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FAQs
Please do not hesitate to contact us if you need any further information.
What should I bring?
Stationery for lessons
Water bottle to refill around campus
Towels for showering and swimming
Shower gel and any other toiletries you need
Face masks and a travel bottle of hand sanitizer
Sports clothes and white soled trainers for use in the sports centre
Comfortable walking shoes for excursions
Swimming shorts/costume. Please bring goggles if you need them.
Sports equipment, if you want to use your own (equipment is provided by the school if not)
Rain-proof jacket and warm sweater
International Evening - any items you will need
A plug adapter – the UK uses 240v
A sensible amount of clothes - remember you will have to carry your own bags on arrival and departure. A laundry service is available mid-course
Padlock for your suitcase or lockable cupboard
A damage deposit of £40/€40. This will be returned to you at the end of your stay, if you have not caused any damage to school property.
Spending money - students usually bring between £60-£120 per week, but all students have different needs.
What is the accommodation like?
Each boarding house at Bloxham has a mixture of rooms, including singles, twins, quadruples and multi-bedded dormitories.
Younger students enjoy more companionship in the dormitories, while older students are allocated single or double rooms.
Each house more than one homely common room to relax and socialise in, modern bathroom and shower facilities and fully equipped kitchens, which are shared by all the students, and are available for use throughout the day.
We have separate houses for girls and boys. Students are allowed to visit the common rooms, but not bedrooms.
How can I improve my English?
There are 20 lessons of formal classes each week, which focus strongly on spoken English. Students study General English, British Culture and create a theatrical production in their Project classes.
Students mix with students from other countries and communicate with their new friends in English. We ensure classes and boarding houses are truly international so that students have lots of opportunities to practise their English.
During sports and excursions students use English with their fellow international students and work together to produce an end-of course Project show.
Most students find their confidence in English improves considerably during the stay. We usually have around 20 different nationalities represented in the school so it is important that students arrive with an open mind, make friends with other nationalities and practise their English as much as possible.
How are classes organised?
When students arrive at Bloxham, they have a tour of the school, welcome talk and a short level test, so that we are able to place students in the correct level.
Our lessons are communicative in focus and we want students to feel comfortable when speaking with their international classmates. Teachers meet with the director of studies each day to discuss the progress of students and if necessary, students can be moved to another level. Our aim is for students to improve their fluency and confidence while at ISC and any changes would be made with this in mind.
We work very hard at ISC to ensure their is a good mix of nationalities in classes, so that our students have plenty of opportunities to practise their English and make new international friends.
There is a maximum of 16 students in General English classes. On our more intensive Academic English and Cambridge Exam courses we have a maximum of eight students.
What are the school rules?
ISC students are told the school rules in the welcome talk and in their first lesson. Students are asked to sign a student agreement upon enrolment, agreeing to behave properly during the course.
We treat students fairly, but do not tolerate bullying, racism, sexism or anti-social behaviour. We have a no drugs or alcohol policy on site.
Students who break these rules may be sent home at their parents’ expense. Similarly, we will not tolerate verbal or physical abuse of Bloxham staff, our staff or other students.
Part of our responsibility for the safety of each student involves ensuring that every student is treated well and fairly by everyone else attending or connected with the school.
If you damage any property, you will be asked to pay for the repair before you leave. We require a damages deposit of £40/40 euros from you on arrival. This will be returned at the end of the course if there is no damage.
What food is provided?
Bloxham's food is almost exclusively homemade and of a very good quality. There are 3 well-balanced meals a day, with a variety of healthy options to choose from each meal.
Please inform us of any dietary requirements and we will cater for these.
At breaktimes we provide drinks and biscuits and there is a modern café for students who wish to buy snacks, hot and cold drinks. There is also a light snack in boarding houses after the evening activity.
Is Bloxham a safe place to study?
Bloxham is a small, self-contained campus, located in the village of Bloxham - a very safe environment for young people.
At night, the houses lock down at 23:00 hours. Doors only open in an emergency. The school buildings and houses have individual access codes.
When students arrive at the school they hand in their passport, tickets and pocket money to their group leader so it can be stored safely in the office.
We put your belongings in the school safe and students are able to access their pocket money each day.
All of our staff live on site so there are always people around to help.
What excursions are there?
Our two-week programme includes three full-day trips to Royal Windsor, to see the changing of the guard, the historic university city of Oxford and vibrant London. This includes a sightseeing tour of London's famous sights and a visit to the British Museum. There is a cultural activity on each trip, as well as supervised free time for present-shopping.
On the first Monday of the course, there are optional trips for an extra charge to many exciting places such as theme parks, the Tower of London, the London Eye and the Harry Potter Warner Brothers studios. Optional trips cost between £65 - £90. If you would prefer to stay on campus, you can participate in our fun activity programme instead.
Is there a laundry service?
There is a mid-course laundry service for personal washing for an additional charge of £5.
Bed linen is changed each course for no additional cost. Please note you should bring your own towels for showering and swimming, these are not provided by the school.
What happens when students arrive at the airport?
A member of staff or one of our drivers will be waiting for the student in the arrivals lounge, holding an ISC sign. They will accompany the student to the school or they will travel with other students by coach to ISC.
On departure, we take students directly to the airport terminal. Alternatively, we offer a check in service or unaccompanied minors service at an extra cost, which must be booked in advance.
What happens if my visa is refused but I have already paid?
If you have paid your course fees and the visa you are applying for is refused, we will refund the fees in full if you tell us more than 30 days before the start of the course.
If you inform us within 30 days of the course start date, the deposit payment will be retained.
What are ISC's Covid safety measures?
We are working closely with Bloxham School and partners to ensure that students feel safe, happy and comfortable during their stay with us.
Please read ISC's Covid Safety Information and ISC's Covid Secure Risk Assessment for full details of our Covid safety measures. These are updated in line with current UK government guidelines.
Who accredits the courses?
ISC is accredited by the British Council and is inspected regularly. The BC Accreditation Scheme assesses the standards of management, resources and premises, teaching and welfare. Accredited organisations have to meet the overall standard in each aspect of what they offer.
We are also members of English UK, the world's leading language teaching association and this provides you with a further guarantee of high quality and good service. Parents and students can appeal to English UK if they are dissatisfied with the way a school deals with a complaint.
The British Council inspected and accredited International Student Club in August 2016. Strengths were noted in the areas of teaching, staff management, student administration, quality assurance, premises and facilities, care of students, accommodation, leisure opportunities and care of under-18s. We had an interim British Council inspection in the autumn of 2021 and were delighted with the positive feedback we received from the lead inspector. We are currently awaiting the result of our 2022 summer inspection and are hoping to gain even more strengths!
We were also awarded ‘Centre of Excellence’ status by the EL Gazette and appeared in their top 10% of junior summer school providers in the UK.
