School Visits

Late last year, Neil visited Queen Margaret’s School (QM), an all-girls’ school in the village of Escrick, near York, offering the full 7-day-a-week boarding experience.

When Giggleswick School held an Open day for English boarding school consultants, it was Neil’s turn to represent Dickinson School Consulting. This genuine, 7-days-a-week boarding school is nestled in the village of Giggleswick, situated within the Yorkshire Dales National Park and not far from the Lake District. The school owns 200+ acres of this stunning countryside, with its own crag, perfect for rock-climbing.

I recently took a short trip to the popular seaside town of Scarborough in North Yorkshire to catch up with all the latest developments at Scarborough College. Enjoying a stunning location overlooking the sea, just a short walk from the beach at South Bay and the town centre, the school has a buzzy, positive feel. This emanates from the top, as Headmaster of four years, Guy Emmett, clearly has real energy and drive.

While we don’t receive quite so many enquiries about British Prep Schools, it is important to keep my British boarding school consulting knowledge up to date across the whole range, so it was great to welcome Debbie from Aysgarth Prep School to HQ for a catch-up. 

One of the best ways to stay updated on everything our British boarding schools have to offer is to go and visit, and recently I have been out and about doing just that, starting with Westonbirt.

At last, Gina has been able to get back out on the road to catch up with at least a couple of the British boarding schools we work with.

She started not too far from HQ with Ashville College. Situated a short stroll from the centre of Harrogate, a lovely spa town in North Yorkshire, Ashville has an extensive campus with impressive facilities.

Last week, Gina participated in virtual BBSW. The British Boarding Schools Workshop is a conference held each spring and autumn, where educational consultants, like Gina, meet representatives of the schools they recommend. The pandemic moved the event online to keep these important lines of communication open; it’s a great chance to catch up on developments at schools we’ve worked with for years and to discover new options.

Gina recently participated in a virtual version of BBSW, the British Boarding Schools Workshop. Traditionally a presential conference held each spring and autumn here in the UK, since the pandemic the event has moved online to keep important lines of communication open between educational agents, like Gina, and the boarding schools they recommend.

As a summer term like no other draws to a close, so does the run of virtual visits and online open days. That said, many of the British boarding schools we work with have innovated to help families get a feel for them from the comfort of their own homes and whenever suits.

While it is impossible to visit our wonderful British boarding schools in person at the moment, most have virtual or video tours available on their websites, and many are innovating to offer virtual open days.