‘Boarders said that they love boarding’. Ofsted
Many parents are now choosing a state boarding school as a means of affordable boarding without compromising on quality. This affordability is achieved because the government pays for the education so the parent only has to pay for boarding provision.
Brymore Academy is one of only 35 state boarding schools in the country and demand for places are high. Brymore is one of only a handful of school in the UK that run a fully integrated farm as part of the school provision.
Situated in over 100 acres of beautiful farmland at the foot of the Quantock hills in Somerset, the School is home to a lively community of up to 150 boarders, ranging in age from 11 to 17 years old. Boarders live at the School during term time but can go home at weekends if weekly boarders or stay in for weekends if full-time boarders. They learn alongside 190 local pupils known as Out-Boarders, who have some meals and activities at the School but return home in the evenings.
At the core of Brymore’s boarding community is an understanding of pupil needs and a commitment to all round education – in the truest sense of the word. That is, the development of strong values, character, resourcefulness, responsibility, resilience and independence.
How do we accomplish this?
By taking boarding seriously and putting it at the heart of the school.
In February 2019, Ofsted findings supported what parents already knew about Brymore:
- ‘Excellent child protection arrangements are followed effectively and safeguard children’.
- ‘Consultation with the boarders is exceptionally good’.
- ‘Staff have developed strong relationships with the boarders which are built on trust, honesty and respect’.
- ‘The provision of activities on and off the school site is excellent’
- ‘Behaviour is very well managed using positive reinforcement, praise and reward’
During the inspection, our pupils told Ofsted that:
- ‘That they love boarding’
- ‘They feel that the staff are positive role models and help them to achieve as much as they can’.
By teaching in and out of the classroom.
Learning is not exclusive to the classroom, and at Brymore we believe it shouldn’t be. Research has shown that involvement with co-curricular activities improves academic attainment. Which is why, every term, an extensive Co-Curricular Programme with over 200 activities and clubs are available to all pupils including use of the Academies own farm, walled gardens and outstanding DT workshops..
We believe at Brymore that every child is good at something. Participation in a wide range of co-curricular activities allows them to discover what that ‘something’ is. That is why many of the activities in the Co-Curricular Programme are included in the boarding charges.
