Why was I sent - forces child and to provide stability to education. I agree with the reasons, I'd been to multiple schools and my DP moved multiple times again after I'd started boarding.
My parents were not from boarding schools. I don't think anyone in previous generations had gone - my DP was privately educated, my DM went to a grammar school. It certainly wasn't a 'tradition' in our family to send the children away or anything like that.
When my DC were 9, I wondered how on earth my DPs could have done it! I would have been heartbroken. It made me really question our relationship tbh. If it was me, I would have made DP leave forces or stayed at home while he was away. But.. different times - all the forces children I knew growing up went to boarding school - there was never a question of an alternative.
Dorm sized varied from single rooms (for 6th formers) to about 6 beds usually. Bedtimes varied by age, showers generally in morning, so bedtime woudl be declared for eg. yr7, you'd get PJs on, brush teeth, read for a bit then lights out at x time. We all talked after lights out until someone told us to shut up and we went to sleep. Same routine, day in day out.
When you were ill, you either stayed in bed and were looked after by house mother (e.g. calpol). If you were more ill, you went to the medical dorm where there was a school nurse.. If you were really ill, you went home/to guardians if parents were overseas. All registered with local GP so if you had a complaint, you'd talk to house mother and apt would be made.
Yes, UK. Most stayed all the way through. New people (newts!) would be a big deal. Probably quite hard to fit into established friendship groups so would often stick together in early days. Sharing room, but also, sharing every other moment - it's not just roommates you know well, everyone lived with you knew well. I know them as well as my DSis now, not more (although as a teen I knew them more).
Getting up was fine, the house mother would come in to wake us up or you could use an alarm clock. Queues for showers (eyerolling a newts taking hours washing hair), dressed, breakfast in boarding house or in hall if you wanted cooked breakfast. Cooked breakfast every day!
Meals were good - lots of chips, but filling, puddings, seconds. There was usually a choice of 3 things.
Class sizes were about 25 max less for A-levels. started at 8:45, finished at 4.15. After school there were acvities (choir etc, sports practice) or you could go back and chill. Prep was before/after tea depending on age. In eve, you'd either be doing more activies, homework, hanging out, watching TV.
There were loads of sports. Normal PE lessons in class, then after school sessions, matches on Sat and usually things like badminton/yoga on Sundays. School lessons on Saturday am. We went to chapel on Sunday am.
Expensive - yes although nothing like how much it is today. Prob less than a standard private day school costs today. There was a forces discount. My DMs salary covered the bulk of mine and DSis fees.
I've not 'done well' in trad sense (plenty of my peers have) - I think it was worth it for the stability. My poor decisions might have been a whole lot worse in a different setting.