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Original poster

Boarding for sixth form- which school

33 replies

Brian9600 · 29/08/2019 11:27

My daughter is interested in boarding for sixth form. She's currently at a very academic day school and enjoying it.

This is all a few years off so we have time to look around but I wondered if MNers had any suggestions. We are looking for the following:

  • academic
  • mixed
  • boarding/weekly boarding
  • good sporting facilities
  • a lovely setting is a bonus
  • decent sized sixth form intake

Where would you look?

OP posts:
PaxtonsCrown · 29/08/2019 15:51

Rugby has a big sixth form intake and a house for new sixth form girls. It's a large school so lots of choice of extra curricular activities and social activity. Fantastic sports facilities. It has a separate sixth form centre and a good choice of subjects.
It's also handily placed for north and south of the UK. If it's her first time boarding I would try not to be more than and hour and a half's drive away. The only thing is that Rugby is full not weekly boarding, I think that's an advantage but you might not.

VanCleefArpels · 29/08/2019 14:31

@cakeisalwaystheanswer my DD just left, wanted to stay forever ☺️. They squeezed A level results out of her that nobody would have predicted based on her GCSE. Just amazing

Rockylady · 29/08/2019 14:20

Westminster 6th form is mixed and boarding , Wellington I also heard good things of. Can also look at Rugby depending on which location (north/south etc) you prefer.

LIZS · 29/08/2019 12:21

Girls or mixed, day/boarding or full/weekly boarding only, budget, location for visits/weekend exeats

Mixed - Brighton, Wellington, Marlborough, Kings Canterbury
Girls - Roedean, St Catherine's Bramley, Wycombe Abbey

cakeisalwaystheanswer · 29/08/2019 12:15

Point taken VanCleef, my DD isn't sporty so I wouldn't have given sport more than a cursory glance. I would still have loved her to go for the experience. A few friend's DCs have been and loved it.

Zodlebud · 29/08/2019 12:14

Haileybury, Rugby and St Edwards (Teddies).

VanCleefArpels · 29/08/2019 12:06

Hurtwood is amazing but it doesn’t satisfy the “great sporting facilities” criteria. Art, Drama film and music are it’s strengths with great academics on the side

cakeisalwaystheanswer · 29/08/2019 11:33

My top choices for DD were Wellington and Hurtwood House. She had no interest in either as she refused to board for 6th form. I cried over Hurtwood, it's just lovely and would have been an amazing experience. You should probably look at Brighton College as well, I didn't as the HT winds me up, he's a bit rent a quote for the papers.

I do envy you. I boarded and I would have loved DD to have the same experience.