School selection advice

[MeredithBlake]

Looking for some advice from those who have been through the process of selecting boarding schools to apply to.

My year 5 DS is a very good student, well behaved, enjoys learning and participates well in all his academics. CAT average is 110, but report card has A's for all subjects except for Sport, Music and Art which are B. He hasn't really found his passion yet, so not excelling in any one area. A lovely all-arounder.

Anyone who has a similar child, which boarding schools suit this kind of boy? And are realistic to apply to? Do the very selective schools (Eton, Winchester, Radley, Harrow) accept all-arounders? Which schools will suit this profile and then help them to flourish and find what it is they love?

We are open to all boys or co-ed, and would prefer schools reasonably close to London.

Any advice much appreciated!

What does your current head say, presuming you’re at a prep school? They should have some good suggestions knowing your son.
eton etc are all so competitive to get into that you’d rather think they cherry pick so would expect each child they take to have a certain je ne sais quoi about them, be it intellectual curiosity/ability or co-curricular prowess in a certain field.
the other thing you need to specify is do you want a full boarding school where your son stays in every weekend except for the exeats each side of half term or do you want him to be able to come home at some/all weekends of his choosing. Depending on your answer will give you a list of a handful of schools (full boarding) or a very long list of schools that allow weekly boarding alongside full boarding.

Hi OP,
Just bumping your thread for you.
MNHQ

Thank you so much for the thoughtful response

We are at a prep school, and have met with the head who has given us their opinion. We are taking that in to account, and alongside that was looking for advice here from parents who might have a similar profile boy or currently at a school where that kind of boy might flourish.

We don't have a requirement for full or weekly boarding, so aren't using that to rule out options. Appreciate that might mean a lot more options!

Does not sound like an eton/harrow/winchester boy. You do need to be stand out and/or alpha … to some of those three. Radley maybe if you’re a tradtional country family but that doesn’t like your set up.
you describe an average good egg kind of child with no preference to full or weekly board. There’s probably 50 schools within a couple of hours drive of London that would suit these parameters. I think you need to be more honest about what you really want to get some insightful suggestions. Which schools did you prep head suggest? How did you take those suggestions.
Off the top of my head Teddies on Oxford might suit. An all round nice school that will do weekly boarding.

I am getting the impression that you are not entirely happy with the advice from your prep school head. I would not dismiss it lightly. He or she will be very well versed at knowing what different schools are looking for. They are not going to put their reputation on the line by plugging your son to an unsuitable fit and risk it turning out badly both for your son and the school.
I think Radley would be worth a visit given the information you have stated about your son.

It would be interesting to know where your prep has suggested as a starting point…
And if you’ve seen any schools so far and what did/didn’t like. But Teddies or maybe Bradfield if he’s not bothered about rugby are nice weekly boarding schools with a decent London contingent that would suit an all rounder.

Why are you looking at Eton/Winchester/Harrow if your son doesn’t have a passion? You must know what his personality is like. Choose a school that matches his personality.

All rounders are exactly what the boarding schools you’ve mentioned want IME. They want boys who will take advantage of all that’s on offer. Obviously some have stand out talents in certain areas but that’s not everyone by any means. I’d look at Radley and Harrow for him.

I would think that there will be many schools thrilled to take him. He doesn’t sound the type to flourish at an ultra competitive school.

have a look at train lines near you and I would say narrow it down by location. Easy access for sports match spectating etc is worth its weight in gold.

you can use www.chapelandtuck.co.uk to compare all the boarding schools and maybe start by choosing something middle of the road academically and then check it is financially sound. So many schools closing recently.

teddies in Oxford worth considering or Sherborne boys.

Prep school heads have seen it all before and they are usually right about senior schools, if you are willing to listen to them (although be more careful of heads of preps attached to senior schools as they are incentivised to get kids to stay).
DS’ head said early in Y5 that he would be a good Eton candidate and I thought he was mad as DS is neither alpha or brilliant at sport or music, but he turned out to be right.

A classmate of DS went to Eton. Nice boy, a bit sporty not wildly academic but heavily tutored. I wouldn't say he had any massive passions in life but quite straightforward.
Another boy, below average academically and socially difficult has gone to Sherborne.
I don't think these schools are as fussy as they make out. They are also businesses who need paying customers..

Another one who says listen to your prep head. I was quite grumpy about our advice for DS. 5 years later I realised he was absolutely on the nail.

Im a big fan of Bedford. Great for an all rounder, loads of opportunities and very financially sound. Only 35 mins from London.

I think Bedford is a fantastic day school but a below par boarding school. It just doesn’t have the numbers of boarders to be a brilliant boarding school imo. Too many are not there weekday evenings and fewer still at weekends. As a day school, top notch in that area.

Eton, Harrow likely want cat4 130

Thank you to all for the comments, and the school suggestions - much appreciated!

just to clarify - I’m not unhappy with the Head’s recommendations. Totally agree that it will be the most thoughtful and useful advice we receive. I was just interested to hear from
others with similar profile boys, so that we can expand our visit list a bit. We haven’t visited anywhere yet, and are keeping an open mind.

The most important part at the moment is getting his CAT 4 results up , although Winchester are not using ISEB results .I think get his Cat 4 test results higher and go for Radley college if you get him in there he will love it .

Where has the head recommended?

I wonder if you might be focusing a little too much on which school will position your child for a particular future, rather than which school will be the right fit for them as a person.
My children started their education in international non-private schools and have more recently moved to a well-respected full boarding school. What really stood out to us was that the vibe felt right and wellbeing seemed to be prioritised over status. They’re both doing really well there, which has reinforced our feeling that the environment and fit matter enormously.
I think trying to map out a child’s future and choose a school to suit that vision when they’re only in Year 5 is tricky. So much will change as they grow, and I think finding somewhere they’ll be happy, supported and able to develop confidence in themselves is just as important as academic reputation or the doors a school might open later on.