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At senior level, Queenswood has far fewer full boarders since the school introduced flexi-boarding. Most full boarders are international, all continents represented. At Berkhamsted School (boys) and Berkhamsted School (girls) there’s flexi or weekly boarding available, although three-quarters of the boarders are full-time international students in sixth form. Each gender gets their own large residential house (next door to each other) a stone’s throw from both campuses. Royal Masonic School for Girls has three boarding houses with most boarders in years 10 to 12. Around 40 per cent are from overseas. Around 30 per cent board at Aldenham School (two-thirds boys) but it’s enough to lend it a ‘proper’ boarding ethos without any trace of ‘them and us’ between boarders and day pupils.
Two specialist schools offer boarding in west Herts - at The Purcell School, all but 40-ish board - it’s strongly encouraged, not least due to the early starts and late finishes.
At Tring Park School for the Performing Arts, full boarding (although in reality many sixth formers go home for weekends) is available and popular.
The only state boarding option is St George’s School (Harpenden). ‘It means our kids get to mix with a really international cohort and that’s a great experience,’ said a parent.
In east Herts, prep schools with boarding include Felsted Prep, Bishop’s Stortford College Prep and Heath Mount School. At senior level, Haileybury is the best-known boarding school. There’s also boarding at St Edmund’s College and St Christopher School – and there’s even boarding at the state school, Hockerill Anglo-European College. The most popular option outside the county is Bedford School, along with the likes of Wycombe Abbey, Bradfield College, Rugby School, St Edward’s School, Harrow School and Eton College. But with west Herts so well positioned for the motorways, there’s really no limit.
Need help? Perhaps you suspect your child has some learning difficulty and you would like advice on what you should do. Or perhaps it is becoming clear that your child's current school is not working for him or her, and you need help to find a mainstream school which has better SEN provision, or to find a special school which will best cater for your child's area of need. Our SEN consultancy team advises on both special schools, and the mainstream schools with good SEN support, from reception through to the specialist colleges for 19+. Special Educational Needs Index
Find top international, British, IB and American schools in over 40 countries. The Good Schools Guide International publishes impartial and forthright reviews of international schools across the world.
We examined the value-added from KS2 to GCSE for 2022 to see which state selective grammar schools added the most value to their offspring. A note of caution - the more highly selective a grammar school, the less scope there will be to add value.
Grammar schools are state-funded, academically selective senior schools. The education a child receives at grammar school is paid for by the state unlike at private schools which provide education for a fee. There are currently around 163 located in 36 English local authorities, with around 167,000 pupils between them. Northern Ireland has a further 67 grammar schools, but there are none in Wales or Scotland. A word of caution: there are private schools that have the word 'grammar' in their name but this is purely for historical reasons.
At specialist music, dance or performing arts schools, the arts aren't optional extras. They’re intrinsic to the school curriculum. Students are expected to fit in high level training and hours of practice alongside a full academic provision. It's a lot to ask any child to take on, but for those with exceptional performing ability this kind of education can be transformative.