Juniors
When accepting a junior student into your home, your role as a host changes. As a host to a junior student, you are acting as the student’s guardian for the duration of their stay in England, and you play a very important part of their experience. We hope you will make your student feel at home and welcome them into your family.
Procedures for Hosting Juniors
- As with an adult student, you should explain and discuss the house rules and arrangements when the student arrives.
- Please help your junior student become familiar with the surrounding area by going for a short walk or drive. Providing them with a map of the route to school with obvious landmarks and your contact details is really helpful.
- On the morning of their first day at school please accompany your student to school by bus using the map and show them the landmarks they need to remember.
- We give the students a placement test on their first morning, so we would appreciate it if you could ensure they arrive at the school by 8.30am at the latest (junior classes start earlier than adult classes). Homestay students are provided with a bus pass.
- We ask that there is always an adult present at home to welcome your student.
- Junior students must not be given a key.
- IMPORTANT! Students must go home immediately at the end of the school day and arrive home at the times shown on the timetable. If your student is late home, please call them and call the school emergency number: 07517 426376.
- Junior students must not be allowed out without supervision at any time. However, students aged 15 and over with parental permission can have unsupervised free time on Sundays. We will inform you if this applies to your student.
- Please let the school know if another responsible adult will be supervising the students for an extended period of time, eg a whole evening.
Juniors often come with a Group Leader so any problems can be discussed with them as well as our staff.
Homestay Rules (in their Student Book)
Here are some important rules, advice and information to help you. We hope you enjoy your stay!
Your host will…
- be present when you return home (please note: you won’t be given a key)
- provide meals, including packed lunches for trips
- wash your clothes
- show you how to travel to school
- help you learn about British culture
- encourage you to practise your English
Important rules
You must…
- exchange phone numbers with your host
- return home immediately at the end of the school day (our staff will take you to your bus stop)
- contact your host if you’re going to be late
- pay for any damage you cause
- follow the house rules
You must NOT…
- post online or share any photos/videos of your hosts, or their home, unless they give you permission
Please remember
- Be respectful and polite.
- Food may be different. Please try it!
- Keep your room tidy.
- Keep the bathroom clean and dry.
- Keep showers short!
- Offer to help around the house.
- Practise your English!
Please remember that this is a home, not a hotel, and that different homestays have different rules. Good communication between you and your host will help make your stay a success!
Foster Hosts
Any child under 16 who is staying longer than 28 nights or more has to be placed with a foster host. There is no real difference in being a foster host as we would still ask you to provide everything you would for a student aged 16 or over. However, there are some differences in procedure.
- All adults in the homestay will have to complete a DBS check.
- Your details will be registered with Social Services at your local authority.
- Social Services will make regular visits to talk to both the host and the student.
Once a host has been assessed by a social worker, they are eligible to host long-stay juniors for 3 years. Contact us if you are interested in becoming a private foster carer.
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