Anna Dove
There was a time when pastoral care in the independent sector barely existed. Fortunately, times have changed and the heads of Scotland’s independent schools are unanimous in their message that it is at the heart of everything they do.
Boarding houses are more homely than ever, with kitchens for pizza parties and bake-offs, common rooms with comfy sofas for film nights and well-equipped study bedrooms.
Glenalmond College in Perthshire has invested significantly in revamping its boarding houses.
Cairnies, its new junior house, is home to boarding and day boys aged 12 to 14, and offers pastoral support tailored to younger pupils. With outdoor facilities close by there is plenty for the boys to explore.
In the school’s main quad, Goodacre’s now houses girls from the age of 12, and has allowed Glenalmond to expand its girls’ boarding provision in line with demand. Most importantly, the staff in charge at boarding schools are fully trained to look after the pupils, understand their needs, and support them at every stage of their time at school.
“We believe that happy children are children who thrive inside and outside the classroom so pastoral care underpins everything that we do,” says Dr Graham Hawley, headmaster at Loretto in Musselburgh.
“All of our children have a personal tutor who sees them every day. Children are also in houses, and that is true of day children as well as boarders.
“For boarders, the importance of the housemaster or housemistress is probably even greater than in a day house because, in a sense, they are surrogate parents.”
Loretto prides itself on the small size of its boarding houses, which are typically home to 35 to 40 children.
“The size of our school means that our pastoral care is strong,” says Hawley. “In a small school we are able to know the children well.
“All our teachers will see children in the classroom, on the sports field and in the concert hall, and we all have a role to play in keeping our finger on the pulse.”
St Mary’s Melrose, which caters for children between the ages of two
We have a young, vibrant boarding staff who are committed to the pastoral care of the kids
and 13, welcomed the first pupils to its new boarding house, Buccleuch, in June.
The school encourages flexi and weekly boarding, where children will stay at the school for a couple of nights a week, or on a Monday to Friday basis, returning home at the weekends.
“My philosophy is that pupils should be allowed to board if they want to board,” says Harvey.
“There are supervised activities in the evenings but the kids here tend to club together and it’s a bit like a sleepover – although closely supervised.
“We have a young, vibrant boarding staff who are committed to the pastoral care of the kids.
“We have boarding packages where, for example, if parents sign their child up for one night a week boarding throughout the school year, that works out at £600 per year, which is about £17 a night for supervised prep, supper and activities.
“We have not increased the cost of that in the seven years that I have been head.
“We have had to increase our school fees in line with everyone else, but what we have always maintained is that we want to make St Mary’s as convenient as possible for local working parents.”
Andrew Hunter, headmaster at all-boys school Merchiston in Edinburgh uses the term “pupil support”, and says both staff and pupils have a role to play in delivering that to a high standard.
“It is not just academic support but it is support of the pupil and academic is part of that,” he explains.
“Our pupils play a role in pupil support – we have student leaders in the Upper Sixth – and the chaplaincy team and the medical centre, the chefs know the all the boys, everybody here plays a role in pupil support.
“That means giving pupils a sense of belonging. Look after each other is my number one priority.”