Younger Parents Considering Boarding School

One in four parents believe boarding school is more relevant today than a decade ago driven by modern family pressures, led by long or irregular working hours, access to better education opportunities and more families living in regional areas.

Younger parents are leading the change, with growing expectations around wellbeing, facilities and outcomes, as more than half of families would consider boarding under the right circumstances.

Half of Australian parents admit their impression of boarding school is shaped more by stories from the past than by what it looks like today. New research, launched to coincide with National Boarding Week, suggests a quiet reassessment is underway, driven not by nostalgia, but by the structural realities of family life.

Research, from Sydney Church of England Grammar School (Shore), reveals that more than one in four parents (27%) believe boarding school feels more relevant today than it did a decade ago. Among Gen Z and Millennial parents, that figure rises to 30% which is nearly double the rate of older parents (17%), suggesting a generational shift in how families are weighing their options.

Parents working long or irregular hours emerged as the single biggest driver of renewed interest in boarding (36%), followed by better access to education opportunities not available locally (31%), more families relocating to regional areas with fewer schooling options (27%), and access to sport, arts or specialist programs through boarding schools (26%).

At the same time, perceptions of boarding itself appear to be shifting with four in five parents (80%) recognise that boarding has improved in at least some way, with technology and learning tools (46%), facilities and living standards (40%) and student wellbeing support (38%) most commonly cited as areas of improvement.

Seven in ten parents (70%) now agree that for some families, boarding school is a practical solution rather than a status choice, a finding that directly challenges longstanding assumptions about who boarding is for and why. Parents in NSW are significantly more likely to strongly agree with this view (32%) than those in Victoria (21%) or Western Australia (21%).

The findings are particularly relevant outside metropolitan centres. Nearly half of all parents (47%) point to families in regional or remote areas with limited local school options as the situation where boarding makes most sense today, followed by long daily commutes to a suitable school (35%) and certain family circumstances such as relocation or health needs (34%).

What has shifted most clearly is how people define outcomes, the top qualities that parents believe boarding will develop in their children include; Independence (54%), Academic focus (52%) and confidence (35%). In line with this shift, three quarters of parents (76%) now say they expect boarding schools to provide strong emotional and wellbeing support as a basic part of what they offer.

The research also shows the considerations that parents have when sending their child to boarding school, including children missing out on family time (39%), cost and affordability (37%) and the physical distance between students and families (36%).

Even when these considerations are in mind, more than half of parents (52%) say they would be open to considering boarding school under the right circumstances.

"This isn't a resurgence of old ideas, it's a reassessment," said Dr Peter Miller, Headmaster at Shore. "Families recognise that education, wellbeing and daily life look very different to a decade ago, and they're judging boarding through that modern lens. The fact that half of parents admit their impression is based on outdated stories tells us there's a significant gap between perception and reality -  and that's an opportunity to have a more honest, modern conversation about what boarding offers."

The research suggests boarding is being reconsidered by new audiences, shaped by modern educational expectations and diversity of children’s needs.

All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov. Total sample size was 1,014 Australian parents with children aged 3-17. Fieldwork was undertaken between 10–18 April 2026. The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of Australian parents with children aged 3-17 years. The study was conducted in accordance with ISO 20252:2019 standards, to which YouGov is accredited.