. They can involve meeting the Head or perhaps attending an open day. Whatever the format, the first meeting is crucial so if possible always try to visit a school on a normal day. If it goes well, follow it up with an open day visit. Further visits can then be
prospective boarders and their families and boarders enjoy talking about their school and their house. Here are some useful
boarders should have the opportunity to stay overnight.
The initial look round is absolutely vital. It is where a parent and their child start to assess whether they fit the environment (and whether it fits them). It is where
prospective parents and boarders decide whether they like the location, the ‘buzz’ and the Head. Open days can involve a
talk about the school, usually by the Head,
and the International Baccalaureate,
the boarding school’s website, prospectus
but smaller ones will find this more
and accompanying information did not cover
difficult and expensive. Schools may
everything you wanted.
also offer the Cambridge Pre-U Diploma (being withdrawn from 2023 with a
The list is not exhaustive: use it as a guide
last resit available in June 2024) or the
and adapt the questions to your own
Advanced Diploma. Most schools will be
requirements – you will have to be selective,
attempting to broaden their sixth-form
given the relatively short time available.
curriculum, introducing more skills-
Covered in this list are:
based courses.
• • • • • • •
academic issues rules and regulations boarding life and pastoral care financial issues
and current boarders, and then current boarders lead a tour of the school.
All this should be followed by an opportunity to ask any further questions.
As a prospective parent visiting a boarding
school with your child, you should have the
opportunity to spend time with the Head, a boarding housemaster/housemistress and some boarders. Above all, set out to enjoy your visit. You will find the vast majority of boarding schools enjoy welcoming
Q: How has the school addressed the examination reforms? A: GCSEs and A levels have been reformed
the governing board
introducing linear programmes
COVID-19
with examinations at the end of
after your visit.
two years. The standalone one-year
sometimes hands-on classes for prospective boarders while parents chat to senior staff
curriculum? A: Larger schools may offer both A levels
questions to ask, particularly if you found
Q arranged; for example, potential
Q: How do you organise your 14 to 19
ACADEMIC ISSUES Q: What are the entry requirements? Is our child likely to obtain a place, and when? A: This is a crucial initial administrative matter. Remember the majority of places available will be for the main ages of entry: normally at 7, 8 and 11 for a prep school and at 11, 13 and 16 for a senior school. You need to know whether to have alternative schools lined up, and at what age the school recommends entry and has places available.
AS qualification no longer counts towards the full A level. In the National Curriculum, mathematics focuses on problem solving and mental arithmetic and English on producing good quality written communication and comprehension of a range of texts including those from our English literary heritage. Schools should be able to explain how they have approached these reforms.
