Homestay
As a host you will need to provide the student with:

• Furnished bedroom
  • Desk
  • Bed
  • Light or lamp
  • Bedding
• Towels
• Adequate heating
• Use of Wifi
• Use of Laundry
• Collection on arrival and departure
• Meals provided Half Board (breakfast and evening meal)
• Full board on mini stays

Your role as a host family will depend on the type of student you are allocated, but in general we ask you to look after our students as you would your own children, talk to them, eat with them, and ask if they are ok, happy and have spoken to their parents etc..

For more information please refer to our guidelines.

Almost all students will have some level of English, but their proficiency will vary.  Remember, their goal to visit is to improve & experience their English throughout their homestay, to learn our British culture and to have conversational English with you and your family.

Students are expected to respect the family they are staying with in their home and also abide by your house rules.  It is a good idea to communicate any of your home rules on day of arrival so that their is no communication issues going forward. 

Guidance for some of the house rules are:

Advise them they need to be quiet after 9.30pm for your household to settle for the evening
To shower in the evenings to avoid being late in the morning
To eat with you at meal times, but of course we do eat in the UK earlier than most, so just sit and have a coffee whilst they eat.
To cook at a reasonable time is self catering before 9pm
To respect that your family will be asleep or in bed after 10pm
Most students are NOT allowed out, unless we advise differently.
Not to call after 9.30pm on Skype or the phone
Not to tease the house pets
Not to shower after 9.30pm
And to enjoy and feel confortable during their stay

Once you have completed our online application form and verification process, you will receive an email with a welcome letter, please read through it all, and we will contact you to arrange a visit.  Once a visit has been arranged, we will ask for all your ID documentation required and all ensure we see all of your family, on our visit we will ask you what hosting you would like to do, and what student suits your home and lifestyle, then depending on our demand and suitability we will start to place students with you.

Yes, you may host up to four students per home. Our mini stays do like to stay in 2,s 3,s or 4.
Some families like to host more than one student, as it gives the students a companion.  It also gives your family the chance to learn more about another culture. 

On some of our stays/courses a single placement is required though, but we also do get requests for no other students of the same mother tongue to be in the home at the same time, so if you only have a single rooma available then this could be used for these type of students.

We understand some hosts can take from other schools, but please be careful as we never know when a student books.

Help is only a phone call away – (group leaders of the groups available 24 hours 7 days a week.

As you will have agreed to our host contract, we ask you to not discuss any monies agreed with your students or other prospective host families at any time.  This information is confidential and can make your student or other hosts feel uncomfortable. Please be advised that private hosting from a student we have introduced is also not advisable, you must contact us immediately if their friends etc. ask for them to stay in your home.

All renumeration will be on the offer letter for the student. Our rates start at £22-£25 per night up to £40 per night dependent on each stay or group.

An average monthly language student you will received between £425 single self catering – £600  per 4 weeks

Please check below in our food allergies section  suggestions and food intolerances that you may come across whilst hosting, hopefully the information provided should give you guidance for what you need to know.

But we just expect you to cook what you do for your family.

All payments are direct into your bank account on the evening before departure.

Our prices vary on each group:

Mini Stays From £22- £35 per night (dependant on area)
Summer School £25-£30 per night
Monthly Stays from £425
Half term stays £30 per night

Please treat our students as you would expect a family overseas to treat your children,.. For under 18’s the Duty of Care is much greater and this will be explained to you for each group for the younger students or on your arrival letter.

Please also read our: duty of care in our guidelines or on the policy page.

Host Families do need to have an appropriate home Insurance, we have now partnered with SJL to adhere with the current legislation of all homestay insurance if you are taking students regularly. Please check if your current insurance cover’s student’s damages, fire and belongings, if not you will need to add this to your policy. Please don’t leave anything valuable lying around for your safety and please do have locks on your personal bedroom door if you have valuables.

Car Insurance transporting our students around occasionally, please ask your insurers if your normal car Insurance covers this too! This is not our responsibility.

We will give you all the support necessary, we have a dedicated staff for each area, whom are always there to help you. 

Our Welfare Officer is available 24/7.

Students either walk, bus, train or you must drop them to the location required, this is dependent of the group you are having, we will always inform you at the time of an allocation which is required.

Mini Stays – Always drop and pick up daily

Summer School Spanish – Always dropped and picked up, but we do liaise with families to pair up

Summer School Italians – Bus pass issued after Day 1

Please take a look at the following links to help you prepare special diets, sometimes we do have students whom require their meals cooked in special way and or with specific ingredients. To help you we have prepared some meal suggestions to get you started.

• Vegan – Download PDF Meal Suggestions Booklet
• Halal* – Download PDF Meal Suggestions Booklet
• Lactose – Download PDF Meal Suggestions Booklet
• Vegetarian – Download PDF Meal Suggestions Booklet
• Gluten Free – Download PDF Meal Suggestions Booklet

*What is Halal and how can i include it in our regular diet?

Overall, cooking Halal is usually less trouble than it sounds, especially if you live in a city where Halal butchers are.  Halal is a process through which meat is butchered and treated, like Kosher.  It is the same to prepare Halal dishes distinct from the other.  However when a student is idenified as a Halal eater, it is worth having a conversation about it.  You must avoid PORK and alcohol.