St Margaret's School Bushey

• Location: Bushy, Hertfordshire, United Kingdom,
• Founded in: 1749,
• Language of instruction: English,
• Type of training: mixed.

St Margaret's School is an independent school for boys and girls from 2 to 18 years old.  Initially, the institution taught only girls, but since September 2022, boys have been studying with them.

St Margaret's School is considered one of the oldest schools in England, but today its infrastructure consists of modern buildings and facilities, the campus is spacious and green.

Students here represent 20+ countries of the world.

For foreign students, St Margaret's School provides additional English lessons - such classes are not held in a standard mode, but using interactive methods. The main emphasis in the classes is on speech and grammar: subject teachers help foreign students to master a language that is not native to them, better understand it and use it as a tool for communication and learning. Children and adolescents are actively supported and motivated to new achievements so that they feel confident in school and beyond.

• St Margaret's School was founded in 1749 as a charitable trust to help orphans, in particular the children of deceased clergymen of the Church of England. Together with the school, a corporation was created to take care of orphans of clergymen. For boys, there was St. Edmund's School in the city of Canterbury.
• The Waterhouse building on campus is a second-degree listed building. It rises on Merry Hill: today this building houses classrooms, a boarding house, a school restaurant, a library, a theater studio, various offices and administrative offices.

Middle and high school students at St Margaret's School live on campus in a boarding house. Living quarters are located on the top two floors of the main building, and all major school buildings are within walking distance of each other. The bedrooms are spacious and decorated in a modern style, the furniture includes chairs, desks, beds, wardrobes or chests of drawers for things. In the rooms of high school students there are personal sinks, but in general, bathrooms are shared, located on each floor. Small kitchens are also designed for several people and are located on the floors: there students can cook snacks for themselves in their free time.

All residents of the boarding school eat 3 times a day - the school provides a full set of dishes that are prepared in compliance with all standards: from the amount of necessary vitamins to the freshness of ingredients. There are personal offers for children and teenagers with special dietary requirements: the school restaurant can offer food for vegetarians who are fasting and more. Every day, the chefs prepare 10 salads and hot dishes to choose from, soups, desserts, main courses. Nuts are not used in cooking. If the child has other preferences or restrictions in food, you need to inform the school management in advance.

Children and teenagers living on campus have round-the-clock access to library rooms, classrooms for classes. On Saturdays, students are taken on free excursions. Security on the territory is on duty continuously, 24/7.

Outside of the classrooms, students at St Margaret's School have the opportunity to do something fun on or off campus, such as keeping your body in good shape by attending yoga or meditation sessions. These classes are especially popular among high school students.

Creative teams help young talents to open up and prove themselves to the maximum. Performing arts teachers help students write and stage plays or adapt ready-made works. Several times a year, employees organize themed events for the wards, including Chinese New Year, Christmas, African Night, Pizza Night and Pancake Day.

Field trips for elementary, middle and high school students cover many attractions in the UK: for example, students are taken to London, where they go to art galleries, museums, amusement parks, and arrange shopping tours. Children are shown ancient castles, English-language performances in theaters. In addition to the capital of England, groups of schoolchildren visit Oxford, Cambridge and Brighton. Teenagers are taken to go-karts and horseback riding stables. Depending on the season, students may have access to activities such as skiing, fencing, street dancing, rock climbing.

• Small study group sizes allow teachers and administrators to know everything about all students. Experienced mentors help children and teenagers discover their talents and abilities in any of the available areas.
• The school works on the principle of the triangle "child - home - school", the well-being of students is in the first place for it: if the ward or his family finds himself in a difficult situation, the management of St Margaret's School tries to help them.
• Educators are experienced and qualified professionals who have master's degrees and above. All teachers regularly take advanced training courses, study modern teaching methods and techniques, participate in local and international conferences, where they exchange experience with colleagues.
• High school students are given the opportunity to take the IGCSE course "Cambridge English as a Second Language": if they successfully master it, they receive a certificate and an international qualification.
• International students can prepare for the IELTS language test at the school. Official confirmation of the level of English is one of the main conditions for admission to a foreign university. In additional lessons, foreign students are engaged in reading, listening, writing, speaking and expanding vocabulary.

The infrastructure of the St Margaret's School campus includes:

• scientific laboratories,
• library
• technology room and kitchen for classes,
• outdoor playgrounds,
• creative workshops,
• classrooms for specific lessons: from mathematics to foreign languages,
• computer classes,
• theater studio,
• recreation rooms and extracurricular activities,
• rehearsal classes,
• a chapel for meetings and religious services,
• an orchard, where there are areas for walking, picnics and open-air exhibitions.

Additional costs:

• accommodation in a boarding house, 
• meals and snacks,
• some extracurricular activities: creativity, sports and science,
• field trips,
• registration fee and service commissions,
• Temporary deposit: it is paid when the child checks into the campus, after departure it is returned.

It is better to enter the lower grades from the third to the sixth, and the main years of admission to high school are the seventh and ninth grades. It is also possible to get to St Margaret's School at other stages, but only if there are free places.

All prospective students of the British school undergo online interviews, verification of personal documents, including current report cards and results of final exams in English and mathematics. After that, children may be asked to take placement tests. Sometimes the school administration takes UKiset results into account.

Future graduates can complete an individual study program, which will consist of in-depth study of individual disciplines and formats of study at the university level. For example, research projects and debates are available to schoolchildren. Some lessons will be aimed at preparing students for applying to universities: they will be taught how to correctly fill out applications and write motivational essays.

The management of St Margaret's School regularly holds job fairs and universities to acquaint students with their future prospects and opportunities in education and career: teenagers can go on excursions to universities of interest to them, listen to introductory lectures, learn details about the work of immigration centers, foreign internships and scholarship funds. Even before admission, future students will know everything about the advantages and prospects of a particular choice of university.

Most often, students of St Margaret's School choose specialties related to IT technologies, engineering and medicine, prefer to study in language and humanities.

If a foreigner plans to enroll at St Margaret's School, but does not have British or Irish citizenship, they will need a valid visa. This can be a temporary or permanent residence permit in the European Union, an indefinite residence permit, permanent residence status, a BNO or student visa.

Foreign students are accepted to the school at any age, but accommodation in the boarding school is offered only from the 7th grade.

You can get into the final grades if you have 6+ points on GCSE exams, including English and Mathematics; in addition, prospective high school students must meet the entry requirements for the subjects they have chosen to study at A-level.

• Guardianship services during the studies
• Student supervision