Chinese children want to study in the UK, which school is best?

[alonemeteor]

A 9-year-old Chinese boy wants to go to primary school in the UK. He is currently choosing between Abercorn School and Junior King's School Canterbury. Which school is better? I would like to hear your valuable suggestions. Thank you very much!

Neither assuming from the thread that he is boarding. Both of my DC boarded so I am not an anti boarding hack but not at that age. He should be at home in China with his parents at this point not thousands of miles away.

Are you looking for a prep school? To start when? Y5? As above, that's very young for full boarding in a different country. Even the proper boarding preps like Sunningdale, Ludgrove etc have exeats every couple of weeks so boys can go home and they also see their families frequently in between, at the school for sports matches and other events.
I'd probably chat to those two schools first if the locations and leavers' destinations are what you're looking for. Maybe Cothill House too.

Oh apologies- read your post in haste - I don't know those two schools but your first priority should be to find out how many full boarders they have of your son's age. Otherwise it will be a very lonely existence for him.

I don’t know anything about boarding schools I’m afraid, sorry, but I can to advise about Pippa’s Guardians, and if possible look for a school which works with them.
They are like a foster family scheme for children and young people who board, so children can go home to a “family and homely” environment at weekends and school breaks, often nearby the school. All family’s are very vigorously vetted, dbs checked, and trained.

My friend does this, and has often had foreign children of about 8 or 9 at the youngest. She gives them their own room, they get to have some one to one attention and care and FaceTime with their parents who she also keeps in touch with. I think any child who boards so young from abroad (so not able to complete return home at weekends) should have this personally.

I think any child who boards so young from abroad (so not able to complete return home at weekends) should have this personally.

They do - guardians are mandatory for all international boarders - if the child doesn't have a family member or family friend to do it, then the parents use a paid guardian service. However, they typically only cover exeats and holidays - the children can't go there every weekend, and as pp have said, very very few children below Year 7 now do full boarding so there is a risk that prep (year 6 and below) aged international boarders find themselves in a very small minority of children who stay at school on Saturday, and possibly also Sunday, nights, depending on policies for coming back to school.

OP- I'm a bit confused by your choices because from what I can see, Abercorn, if you mean the one in St John's Wood, isn't a boarding school. Can you clarify?

I was impressed with the warm welcome we received from staff at this school. We spoke to some EYFS for one grandchild and then Year 4/5 staff, and all were knowledgeable and very lovely. Our family did not end up moving to London otherwise this would have been a great school for them - great location too.

Maybe look at cathedral schools with chorister programmes if he's at all musical. They will have boarders from that age.

https://www.sanselms.co.uk/

Small full and Flexi boarding school. My kids went there as day pupils but begged to board!