Where to start?? Help me identify some schools?

[DaysofHoney]

Hi all.

DS has expressed a desire to explore boarding school options. He’s in Y6 now so would need to be Y9 entry, and we’ve no doubt missed the boats for lots of schools already. Currently overseas so would be ISEB at Yr 7 assessment, or a school with less rigid application process - which may well suit him better.

DS:

Bright but not studious - needs pushing and needs structure. Maths and STEM stronger than English. Possible dyslexia but undiagnosed (screener was borderline and doesn’t seem to impact learning).

Sporty and excels in athletics and swimming. No experience of rugby, cricket, or hockey though. Loves outdoor stuff, DOE, CCF very much on the list of requirements.

Makes friends quickly and has always been popular, but is also sensitive. Not a super confident character in class (shares ideas and contributes but is quieter) - he will come to life once surrounded by friends outside of school.

Enjoys drama and until recently had a real passion for dance - somewhere he could pick these up again would be great.

School:

The location - central England, Home Counties preferably. Easy access to London and Heathrow or Gatwick would be important.

Must take ISEB at yr7, or have their own admissions process that’s holistic and not overly academically focused.

Pastoral would be important, and I suspect he’d prefer somewhere medium sized to either huge or tiny.

Prefer a school that is fully boarding (would have family nearby for occasional weekends out but assume full boarding).

Any experience of anywhere that sounds like it fits the bill would be hugely appreciated!

thanks.

I would have a look at Lord Wandsworth College in Hampshire, ticks a lot of your boxes I think.

Take a look at Oundle. Applicants are assessed on the basis of CAT scores and a letter of recommendation from the current head. I know it’s not quite the geographic area you wanted but your son sounds similar to one of mine and I think Oundle would be a good fit.

ACS cobham. Two of my kids attend. Great school and fits your description.

Have a look at Luckley House in Wokingham

Brentwood would fit the bill, especially with ccf etc. they are opening a new boarding house imminently so might be worth keeping an eye on for year 9 entry.

Haileybury in Hertfordshire

Felsted in Essex. Lovely school

Haileybury ticks a lot of your boxes.

Am seconding Felsted (Essex, v close to a Stansted airport). My boys have been there. Wonderful school.

@DaysofHoney If fully boarding is really important (as I assume it is, given you are overseas) you perhaps need to look slightly beyond the Home Counties as very few schools that are close to London are full at weekends- and those that are will have done their admissions prior to Y7.
From your description I think Sherborne and Oundle, possibly Rugby, might fit the bill. Sherborne I know very well and can answer specific questions. Full disclosure- I have two boys there who are absolutely flourishing so will advocate for it!
There are lots of terrific schools that would be thrilled to admit your son. Your key due diligence will be to understand exactly what the boarding arrangements are, which could require quite some digging as many schools overstate their position. What your son probably wouldn't want is to be stuck in a half empty school at weekends when all but the international contingent have gone home.

Thanks very much for all the great suggestions - ACS looks fab but not sure IB is right for DS. I’ll take a look at Felsted now as that’s near grandparents. Also like the look of Oundle (called already and the admissions process sounds doable), and Luckley - thanks so much.

Good luck OP. Acs also do APs and the boarding houses have enrichment all weekend. We find it brilliant.

I hope you find what you're looking for.x

Repton. Has everything you are after. The sport offering is brilliant (Adam Peaty trained there and there are a number of kids there that will go straight to the top in a number of sporting disciples). They also have strong academics and pastoral support meaning that whatever your childs strength is, they will find it

Bethany School in Kent ticks a lot of your boxes.

Bloxham? I think it ticks your boxes.

Bedes?

It can be a controversial choice, but if he really does excel at athletics and swimming, enjoys drama and is suspected dyslexic, Millfield could be a good option. There is no school stronger in sport, it is strong in the arts and its learning support for dyslexics is outstanding.

Christs Hospital in Horsham near Gatwick. CCF, drama (have a mini replica of the Globe), musical theatre, 800 acres so plenty of outdoor space, DoE and a very wide range of sports beyond the usual. They do Year 9 entry. It's full boarding with 3 weekly exeats but international boarders are able to stay at school for the exeats. Academically good but not pushy.

Sherfield School, Hampshire.

It's not too far from Lord Wandsworth (about 20 minutes or so).

Their drama department is excellent. It excels in STEM subjects. It's a medium sized school - pupil wise but set on acres of land. It has a lot of support in place for dyslexia. It's an outdoorsy school loads of extra curricular activities - possibly not the school if your son wants to be a pro athlete though.

New head in place that has come from an international school in China (a very academic school in China) so I suspect that grades will improve but they're very respectable at the moment especially as it's not a particularly selective school.

N.B It's much easier to get excellent GCSE results as a school when you're only taking in the very smartest children. Much harder to get good grades when you're opening the doors to average students.

The two schools (LW and Sherfield) are so close to each other that you could see both in a day.

Check out Sherfield's Instagram page - it really does illustrate the vibe of the school better than their website (which needs work to be honest).

It’s not in the geographical area you’ve stated but Ampleforth College fits the bill in other ways. It sounds like it would really suit him and because it is further from London and the Home Counties the children don’t all disappear at weekends! They arrange the transport from the airports so it’s easy for international children to get there. Superb CCF, drama and sport.

Having strong connections with Ampleforth, I would recommend that you google the school. Anyway, it’s in the middle of nowhere, not as close to York as you’d like and a long, long way from Heathrow/Gatwick.

Harrow would certainly fit this. Not sure if your ds would have missed the deadline. It’s a nice school, and has a mixture of academic abilities. One of a small number of schools still full boarding. You will have missed the Eton and Winchester deadlines but I’m not sure about Radley.

If you’re looking at Oundle then also look at Oakham. Excellent dance and drama, brilliant DoE and CCF and designated full boarding houses so it isn’t so obvious when the flexies go home.

No one denies that there were terrible things that happened in the past and I’m so sorry if you were affected by them, but interestingly paediatricians and people with safeguarding expertise are literally choosing Ampleforth for their children now as the standards are now much HIGHER and tighter than other places. The children are really happy here and parents feel confident and secure in their choice.

And the fact that it’s far away is exactly why it’s always bustling at weekends because it doesn’t empty out.

There are lots of excellent schools but let’s not put down a school which has worked hard to openly admit when things went wrong and turn it around. We aren’t terrible parents for choosing to send our DC there. We could choose anywhere - it really is a special place and our DC are thriving. I think it would suit the OP.

Strike out 90% of schools mentioned so far on this thread as they are not full boarding. They OFFER full boarding but are not FULL boarding.
if you want your child to have a full boarding experience choose a school where the ONLY boarding allowed is full.
Oundle, Rugby are the best two in the midlands. Both have excellent airport links because so many pupils have chosen these schools as they are compulsory full boarding.
i don’t know about more southern schools as I live in the north but know that most schools in the home counties are not full boarding. So many registrars will tell you they offer full boarding. This may be true always ask them if they allow anyone to go home at any point other than half term plus a maximum of one exeat either side of half term? 99% of the answers (if they are being truthful) will be yes so discount these schools.
proper full boarding schools advertise this fact loud and proud - so seek then out and create your shortlist (and it will be very short) based on this.
These schools tend to be moderately academic but not obsessively so. Your son sounds like he would do well at any of them. It’s often more helpful to be diligent and independent more than being a genius to thrive at these places so they can enjoy the variety of life full boarding schools offer. They all have great extra curriculars on offer too - helped by the 7 day a week culture that necessitates a broad life to maintain happy and motivated children.