School visits: questions and answers

Some useful questions to ask when visiting schools on your shortlist

Covered here:

• academic issues
• rules and regulations
• boarding life and pastoral care
• financial issues
• after your visit.

As a prospective parent visiting a boarding school with your child, you should enjoy the opportunity to spend time with the headmaster or headmistress, a boarding housemaster/mistress and a pupil. A tour of the school (often with the pupil showing you round) and a boarding house is an essential part of the visit. Be prepared to ask questions of each of them on the key aspects of the school, and how these could affect your child.
The following is a list of questions to consider asking, particularly if you found the boarding school’s website, prospectus and accompanying information did not cover all the matters in which you are interested. The list is not exhaustive: use it as a guide and adapt the questions to your own requirements – you will have to be selective, given the relatively short time available.

Academic issues

Q: What are the entry requirements? Is our child likely to obtain a place, and when?
A:  This is a crucial initial administrative matter to cover. Remember that the majority of places available will be for the main ages of entry: normally at 7, 8 and 11 for a prep school and at 11, 13 and 16 for a senior school. You need to know whether to have alternative schools lined up, and at what age the school recommends entry and has places available.

Q: What are the school’s plans for the 14–19 curriculum?
A:  The debate on the nature of the 14–19 curriculum is ongoing and most parents should be able to feel confident and reassured that the school has realistic plans for the future. Larger schools will be able to offer both A-levels and the International Baccalaureate, but smaller ones will find this more difficult and expensive. Additionally, since September 2008, schools have also been able to offer the Cambridge Pre-University Diploma, and the government’s latest initiative, the Advanced Diploma. Most schools, though, will be attempting to broaden their sixth-form curriculum, introducing more skills-based courses. There should be an awareness of and concern about the range of issues now involved.

Q: Can we see your sixth-form examination results and GCSE/Standard Grade results for the past three years? Also, can we see details of the school’s position in the league tables and the number of places obtained at Oxbridge (the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge)?
A:  There is now much talk about ‘value added’, but measuring or benchmarking it is difficult. League tables need to be treated with caution, as they do not give a rounded picture of the school’s real success or failure in enabling pupils to reach their full potential. Also, crucially, iGCSE results illogically are not counted. However, the annual tables, or better still the subject and pupil point score averages over the past three years, can be used to identify trends within a school, and most schools accept that these tables are used for obtaining comparisons. All the information should be available in a form that is understandable and helpful. These, the Oxbridge results and the list of university entrants will give you an indication of pupils’ attainment and progress, particularly with reference to those at the top of the ability range, and will illustrate the school’s success at helping pupils realise their academic potential.

Q: How does the school approach the teaching of English, sciences, mathematics, modern languages, and information and communication technology (ICT) for the most and least able students?
A:  These are key subjects, and you could be at either end of the ability range. It is important to know how a school responds to individual abilities and needs. It is also important to find out how subjects fit into a broad, well-balanced curriculum, and how essential study skills, particularly in information and communication technology (ICT), are being developed and integrated.

Q: Our child has a particular interest in sport/music/drama/art … How will the school get the best out of him/her?
A:  This is a very general question aimed at finding out what the boarding school’s extra-curricular activities are, and how the school encourages participation in them. Ask about the activities that interest your child most, or in which your child has a particular talent.

Q: What is the school’s policy on careers education and applications to further and higher education, and with which professions does it have particularly strong links?
A:  Good careers advice is an essential part of education throughout the school. Providing advice and help to pupils so that they can take the right steps into the outside world and its many career opportunities is a crucial role for the school. Careers departments should have an established local support network of contacts in the main professions, who are able and willing to pass on the benefits of their experience. Again a list of recent leavers’ university places will provide a valuable indicator of the school’s strengths and successes.

Rules and regulations

Q: What is the school’s policy on use of the internet and mobile phones?
A:  Internet abuse is a major international problem, and you should feel confident that the boarding school has realistic and sensible policies in place. Similarly, mobile phones have a constructive use, not least as a means of keeping in touch with parents, so long as rules on their use and security are in place and put into practice.

Q: What are the school’s policies on alcohol, drugs and smoking? Is the school facing any particular problems in any of these areas at present?
A:  Every boarding school will have a policy in place to cover these matters. The real issue is how such matters are dealt with, and whether the individuals concerned learn from their mistakes. This is a chance to consider the school’s personal, social and health education programme (PSHE), its health and safety and disciplinary policies, to look into the medical and counselling services available, to discover what happens if serious offences are committed, and to find out on what grounds a pupil may be expelled or suspended, and when this last happened. You should feel that matters would be dealt with consistently, sympathetically but firmly, and, above all, fairly.

Q: What are the key rules for boarders over the weekend, and what activities are on offer?
A:  A question for either the head or the house staff, this is aimed at finding out as much as possible about what boarders can do at weekends and the school’s ability to offer wider cultural and social opportunities for its pupils.

Boarding life and pastoral care

Q: How can I be confident my child’s interests are protected at all times?
A:  Schools are subject to rigorous child welfare legislation, regulation and inspection, which is entirely right and proper. The interests of the child are at the heart of an independent education. All schools should have a child protection policy and all staff should receive training in child protection. The school’s latest ISI report should provide further details.

Q: Who is the first staff member we should see if there is a problem?
A:  The right member of staff can deal with many problems immediately. Knowing who that person is and, above all, developing your confidence in them is very important. Most boarding schools have very good pastoral care and counselling systems, and knowing how these operate is very important. This question will also allow parents to find out how well the school communicates with parents, and what opportunities there are for visits to the school to meet teachers and other parents.

Q: How many children in my child’s age group board during the week and weekend?
A:  Although the schools that attract CEA offer full boarding, the majority of their pupils may be weekly or flexi boarders. This means that some children are virtually on their own at weekends as all their peers go home. Also, in schools with a high proportion of foreign pupils, an English-speaking child can find him- or herself isolated if all their peers at the weekend are speaking in foreign languages.

Q: What are the bathroom facilities like?
A:  School bathrooms range from individual en-suite arrangements to communal showers and washing facilities. Privacy is increasingly important to young people, and some may be very uncomfortable in a communal setting.

Q: Does the school have Skype (a free communications and collaboration tool that can be downloaded and installed on your computer) facilities?
A:  Skype provides a very cost-effective method of keeping in touch with your child if you are posted overseas. Some schools provide pupils with supervised access to Skype to enable families to communicate.

Q: How good is the catering? Do the pupils have an input into the choice of menu offered?
A:  These are really questions for the pupil showing you around, although don’t expect a ‘good-eating rosette’ response! The general standard of school catering nowadays, though, is remarkably high and schools are far more conscious of the need to maintain healthy diets, particularly now that the state sector is under great pressure to provide more interesting and healthy meals.

Q: What medical arrangements are in place?
A:  Obviously, it is important to know what happens in the case of either illness or an emergency or accident, who the school medical staff are, and what the facilities include. Check on what arrangements are made for sporting fixtures, expeditions and trips, both at home and abroad.

Q: How important is the role of chapel in school life?
A:  The chapel should be central to boarding school life. While not every pupil may be expected to participate fully, a great deal is achieved through chapel, most notably its important role in personal, social, moral and cultural education, and particularly in helping to develop pupils’ life skills and a sense of care, concern and respect for others in the whole community.

Financial issues

Q: Why have your fees increased this year? What are your salary scales for teaching staff and how do they compare with salaries in the maintained sector? What extras can we expect to pay? What is your policy on study leave for examinations?
A:  Overall educational costs have risen considerably recently, mainly as a result of increased employers’ contributions to teachers’ pensions and increases in National Insurance. Independent school fee increases have exceeded inflation rates and prospective parents should seek the school’s explanation. Well over two-thirds of school fees go on staff salaries, and independent schools need to ensure their salary scales match those in the maintained sector. Extras vary according to a child’s extra-curricular involvement. Heads and the prospectus should make it clear at the onset what additional expenses and development costs can be expected. There is normally no reduction for periods of study leave – you may well ask why.

Q: How do you finance capital expenditure and what are your development plans?
A:  Schools need to keep pace with national developments in education, so capital projects will always be on the agenda. Some of these may be funded by donations or an appeal. Others may come out of fees. The head should be open about future plans and financing options.

Enjoy your visit!

Above all, set out to enjoy your visit. You will find the vast majority of our boarding schools make an excellent impression, and their pupils and staff will be in very good heart.

After your visit

After your visit, try to discuss with your child your thoughts about the people you met, what you were told and what you saw. Then ask yourself a number of follow-up questions:

• What views did you form of the head? Why?
• What sort of leadership was provided?
• How did the aims and objectives of the boarding school appear in practice?
• Was there a good rapport between pupils and staff?
• How was the eye-to-eye contact?
• Were the pupils well mannered and enthusiastic about their school?
• Were the rules there to make it a more civilised and caring community?
• Were the staff communicative and did they enjoy their teaching? Did they have control of their classes? What contribution did they make to the life of the school outside the classroom?
• Were the buildings well maintained and the grounds neat and attractive?
• Was there a generally positive atmosphere about the community?
• Does the school meet your child’s needs and abilities?