Life at Canford

One school, ten houses

All pupils, whether boarding or day, belong to one of ten houses. Each house buzzes with a life of its own, but all are very much part of our one school, ten houses ethos.

Each house is a physical building where pupils meet, relax and have fun, eat toast, do their prep and build friendships to last a lifetime. Your child’s house is the bedrock of their pastoral care, and quickly becomes their home-from-home through a tight-knit community of friends, tutors, house mentors and of course their Matron and Housemaster or Housemistress.

Canford is one of the few remaining UK boarding schools offering a truly full boarding environment.  It offers a unique boarding model giving options for family time while maintaining this full boarding ethos.  While there is no flexi or weekly boarding option, in addition to exeats when all pupils go home for the weekend (generally once every three weeks or so) boarders can take a number of extra Saturday nights at home if they would like to each term (up to half).   That said, the school does not 'empty out at weekends' - on average 80%+ of boarders are in school on any given weekend, and day pupils take advantage of this environment and can join boarders for activities and events during the evenings and on Saturday nights and Sundays. 

We believe this is why Canford is such a strong and supportive community.  Our aim is to care for the wellbeing of every individual child and provide a safe and nurturing environment, while encouraging pupils to understand themselves and develop emotional resilience for the challenges of 21^st century living.

A full boarding model for the 21st century family.