Much is made by boarding schools in their promotional material and press releases about the many advantages of a boarding education: close friendships, excellent recreational facilities, opportunities to build life-long friendships, 24/7 activity programmes, regular visits home and a multitude of opportunities for parents to visit school, to name but a few. These advantages clearly apply to those below the major public examination years, and continue throughout a school career, but for more senior pupils, what are the longer term advantages which will set them up for the rest of their lives?
We're all in the Together
Without doubt, major examination years have become increasingly pressurised in recent years, providing a real challenge for today’s young people. In a boarding environment, there is a real sense of camaraderie, and a sense of “we’re all in this together”, which helps everyone to cope with the pressure. Everyone has easy access to peers, senior pupils and members of staff, offering increased opportunity to discuss work issues in evenings and at weekends, when there is also easy access to library facilities.