Useful Information
AIRPORT AND ARRIVAL
Question:
Are the students met by a Dean Close representative at the airport?
Answer:
Yes. Our Transfer Team is at the airport on arrival days to personally meet our new students and to ensure they are transferred safely to the school. If the student is travelling as an 'Unaccompanied Minor', you will need to speak to the airline about their procedures. For unaccompanied minors, the airline will usually require us to provide the name and contact number of the member of our staff who will be collecting your child.
Question:
What happens on arrival at the Dean Close International Summer School?
Answer:
When the students arrive they are taken to the main office where they put tickets, passports and pocket money into the school safe. The students are then shown to their rooms, given time to rest and have something to eat if they are hungry. Once refreshed, the students are then introduced to other students and shown round the school.
OTHER STUDENTS
Question:
Will there be students from different countries at the summer school?
Answer:
Yes. There will be approximately 40 different nationalities each summer.
Question:
How many students are there in the school?
Answer:
A maximum of 200 children attend the Summer School each week during the summer. All the students are residential.
Question:
How many students are there in each class?
Answer:
The maximum in a class is 15, but the average is 12. We try to have a wide nationality mix in each class. The morning after arrival, students are given written and oral tests in English and are placed in a class based on their results and age.
SLEEPING ARRANGEMENTS
Question:
Where do the students sleep?
Answer:
The girls and boys live in separate boarding house within the grounds of school. Most of the houses are either modern or have recently been refurbished and the rooms range from singles to five bedded rooms. The number of students in a house ranges from 20 to 50 and wherever possible the students are placed with or next to other students of their age. We will always take requests for a particular type of room into consideration, but we cannot guarantee that it will be possible. There are always members of staff on duty in the girls and boys boarding houses each night
SAFETY AND WELFARE
Question:
Is the safety and the welfare of the students our prime concern?
Answer:
Yes. We do everything possible to ensure the safety of students the entire time they are with us. Alongside our team of managers, teachers and activity leaders, we also have a team of House Parents who will address any concerns and arrange medical help if needed. The students are supervised 24 hours a day and will always have a member of staff close at hand if there are any problems.
VISITING AND KEEPING IN TOUCH
Question:
Can friends and family visit the school or take a student out for the day?
Answer:
Yes, friends and family are welcome to visit students or arrange to take them out for the day. 24 hours notice must be given in writing, prior to any visit to the summer school. If a student is to be taken out of the school or out of the care and responsibility of our staff during an excursion, the parent or guardian must provide written permission by signing an absence form.
Question:
Can students use the internet and email?
Answer:
Yes. There are two internet suites at Dean Close. The students have supervised access to the internet and email at specific times each day.
Question:
How do the students contact home and are parents able to contact students during the course?
Answer:
On arrival all students are encouraged to phone home to let their parents know they have arrived safe and well. If a student doesn't have their own mobile phone they are able to use the school office phone to call home. We give all students a UK SIM card, meaning students will be able to be contacted directly by parents without it costing a fortune!
Parents who wish to send packages to their children should use the following address: Dean Close Summer School, Summer Boarding Courses, Dean Close School, Shelburne Road, Cheltenham, GL51 6HE.
EATING ARRANGEMENTS
Question:
Where do the students have meals?
Answer:
All meals are taken in the dining room at the Dean Close. There is a hot breakfast served 3 days a week, with a continental breakfast, cereal, fruit, toast and yoghurt on offer every day. At lunch and dinner there are always two hot choices on offer, including a vegetarian choice, as well as a salad bar. Students are provided with packed lunches for day trips. The tuck shop is open three times a day, and every night before bed the students are given juice and biscuits
Question:
Can students with special diets be catered for?
Answer:
Yes. Please inform us of any special dietary requirements at the time of booking.
STUDENT BELONGINGS
Question:
What do students need to bring?
Answer:
A guidance list of casual clothing is sent to you after the booking has been completed. All students must bring a pair of non-marking trainers to use in the sports hall (without black soles). A free laundry service is provided (please mark all items of clothing with the student's name) and sheets and bed linen are provided by the school. Students must bring a towel as these are not provided by the school.
Question:
How much pocket money should a student bring?
Answer:
As everything is included in the price, the only money students need is for sweets and drinks from the tuck shop and for presents and souvenirs. We recommend around £50 per week. The students are able to collect pocket money from the office at specific times during the week.
Question:
Can the school look after valuables?
Answer:
Yes. We will look after all passports, travel documents and pocket money. We would recommend that students bring as few valuables as possible. It is important to note that the bedrooms do not lock from the outside (this is nearly always the case in British Boarding Schools) for reasons of personal safety. We are only able to look after important documents (passports, money etc) in the school safe.
DEPARTURE DAY
Question:
What happens on departure?
Answer:
On the morning of departure the students will be given breakfast and then escorted to the airport, where they're checked in by our staff and looked after until they go to the departure lounge. If the student is travelling as an 'Unaccompanied Minor' they will be handed over to a representative of the airline. Parents wishing to collect their children are asked to arrive at the London hotel between 09.00 and 11.00 on the morning of the departure day.
Question:
Do all students spend their last night in London?
Answer:
Yes, it is included in the price. The students have a memorable last day and night exploring the world famous sites of London, riding the London Eye or taking a cruise on the River Thames. Finally they have dinner in a London restaurant before being escorted back to the hotel.
