10 Affordable Boarding Schools in England

If you want your child to get a quality education, but don’t want to go bankrupt in the process, you should check our 10 affordable boarding schools in England list. Everybody has heard about Eton and Harrow. Also, everybody knows that these schools charge an arm and a leg for tuition. To be more precise, one school year in, for example, Eton will cost you ₤34,434. That’s $53,974 and there are registration and acceptance fees that amount to few thousands on top of that. In comparison, Columbia University, one of the most expensive colleges in the United States, charges $63,440 per school year. There is irony in the fact the Eton was founded by King Henry VI to provide free education to boys from impoverished families.

Fortunately, there are alternatives for people who haven’t been born with a silver spoon in their mouths. These are state boarding schools and they don’t charge tuition, just boarding fees. On average, this will cost you between ₤10,000 and 12,000 (about $16,000 to 19,000). The tuition fees are covered by Her Majesty’s government and you can take advantage of this offer if you are EU citizen or have resident status in the UK. If not, you can check out our list of the 6 cheapest boarding schools in Europe.

While state boarding schools may not compete with private ones in terms of accommodations, it is still on a high level. As for academic results, they are in the same league. This makes them viable and affordable alternative to expensive private schools.

Unlike their private counterparts, these schools aren’t independent. They have to adhere to the UK government’s Department for Education rules and guidelines concerning the curriculum and children with special education needs. However, they are still considered prestigious and most of them offer better conditions, like small class size and plenty of extracurricular activities, and consequently better education than majority of regular schools, which is witnessed on state exams, where children from boarding schools often outperform those from day schools.  Teachers have more time to interact with children on a daily basis simply because of the fact that children spend their entire time on school grounds. This offers lots of opportunities regular schools do not have.

Among other criteria, all 10 schools on our list of affordable schools in England have been rated “Outstanding” by Ofsted (The Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills, a UK government’s agency).  This is the highest mark possible and any school that gets it guaranteed top-notch institution. All these schools have academic status under the UK law, meaning that they are subjected directly to the Department of Education and not local school authorities.

10. Gordon’s School

Location: Woking

Age: 11 to 18

Boarding fees: $21,736 – $23,216

Founded in 1885 and under the patronage of Queen Elisabeth II, Gordon’s School offers strong traditional values to their students. In Year 10, students must undergo a compulsory military training.

9. The Royal Grammar School

Location: High Wycombe

Age: 11 to 18

Boarding fees: $18,907 – $21,318

Established in 1550 and granted Royal Charter in 1562, The Royal Grammar School in High Wycombe requires an exam from students to gain entry.

8. Cranbrook School

Location: Cranbrook

Age: 13 to 18

Boarding fees: $17,727 – $21,266

Located in Kent, Cranbrook School is founded in 1518 and holds a Royal charter from Queen Elisabeth I.

7. Hockerill Anglo-European College

Location: Bishop’s Stortford

Age: 11 to 18

Boarding fees: $17,349 – $23,468

Number 7 on our list of affordable boarding schools in England is Hockerill Anglo-European College. It was founded in 1852 by the church to serve as a training school for female teachers.

6. Adams’ Grammar School

Location: Newport

Age: 11 to 18, Boys only

Boarding fees: $16,652 – 19,045

Founded in 1656, Adams’ Grammar School accepts only boys as boarders, but girls can attend as day students.

5.Beechen Cliff School

Location: Bath

Age: 11 to 18, Boys only

Boarding fees: $15,649

Number of students

Beechen Cliff School is boys only school, located in Bath.

4. Sir Roger Manwood’s School

Location: Sandwich

Age: 11 to 18

Boarding fees: $15,342

Sir Roger Manwood’s School was founded in 1563. Apart from high academic level, it offers its students variety of excellent sport facilities as well as CCF training.

3. Lancaster Royal Grammar School

Location: Lancaster

Age: 11 to 18

Boarding fees: $14,617 – $16,040

Established between 1235 and 1256, Lancaster Royal Grammar School received its royal charter from Queen Victoria in 1851.

2.Keswick School

Location: Keswick

Age: 11 to 18

Boarding fees: $14,312

Keswick School was established in 14^th century. With boarding fees of only $14,312, it is the 2nd most affordable school on our list.

1. Colchester Royal Grammar School

Location: Colchester

Age: 11 to 18, boarding only for 12-13

Boarding fees: $12,691

The most affordable boarding school in England is Colchester Royal Grammar School, founded in 1206. This Essex school holds two Royal charters, from Henry VIII and Elisabeth I.