Opportunities and possibilities at St Catherine’s for expatriate families

As the front page of all our publicity states, St Catherine’s is a day and boarding school -or indeed a boarding and day school; for with 150 boarders, the whole atmosphere, structure and pace of the school is that of boarding. But because we are a boarding and day school, we offer flexibility that for those of you who relocate every few years could prove both significant and beneficial. We count Foreign and Commonwealth Office, military and multi-national corporate families among our student base.

Daygirls and boarders are fully integrated: all girls belong to one of six School houses which provide a pastoral and competitive base for their entire School careers. The boarders live in age-based houses and return to their dorms and common rooms only after school so that all socialising, inter house activity and academic work takes place within the day structure; and that day continues for many until 5:30pm: after school activities which include team practices, music and drama rehearsals and a range of creative clubs take place between 4:30 and 5:30. After that time, the boarders enjoy a mixture of free time, study and other activities e.g. swimming and cooking.

As well as providing for day and boarding girls, we also offer both full and weekly boarding. For families with links in the area, our flexible approach to these categories is also worth considering. We are not a full boarding school and do not aim to be, but we have sufficient numbers of girls in every week-end for us to offer a full and varied programme every week-end. We operate very much as a large family at week-ends and include important and precious own time as well as the outings listed on the website. However, there is no compulsion for anyone to be in at the week-end: just as weekly boarders are welcome to stay in at week-ends, so are full boarders welcome to spend all or part of any week-end at families’ or friends’ houses or undertake extra-curricular hobbies of their own out of school.

We also offer the full range of support services to the full boarders e.g dental and ophthalmic check-ups at the girls’ own dentists and opticians and of course deal with all medical matters, both routine and emergency, should they arise.

Linked with this flexibility is the opportunity to board for some terms/years and be a day girl for others. This is particularly attractive for families where overseas postings or relocations will happen every few years and it offers a continuity of education that might only otherwise be achieved by opting for a full boarding school.

Our location is also favourable for those who spend time overseas, or indeed commute during home postings to London or are based in the South East. We are just south of Guildford, close to the A3 that runs from Portsmouth to London. Gatwick and Heathrow are both under one hour’s travel and there are excellent rail links from Guildford. We organise taxis where the drivers have all undergone enhanced CRB checks.

We hope much of the above appeals to you and provides some options not previously considered. Please do contact the Registrar to arrange a visit, either individual or at one of our Prospective Parents’ Mornings or Evenings, the latter aimed specifically at boarding families.