ESOL

Inter­na­tional students are fully integ­rated with Brit­ish students both inside and outside the classroom, sleep­ing in bedrooms, shar­ing meal facil­it­ies and social activ­it­ies. Boarders are accom­mod­ated in houses accord­ing to age each run by a House­mas­ter or House­mis­tress with a team of resid­ent tutors. The House staff aim to ensure the welfare and happi­ness of the young people partic­u­larly when they are so far from home. All students from abroad are registered with the school doctor who visits once a week and we have a Medical Centre which is run by qual­i­fied nurses. (click here for more inform­a­tion on Board­ing)

Addi­tional English language tuition is provided through the ESOL depart­ment (English for Speak­ers of Other Languages) with a compre­hens­ive programme of English language tuition, combin­ing small group teach­ing with indi­vidual learn­ing. Cross-curricular support is given in liaison with subject teach­ers by highly qual­i­fied, exper­i­enced staff.

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The amount of time spent on ESOL depends on each student’s need and this is regu­larly monitored. Your child will leave the school at the end of the course with an inter­na­tion­ally recog­nized qual­i­fic­a­tion offered by the Univer­sity of Cambridge that can be used to gain accept­ance in Brit­ish universities.

We expect chil­dren to have reached an inter­me­di­ate level of English before they can be admit­ted to the school, and they will be expec­ted to take an English assess­ment as part of the entrance procedure.

All chil­dren whose parents are abroad need to have a guard­ian resid­ent in the UK. (Please click here for more information)

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Entry and Courses

Entrance is by either, personal inter­view, entrance tests or recom­mend­a­tion from the student’s present school. All pupils are tested on their English abil­ity upon arrival and then depend­ing upon whether they have passed the ” Threshold Level”, are offered either the main programme or one with addi­tional support tailored to their needs.

The main programme consists of between 3 and 7 hours of English as a Foreign Language Teach­ing per week and the cost of this is between £600 and £900 per term. Addi­tional support to this would incur an extra charge depend­ing on the level of support required. (Click here to see the section on school fees.)

Exam­in­a­tions

The Univer­sity of Cambridge offers exam­in­a­tions in English as a Foreign Language which are recog­nised world­wide. Friends’ School prepares students for these exam­in­a­tions so that continu­ous progress is assured and monitored. Students leave Friends’ School with an English Certi­fic­ate, which can be used for employ­ment purposes or for entry to further study.

Qual­i­fic­a­tions that can be obtained are:

  • P.E.T. - Inter­me­di­ate level
  • I.G.C.S.E. - Upper Inter­me­di­ate level
  • I.E.L.T.S. - Advanced level

( IGCSE or IELTS is required for entry to a Brit­ish University)