Featured articles > To Board or Not to Board? > Advice to Parents of New Boarders

Advice to Parents of New Boarders

No nonsense advice from parents (posted in the Middle East) who sent three children back home to board...two were "Enid Blyton" perfect fits (although one was a boy) but the third was a square peg and expected by the school to "stand up to the bullies"...

• Don’t believe everything you read in the prospectus or at the interview. If it says Horse Riding, make sure they have horses and you don’t have to bring your own.
• Try to speak to former pupils.
• Try to speak to current pupils of YOUR choice, not the golden one sifted out by the school board.
• Before buying brand new uniforms, check to see if they have a “Much Loved” section in the uniform shop; this could save you hundreds of $’s especially in the blazer department.
• Get in touch with the Old Girls or Old Boys associations and try to speak to them and ask their views.
• Don’t just choose a school for its trendy uniform; sometimes it’s character building to wear something absolutely retro.
• Make sure your child is catered for if they are academically or athletically biased.
• Make sure they have an agreed register of adults, approved by you, that your child is allowed to exit school with.
• Try to attend a Boarders PTA at least once a year; it’s a good way of putting forward your views and getting feed back.
• Look at the extra curricular activities offered: are they included or supplementary to fees? Then check the ones that are iincluded.
• Be strong when it comes to putting them in for the first time. Take a HUGE box of tissues, but don’t bring the child home with you. If possible, restrict contact for the first week to e-mail not phone or visits.
• You will get most contact when they are feeling low, so that is what you will hear about most, never the good bits.
• If you hear of bullying going on - whether it is passive or aggressive - follow it up and be totally tenacious about it; believe me it does matter.
• Get to know the boarding staff; they are looking after your child.
• If you are over on a visit, try to take out another couple of boarders with your own; it reciprocates so then your child may get an unexpected outing some time.
• Teach them to sew before they leave and provide them with an equipped sewing box. They need to know the basics -  buttons, hems and how to use iron-on Vilene for rips. That way, you know they will be turned out half way to decent as you can’t rely on the laundry to do this for them
• Monitor their spending. Set an allowance and stick to it, otherwise it’s a bottomless pit and their term allowance goes in the first week.
• If something is worrying your child, advise the House Parents; if they don’t know, they can’t do anything, and chances are your child will not have told them.