As this new academic year starts, many, families and schools alike, are already looking to next year. To highlight possibilities for a child’s new setting, whether that’s Prep, Senior or Sixth Form, this is also the time of year for awards and accolades, so here’s a summary of recent announcements about just some of the British boarding schools we recommend.

The winners of Independent Schools of the Year 2020 were announced recently at a virtual awards event hosted by Independent School Parent magazine.

An independent panel of 14 judges selected the winners from more than 300 nominations and we were delighted to see so many of the British boarding schools we regularly recommend achieving recognition.

The Boarding Schools’ Association (BSA) is the largest association of boarding schools in the world, representing more than 600 independent and state boarding schools, over 500 of which are based in the UK. Its mission is to champion boarding and promote boarding excellence.

The BSA and its member schools want to work with the best education agents and consultants, and its Certified Agent Scheme is a mark of professional quality, so we are delighted to announce we are now proud members of the scheme.

Earlier this month Queen Margaret’s School received the Boarding Schools Association’s 2018 Boarding Innovation Award, in recognition of the ‘Community Weekends’ that were introduced last September.

It is always hard to pick out one British boarding school’s news and achievements over the rest, but a recent update from Strathallan School in Scotland caught the eye for the sheer breadth of achievements in the spotlight; it really was a shining example of all that is great about British independent education.

Against a backdrop of headlines prophesying US isolationism, UK insularism and rising nationalism across Europe after some divisive political campaigns and results in 2016, we are happy to start this new year with proof that the communities within the British boarding schools we recommend retain their international focus.

Felsted Preparatory School’s Science Department is proud to have been awarded a Primary Science Quality Mark Gold Award. According to the assessors, “the Science Department’s passion for teaching is very evident” and “the range of opportunities both within the school day and in extracurricular ventures is excellent… Having specialised staff has enabled the school to develop initiatives and projects beyond the scope of most primary schools.”

We seem to be so often celebrating the many successes of the British boarding schools we are proud to recommend, you might think we’d be in danger of becoming blasé. No fear when we receive a rundown of annual achievements like the one we’ve just had from Oakham School. We are delighted to report the School has won not one, not two but FOUR national awards in one year!