Ten of the best value boarding schools in the UK in 2018

With a boarding school education now estimated to cost half a million pounds, many parents are put off by the idea of sending their child to boarding school.

However, they don't necessarily need to remortgage their homes. True, boarding will never be cheap – but the Good Schools Guide has compiled a list of the best value boarding schools across the UK, all costing under £30,000 a year. Here is our selection of the best of the bunch.

Stewart's Melville College, Edinburgh 

Annual fees for full boarding: £22,668

This school caters for a total of 778 boys between the ages of 12 and 18, including 20 full boarders. Exam results are strong, with 87 per cent of Highers and 82 per cent of Advanced Highers awarded an A or B in 2017.

Learning support is offered both in and outside the classroom, with students encouraged to seek teachers' help at lunchtime "drop-in centres". Sport plays a huge part in school life - notably Rugby Union, field hockey, curling, athletics, cricket and tennis. 

There's also a 25m swimming pool on site, and a strong emphasis on the performing arts. Most students go on to university: 65 per cent to Scottish institutions and others to English, Irish, European and American universities.

Wychwood School, Oxfordshire

Annual fees for full boarding: £24,300

There are places here for 110 girls between the ages of 11 and 18, including 20 full boarders. The school prides itself on its pastoral care, and pupils benefit from small class sizes. 

In 2017, 50 per cent of GCSEs were graded A*-A/9-7 and 62 per cent A*-B, while 37 per cent of grades achieved at A-level were A*/A. Activities include a school orchestra and choir, and the chance to perform in plays directed by the girls themselves. 

Among the on-site facilities are tennis, basketball and badminton courts. Last year, one student went to Cambridge to read natural sciences. Other destinations included Oxford Brookes, Surrey and Birmingham City.

Christ College, Brecon

Annual fees for full boarding: £27,792

Founded by Royal Charter in 1541 by Henry VIII, this is one of the oldest schools in the UK. It's currently home to 375 boys and girls between the ages of seven and 18, including 178 full boarders. 

In 2017, 44 per cent of A-level grades were A*-A, with 46 per cent of GCSE grades at A*-A/9-7. According to the Good Schools Guide, rugby is the number one sport here, with football, netball, cricket and hockey also played.

In addition, there's a lively music and drama department. Destinations after sixth form included Cardiff, Exeter, Bath, Swansea, Liverpool and Reading universities. 

Campbell College, Antrim

Annual fees for full boarding: £13,685

Occupying a 100-acre estate in Belfast close to the Parliament Buildings at Stormont, Campbell College grounds are home to a small lake and a forest named Netherleigh. 

There are 920 students, including 150 boarders, some of whom are members of the Combined Cadet Force. In 2017, 24 per cent of grades at A-level were A*/A (50 per cent A*/B);  and 26 per cent of grades at GCSE were A*-A/9-7. 

The school has a strong rugby record, having won the Ulster Schools Cup 24 times. Around half of school leavers go to Russell Group universities, with Queen's University, Belfast, proving the most popular, followed by the University of Ulster. 

Queen Mary's School, Thirsk

Annual fees for full boarding: £24,165 

A total of 220 pupils between the ages of two to 16 attend this Scottish school, 80 of whom are boarders. In 2017, 52 per cent of GCSEs were A*-A/9-7.

Despite its small size, the school offers a wide range of subjects, including German, Spanish, French, Latin, classical civilisation, physical education and further maths. Classes are small, with an average of ten pupils and a maximum of 16. 

Unusually, the school has its own equestrian centre - its pupils came top at the 2016 national schools showjumping championship. Pupils also compete at regional level in netball, tennis, rounders and athletics. The music department is strong, too: one pupil made it to the finals of the BBC chorister of the year competition.

Mount Kelly, Devon

Annual fees for full boarding: £29,820

Situated on the edge of Dartmoor National Park in the small market town of Tavistock, this school was formed in June 2014 from a merger between the prestigious West Country independent schools Kelly College and Mount House School. It takes in 311 pupils, including 174 full boarders.

 In 2017, 35 per cent of grades were A*/A and 53 per cent A*-B. At GCSE, 39 per cent were A*-A/9-7 grades. Class sizes are small, and become even smaller towards A-level. The school is renowned for swimming and prides itself on a 50-metre pool. ​

Nearly all the students end up going to university, with the occasional one or two going to Oxbridge. 

Loughborough Grammar School 

Annual fees for full boarding: £27,411

There are 972 boys between the ages of ten and 18, including 61 full boarders. Academic results are very good: 65 per cent of GCSEs graded A*-A/9-7 in 2017.

At A-level, 57 per cent were graded A*-A, with 82 per cent graded A*-B. The school prides itself on its Design Technology department, which produced UK Young Engineer of the Year winners for 2017. Rugby is the dominant sport, with hockey, cricket, football, cross-country and athletics also popular. 

Pupils can join any of several orchestras, bands and choirs, most of which are shared with the girls' schools in the Loughborough Endowed Schools foundation. Most of the boys go on to university - and six went on to Oxbridge in 2017. 

Truro High School, Cornwall

Annual fees for full boarding: £26,337

With just 250 girls - including 45 full boarders - this is the smallest of the top ten. Class sizes are small, with some A-levels taught one-to-one. Last year's A-level results were impressive, with 42 per cent graded A*-A and 82 per cent A*-B. At GCSE, 47 per cent were graded A*-A/9-7.

A strong emphasis is placed on STEM subjects such as maths and physics, and all girls are expected to take separate sciences at GCSE. Facilities include a 25-metre heated indoor swimming pool, a full-sized AstroTurf, a playing field, two netball/tennis courts and an athletics area.

Music is encouraged, and most girls learn an instrument. There's also a 120-strong choir and a 60-strong orchestra. Recent school leavers have gone to study at Imperial, Exeter, Bristol and Manchester.

Kimbolton School, Cambridgeshire

Annual fees for full boarding:£25,455

Located in the small village of Kimbolton, Cambridgeshire, this school caters for 980 boys and girls between the ages of four and 18.

There are currently only 47 boarders, with around half from overseas. Last year, 56 per cent of grades were A*-A/9-7 at GCSE. At A-level, 58 per cent of grades were A*-A, with 80 per cent A*-B. Classes are small:  an average of 17 pupils in the prep school, 21 in the senior school and seven in sixth form. 

A strong emphasis is placed on sport, with football and hockey among the most popular on offer. Most pupils go on to university - two went to Oxbridge in 2017.

St Catherine's, Bramley

Annual fees for full boarding: £29,490

Located ten minutes south of Guildford, Surrey, the school currently hosts 653 girls aged between the ages of 11 and 18, including 89 boarders. 

Recent results are outstanding, with 91 per cent of subjects taken at A-level graded A*-B in 2017 and 65 per cent graded A*-A. Results for IGCSE - internationally recognised GCSE qualifications - were also impressive: 91 per cent awarded A*-A grades. 

Photography is especially strong here, but ceramics, design technology and life-drawing are also proving popular. Sports facilities are excellent, and pupils compete at county and national level in several sports.

​The vast majority go on to top universities -  seven got into Oxbridge in 2017. Other universities popular with pupils include Exeter, Cardiff, Birmingham, Leeds, Warwick and UCL.