Guardianship in London
Guardianship in London
If you want your child to study in the UK, it’s important to think about legal issues beforehand, especially if they are under sixteen and going to study in the UK alone. According to British and Irish law, full-time underage students who are going to take a program that will last more than twelve weeks are required to have a guardian if their parents are not living with them. A lot of boarding schools make it a condition to have a guardianship in London during a study period. With the growing popularity of school education in the UK among foreign citizens, the need for their safety is also growing. That’s why guardianship in London is one of the central issues that need to be settled before arrival in the United Kingdom.
Who can provide guardianship in London?
If you happen to have a relative who is a UK citizen, then they can be the ones who have guardianship in London over your child. To have guardianship in London, this relative can not be a brother or a sister of a student and has to be twenty-five years old or older. Another requirement for the person who is going to take guardianship in London is to not live in student accommodation, which is often offered by British educational establishments. Obviously, a guardian can not have a criminal record or a history pertinent to substance abuse, as it's the safety of a child for which the system of guardianship in London and in the United Kingdom, on the whole, was created. Such stringent criteria are justified as a guardian has to be responsible for a young student and be ready to render decisions for them in cases of emergencies. A person who will have guardianship in London over a student has to be ready to take them home during the periods of holidays, in the case of a student’s illness, or even their suspension from classes. Guardianship is essentially the role of a parent in that they must assist a student not only in legal and financial matters, but also in providing any kind of support.
If you don’t have a relative to whom you can entrust your child, there are special agencies that provide guardianship in London and other cities in the United Kingdom. This option will be perfect if you want to be sure that your child is safe and sound, as all the agencies that offer the services of guardianship in London legally should be accredited and meet safety standards, that's why they’re carefully inspected and checked for the lack of criminal records. The average cost of guardianship companies’ services varies from £4,000 to £5,000 per year. You, as a parent, can choose a package that suits your needs and budget. For example, an agency that offers guardianship in London can provide extended services like giving a student pocket money, visiting them at a boarding school, attending school meetings for parents or organizing a night stay for a student when needed. It will cost more, but can help to provide an additional layer of support and security for a child who studies abroad. Thus, the guardianship system in London aims not to impede the process of acquiring education by underage foreign students, but rather to protect them from various angles. Actually, a boarding school is also to take responsibility for a minor, but a guardian will come into play on the controversial issues and in the situations described above.
Why London?
It takes time to find a reliable company that provides guardianship in London. But it's definitely worth the effort as the city of London is a perfect place to study and live. The city boasts a huge number of entertainment facilities: there are more than seven thousand pubs; hipster districts with nightclubs; art spaces; and renowned theatres. All these obviously sound alluring either for adult or minor students, but at the same time, it’s just the right place to build an extensive network during one's studies. A student's friendships and acquaintances made by a student in a London school or university can lead to a plethora of opportunities for their future career. This vibrant metropolitan city attracts many students from various backgrounds for studies, which exposes students to diverse cultures and mentalities, allowing them to become smart and mature.
Speaking of the higher educational establishments in London, there are forty of them with more than four hundred thousand students overall. One of the most popular choices among foreign students is the University of Greenwich. This university awards students scholarships for high academic achievements and financially assists the ones in need. There is a special scholarship that gives international students a discount, usually around £3,000 for the first year of their studies. Another one aims at funding international students of the University of Greenwich who face unexpected financial losses. As for the undergraduate programs, offered by the University of Greenwich, they can be chosen from the following fields: Accounting and Finance, Early years and childhood studies, Education Studies, Biology and biomedical science, Business and management, Psychology, Tourism, hospitality and events, Physical education and sport, Marketing and public relations, Landscape architecture, and others. Later on, an international student can further education in the same fields at the post-secondary level at the same university. They can be taken in the online and offline-mode, on a part-time and full-time basis at this university. The tuition fees vary from fifteen thousand pounds to seventeen thousand per academic year.
Still, before proceeding to the post-secondary level, a student has to complete a high school, for which, in fact, guardianship in London is needed. There are a number of boarding schools in London available to international students. For example, one of them is DLD College London. A student needs to get a Child Student visa to study at it, if they’re under seventeen. It costs around £370 to apply for this type of visa from outside of the United Kingdom and it can be extended, if needed. The cost of education in DLD College London is around £33,000 per academic year of a two year GCSE program, while the boarding fees will vary from twenty to twenty eight thousand pounds according to the type of room.
Royal Russell School is also one of the schools which requires international students from the age of eleven to eighteen to have guardianship in London. They oblige students who wish to study at Royal Russell School to have a nominated guardian before starting their classes, as the administration of the school needs to receive the contact information at least a week before the start of an academic term. For them, having guardianship in London is essentially important during the admission process, as a student needs a place to stay during the May bank and other holidays. Royal Russell School offers international students the opportunity to live in a boarding house during their studies. There are two houses for boys only and two for girls. There is a housemaster or a housemistress in each house, who is responsible for the well-being of every student. They and their families share the house with the students. Living in a boarding house of Royal Russell School brings students a sense of community and healthy competition. Royal Russell School created special recreational and athletic facilities in each boarding school for students to enjoy their weekends. For example, some of the boarders’ weekend activities include rock climbing, sailing, and go-karting. Halloween, Fireworks Night, and Lunar New Year are also celebrated in a boarding house. It means that students will occupy their time with various pleasant activities besides academic classes.
The Royal Russell School's London Experience program is one of the options for international students among the programs offered by the school. It lasts for a year and aims to introduce students to the British system of education and culture. During this academic year, students can choose from twenty-four subjects, receive university application guidance, career advice, and the opportunity to hone their public speaking skills. Moreover, students can choose to study the programs of Music, Drama, STEM and Linguistics. There is a special program called Model United Nations which is held every year and lasts for four days. As for the athletic programs, students have a chance to participate in football academy, basketball, swimming, netball, and other sports activities.
The fee for a senior school and sixth form is around £13,900 at Royal Russell. The amount includes boarding fees, with breakfast, lunch, supper, laundry and all the activities described above.
By the way, English as an additional language program is provided to all the students who need it. It aims to help them prepare for GCSE, A-Levels and EAL. Royal Russel also finds it extremely important for an international student to integrate into the school society faster and keep up with other students, that’s why this program is offered with no additional cost.
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