How do British boarding schools help new pupils settle?
Any fresh start can be daunting, so how do British boarding schools help new pupils settle? As well as ensuring families have all the information they need prior to their children starting their UK education, some schools run special days to help new starters fit into their new communities, while all of them have their ways of helping new boarders to settle in.
West Buckland School is committed to ensuring a smooth transition and provides comprehensive support to help new students feel at home from the outset. It hosts a special induction day filled with carefully planned team building activities such as climbing, tower-building, karaoke and a water fight. These are designed to foster confidence, encourage collaboration, and help students quickly form friendships through fun and interactive exercises. Each new boarder is paired with a buddy who gets to know them, shows them around, and ensures they are settling in well.
Beyond the induction day, houseparents and the pastoral care team provide ongoing support. Whether that is helping students set up a bank account, master the laundry room, or find their way around the local town on their first shopping trip, they are there to assist. This support is combined with fun evening and weekend activities throughout the term, allowing boarders to develop a sense of belonging within the school community and to experience all that the beautiful local area has to offer.
Houseparents at the Royal Hospital School shared with us how they strive to create a ‘home’ when welcoming new boarders; not just a place where they sleep, but somewhere they return to at the end of their school day which offers friendship, warmth, laughs, comfort and an overall sense of security. While some children eagerly embrace every experience on offer from the minute they race through the doors, others take a more cautious approach to their new life. The houseparents’ priority throughout the first part of the school year is to encourage the more reluctant as they adjust, acknowledging their insecurity and anxiety.
Providing structure during the evenings and weekends is essential to keep pupils well occupied, so they don’t have time to miss home. This structure is created by dividing time into relatively short periods that include any number of different activities such as snack time, organised games, socialising, homework, mealtimes, lessons, music and sports. The houseparents vary the evening activities to ensure pupils with different interests always find something that appeals.
These are just a couple of examples, so please do get in touch if you’d like to know more.
