The benefits of boarding at Hatherop – developing independence.

Hatherop, as a boarding school, can provide students with many skills. A core one of these is the development of their independence.

The boarders have to take charge of many small aspects of their school day and also their personal needs. They quickly develop a sense of responsibility, whether it is preparing themselves for the following school day or ensuring their dorms are tidy. We have a very successful flag reward system which has recently been introduced at Hatherop. This system allows the boarders to have clear guidelines as to what is expected and how they can prepare themselves for the evening and the following day. The fact that we have a dorm competition with various treats at the end of each half term does help drive and encourage each individual to build in this preparation to their routine.

The boarding environment requires each pupil to understand schedules and routines and when they are required to be at various events or activities. Obviously, this is not a skill that is developed overnight and so there is always a member of the boarding team not far away to give those prompts of where to be and to help locate that missing sock or pencil case. Our levels of expectation of the children are high so that when they transition to their respective senior schools, they are able to manage the demands that are being asked of them.