Boarding

Westminster School welcomes both boarders and day pupils. Although the vast majority of boarders go home most weekends, Westminster also caters for boarders who wish to stay in School over the weekend and those whose parents live abroad. The School does not close at weekends. Housemasters continue to be responsible for those in residence and College Hall is open for meals. Pupils seeking a period of uninterrupted work before public examinations often prefer to spend the weekend at School. Boarders in their final year find this facility especially useful.

Advantages

Such boarding offers many advantages, linking the worlds of home and School very naturally. During the week pupils enjoy the traditional benefits of boarding, for example:

• learning to live as a member of a community,
• doing prep at a set time free from distractions,
• taking part in the activities that occur in the late evening.

Flexible boarding

Pupils also avoid the time-wasting and tiring travel endured daily by so many commuters into central London. At the weekend boarders may go home to continue the relationship not only with their families but also with their own communities. Flexible boarding as offered at Westminster allows parents and children to pursue their own work and interests during the week and to enjoy each other’s company at the weekend.

Boarders are not obliged to go home at weekends. On most Saturdays there are sporting fixtures, with cricket matches and rowing regattas in the summer, and rehearsals at weekends as the dates of concerts or plays approach.

Making changes

The change of status from day to boarding can usually be arranged if family circumstances change, for example:

• When a parent takes on new professional responsibilities involving frequent travel or relocation,
• When a pupil’s daily journey becomes tedious and tiring.

Changes from boarding to day status are also possible. Adequate notice must be given and this usually occurs at the end of the academic year.