At Bede’s Prep, our boarding house, Meads End offers a home away from home for pupils from Year 5 onwards. We offer flexible boarding arrangements to suit your requirements - whether your child requires full boarding, weekly boarding or flexi boarding. Our boarders are a close-knit community of staff and pupils who enjoy a safe, fun and homely environment.
Children who board at Bede’s Prep School are encouraged to excel in their own pursuits, begin to take responsibility for themselves, and, over time, take some responsibility for others too. Some parents find that flexi boarding at Bede’s Prep provides their children with the skills and confidence to board during their Senior years and become more independent. We offer plenty of boarding options to suit your needs. Our boarders are required to get organised for school, work on their homework independently and tidy their bedroom. They build tolerance as they learn to live alongside others and share their space.
Our boarding house at Meads End provides the ideal setting for pupils to take advantage of the activities and facilities on offer at Bede’s Prep School as well as the wonderful seafront location. Boarding at Meads End provides the perfect opportunity to make new friends from all around the world. We are proud to host children from all nationalities, and learn from each other’s cultures and backgrounds.
At Meads End, we feel it is important to get the balance of structured activities, relaxation and schoolwork right. Early evening activities take place on Monday, Tuesday and Thursdays whilst ‘Movie and Tuck’ nights take place on Wednesday and Friday. Down time is often filled by relaxing with friends in the house.
We offer full, weekly or flexi boarding options and a number of our day pupils opt to board as they grow older in order to build more time into the school week in which to participate in sports, other activities and spend more time with their friends.
Where we live
Meads End is a cosy and comfortable home based on the Eastbourne coast. We overlook the beach and the sea, are at the foot of the South Downs and a short walk to Beachy Head. We are situated across the road from the Prep School and have access to the IT suite and Sports Hall.
All of our meals are eaten in the School Dining Hall, cooked by the chefs and catering team. We have a team of cleaners’ who dust, hoover and clean the rooms, whilst the children are expected to make their beds and put their dirty clothes in the laundry baskets.
Meads End has a large common room with a kitchen room and dining room attached. This is the heart of the house where most of our boarders relax in the evening, watching Sky TV on the large comfy sofas.
The smaller common room, the ‘Snug’ is where boarders can do their homework, play on the computers and the Xbox or just chill and chat.
On the first floor, the boys occupy four bedrooms and the girls’ 3 bedrooms are on the top floor. Boarders share their bedroom with other boarders of a similar age. There is storage space for essential items such as uniform and a limited amount of space for casual and smart clothing. Their belongings must fit in the wardrobe and drawer. The school provides all of the bedding, but some boarders choose to bring their own machine-washable duvet cover. Boarders are also encouraged to bring photos and posters to personalise their area and make it feel homely.
We have a lovely garden at Meads End, where boarders can play and chill out. There is a large lawn, flower beds and several fruit trees which the boarders planted themselves.
Boarders who stay over the weekend enjoy a fun-packed schedule of activities as well as some all-important down time!
As well as enjoying rock-pooling and playing on the beach and walks over the South Downs, a typical Weekend Programme at Bede’s Prep involves activities as diverse as paintballing, theatre and cinema, trampolining and adventure playground trips and camping in the garden.Whilst we love to see the children busy at the weekend we also understand that this is also their time to relax and hunker down in their home-from-home, and our dedicated houseparents and matrons ensure that there is time for board games, baking, craft-making and cosy nights in front of a good movie.
Saturdays
On Saturday, we have breakfast at 9.00am with pancakes, croissants and bacon sandwiches. It is most boarders favourite meal of the week! In the morning we take part in an activity in the house or the school, or in the immediate surrounding area such as a walk along the South Downs or the seafront. The afternoons are normally taken up by fixtures, followed by a relaxing evening in the house.
Sundays
Sundays start slightly later at 9.30am, with a full English cooked breakfast, followed by a trip. Favourite Sunday activities this year have included mountain biking, trampoline park, outdoor activity centre, pantomime, beach days, paintballing, kayaking, paddle boarding, roller disco and cinema. The activities are chosen by the boarders in our weekly boarding house meetings and reflect their choices!
As well as pursuing their own aspirations and interests, boarders at Bede’s Prep School are encouraged to learn the social skills needed to develop an appreciation of the needs of others.
By sharing their knowledge and experience and listening to those of their fellow boarders, children quickly develop these skills which will be of life-long benefit to them.For those children who plan to go on to board at Bede’s Senior School, life at Meads End provides the perfect preparation. Within its smaller and nurturing environment, children can develop the values and skills which will enable them to thrive in a larger boarding community later on. Indeed, we actively support this transition through a programme of familiarisation visits meaning that by the time comes to move on, it feels like the most natural move in the world!
Full Boarding
Full boarding allows pupils to take advantage of the programme of activities outlined in our Weekends at Bede’s section as well as the weekday activities.
Weekly Boarding
Our Weekly Boarders stay at Meads End during the school week and return home on Friday evenings, returning to School on Sunday evening or Monday morning.
Flexi-Boarding
Along with the weekly boarding option, flexi-boarding can provide a family-friendly option for children to stay overnight a couple of nights during the School week, which can be a particularly useful option for families who have busy working weeks. Additionally, it can be useful where children have early coaching sessions in sports such as swimming or tennis.
Twitter