Perfectly Tailored

Providing a bespoke education for children that are relocating to the UK, involves a range of factors. Julia Millen spoke Sarah Teesdale, Managing Director of Educatus to find out what’s involved

Fingerprinting Relocating Children

Children are as individual as their fingerprint, so one really important aspect of the work Educatus carries out on behalf of families relocating to the UK, is making sure we understand the exact schooling needs of each child.

This is far more complicated than it may first appear, because there are a number of factors that parents may not be aware of that our Consultants have to take into account.

Language

First and most obvious is language. Of course, if we’re helping clients from an English-speaking country that’s less of a concern, but if the children have difficulty with English, then we need to address this at the outset.

Language support is not necessarily a problem, particularly in state schools where provision is generally good. With private fee-paying schools, the picture is mixed and may depend on the age of the child. In some instances, older children may be less likely to gain a place. By contrast, some fee-paying international schools not only provide support for helping the child to learn to speak and understand English, they may also help to develop the child’s use of their own mother tongue which might also be an important factor for the parents.

Special Educational Needs

Our Consultants are trained to understand the difficult issue of Special Educational Needs (SEN).

The complication doesn’t lie in the fact that a child may have SEN, but in the way different countries categorise students. For instance, what might constitute as SEN in the United States may not be viewed in the same way in the UK. That may sound odd, but in the US, the child may be ‘diagnosed’ because the particular issue attracts extra state funding for the school that they attend. What Educatus have to do, is to understand what the UK equivalent is and communicate that to any UK school that we approach.

Another less obvious obstacle to understanding a child’s needs may be the parents themselves. Perhaps through misplaced embarrassment some parents don’t want to tell us that their child has a particular difficulty whereas for us, it’s a key piece of information. Without it, we cannot search out the exact educational fit for their child.

Exam Equivalence

Of course, the same equivalence test also goes for exam results and other qualifications which are often individual to a particular country. Our Consultants have to evidence the equivalent UK standard before they make any applications to UK schools.

Service with a Smile

As well as an extensive knowledge of state, private and international schools (and the university and college system) across the UK, our friendly, empathetic approach; asking the right questions at the outset provides a detailed understanding of the children and young people we are finding places for, which is what Educatus’ reputation is built upon.

www.educatus.org.uk