Bryanston School

[Singapore289922]

Hi ladies
I'mand Australian living in Singapore and thinking about sending my son to Bryanston as we will move to Europe in a year or so and he will then be mid GCSE.

Does anyone know currently how many boarders remain in school over the weekends? He won't be able to go home and I'm concerned the place will empty out, if earlier posts from 2012 are still reflective of how it works.

Any other general info on Bryanston would be good - he's reasonably intelligent but needs to apply himself more - and a bit of a free spirit, so would never want to go to a very traditional or disciplinarian school. We need great pastoral and a teaching staff that can develop him to his potential.

Anyone know of any international kids who go there and what their experience is?

Thanks!

Hi Singapore289922 - we're going to pop this over to our Secondary Education topic for you.

Despite there being some weekends where it's compulsory for all to stay in friends removed their DC two years ago from Bryanston, he was yr 11, because there simply aren't enough full boarders, they said it was primarily a weekly/flexi boarding. Apparently they know of at least three other families who did the same thing.
This did not come as a surprise to me when we looked at it many years ago for one of my DC's after putting one of the housemasters in a head lock to extract the information they clearly wish want to divulge very careful questioning of the house staff it became very apparent that most went home at the weekends if they were able too.

Thanks for that information. Will definitely explore this as I don't my son being so far away from home and all alone in an empty school on a weekend. Thank you.

OP IMO and as my DS has spent 11+ years full boarding I speak with some knowledge this comment by bashstreetmum on this thread sums up why you should choose a full boarding only or a full boarding with a small number of day children school (of which there are significantly less of them the weekly/flexi boarding schools). Remember most boarding schools are under subscribed so they want your money so are likely to be slightly economical with the truth when it comes to actual numbers of full boarders, they know that once your DC is there by the time you've found out it's not really working your unlikely to leave before the end of yr 11.

I like Bryanston, That's such a shame about the weekend boarding. Can anyone share alternatives?

St Edwards? Kings Canterbury? Both are full boarding whit small number of day pupils.
As is Uppingham and I believe rugby.

I am finding these post incredible confusing. We were at Bryanston this weekend and spoke to several current parents who actually warned us that the kids don't come home as much as you think they will !
There are 3 types of weekends
Exeats ( leave Friday as per all boarding schools for whole weekend)
Open weekends ( can leave after commitments on Saturday back in Sunday night)
Whole school weekends ( everyone stays)
We also spoke to a boarder who does stay in every weekend who says that the school weekend are so full and busy that the other weekends when it is quiter are great to chill out and relax with amazing facilities to utilise.
I found the staff very open and honest about this , in fact it was part of the presentation when the kids from year 9 and 10 talked about there time at Bryanston so far.
There is full boarding available with all the facilities you would expect, not all kids use this so it would depend if your child found this set up difficult. The kids we spoke to didn't find it difficult and loved it.
It it very easy to check out school Calander to see how many exacts and weekends are free to give you an idea of how many weekends in tbe term this would affect....

Apple as I said above friends (who are perfectly sensible) removed their DS only two years ago due to the place being like a ghost town at the weekend. Apparently it was "fine" in the first year when I believe first year boys are in a boarding house on their own although we saw him on quite a couple occasions for Sunday lunch and my DS was absent because he is at a full boarding school. But it was when they moved into the mixed year group boarding houses that it all started to change. They found that their DS was coming home most weekends. Originally they liked this as their DS had come from a full boarding prep but eventually they found travelling back and forth every weekend too disruptive.
There are compulsory weekends in but not every weekend is compulsory.
IME unless schools are full boarding only pupils (at all schools not just Bryanston) will go home at the weekends at the first opportunity.
There is another school with similar compulsory weekend in school, there was thread on here about it, someone was saying how most full board and very few go home, that very evening we were with some friends who's DS was there and he was telling us how he's home two weekends out of three as are most of his friends and that's why he choose it.
If you want full boarding you be wise to choose full boarding only.

Thank you Happy, fortunately that suits us fine as my son is keen to have the choice. I totally agree with you if you are looking for a boarding school with everyone staying every weekend then you need to look at schools that make it compulsory to do so.
We were warned by friends that Sherbourne for example is exactly that and that very few exceptions are made so would be far more suitable for some people.
It all comes down to choice and it's so important that it's an informed one.

We have also looked at more Traditional ( old school) boarding schools but have found sadly some of them have not moved with the times in more than one aspect and some of their educational practices appear to be bound by some quite old school thinking.
Horses for courses and I suspect that a lot of people that post and read mumsnet about schools are doing so because they don't have a child or children that don't fit into obvious boxes.

Apple I personally believe that in 10 years time there will be hardly any full boarders who are not from overseas bar of course the obvious exceptions of three or four very big name boys boarding schools. But parents sending their DS's to these schools have bought into the whole package including full boarding. Most parents based in the UK don't really want it, they want flexibility so that thye can have their DC's at home when they want, e.g. Friday nights, etc.