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Boys from overseas, and rural and regional NSW – places such as Dubbo, Young, Forbes, Wagga Wagga, Condobolin, Tamworth and Moree – take up the traditional enrolment option of full, seven-day-a-week boarding, given their families live too far away for them to make a weekly journey home.

Full boarders are allowed overnight leave with their parents on any Saturday night during the term, returning to the College by 8.00pm on Sundays.

Country and overseas parents who are visiting their sons or attending College events or sporting fixtures are able to stay at what we call the ‘Country Club’ – short-stay accommodation for ¹ú²ú̽»¨ families and friends opposite the school gates in Mark Street.

With their parents’ approval, full boarders are also allowed overnight Saturday leave to stay with other adult relatives and family friends – and with the families of their fellow Joe-Boys. The warmth, hospitality and care shown to full boarding students by city families – and vice versa during holidays – has become a hallmark of the close ¹ú²ú̽»¨ community, forging family connections and friendships that endure long after boys have left the College.

Weekly boarding is a best-of-both-worlds proposition, with the advantages of both home and boarding life. Weekly boarders return to the care of their parents once their Saturday sporting commitments are over. They return to the College either by 8.00pm on Sundays or 8.00am on Monday mornings to start the new school week.

It has proved to be an excellent option for boys who live close enough to the College to travel home each weekend. Many also live local to the Hunters Hill area and have chosen to board because of the opportunities, consistency and study environment it provides. Indeed, about 80 boys every year convert to boarding and by Year 12, up to 80 per cent of students are boarders.

We have found that it is generally not the parents but the boys themselves who voice their interest in converting to boarding. So much do they enjoy the camaraderie of being at the College that it becomes a special and popular experience. With ¹ú²ú̽»¨â€™ structured study environment and the many sporting and co-curricular activities available before and after school, it makes sense to sleep over rather than head home each night.

Years 11 and 12 typically have more boarders than other year groups, because by that age, most boys have witnessed the benefits of boarding – from the camaraderie to structured study – and decide to opt in.

Before making the final decision, day boys of any year group can experience boarding life on a three-week trial basis, free of boarding fees. During this time, the boy and his family will be able to assess if boarding is the right option for them.

At the end of the trial the boy can choose to return to their status as a day student if they so wish.

Alternatively, if the student, his family and College staff agree boarding is a suitable option, the College will facilitate a change in enrolment from day student to boarder. This change in enrolment would take place at a time that is practical and suitable for both the family and the College.