Arrangements for a guardian must be made by the parents. The UKVI guidance for sponsors states that suitable care arrangements must be in place for students in the UK and requires a parental consent letter confirming the care arrangements as part of the visa application.A guardian is not a student’s legal guardian and therefore they do not have legal rights to make major decisions relating to the student. Such rights remain with the parents. However, guardians are the parents’ representatives in the UK and are essential in times of emergency. They have a student welfare role, bridging the gap between the parents, the student and the school. They may offer additional services such as monitoring a students' academic progress, visiting the student to check on their wellbeing and/or acting as a translator between the school and the parents.
Guardians act in loco parentis and may make decisions for the student on behalf of the parents. A lot of our correspondence, in particular surrounding holidays and travel will be copied to both the parents and guardian.
During term time Earlscliffe is legally responsible for each student’s welfare and undertakes parentally delegated responsibilities. However, there are times (holidays, illness, suspension, personal ‘off site’ visits, etc) when Earlscliffe must be able to hand over these responsibilities to an appointed guardian. In addition, those students who are under 16 years old on arrival must have an active guardian who will organise all travel, trips and accommodation outside of school. This can be a heavy responsibility so we strongly recommend that a guardianship agency is used, rather than a friend or relative. Our UKVI obligations mean unregistered guardians will be subject to checks by our admissions & pastoral teams.
Guardians should:
- Live within 2 hours drive of Earlscliffe
- Be over 25 years of age
- Live in their own private accommodation with space to accommodate the student comfortably.
- Support school with all travel requirements and appointments when required
- Actively communicate with school
All Guardians should complete this form.
Independent guardians should then send by email photographic ID, proof of their UK address and if applicable residency to forms@earlscliffe.co.uk putting the students' name in the subject. This should be received BEFORE 1st September 2024
Guardianship companies should send their particulars e.g Aegis accreditation - to forms@earlscliffe.co.uk from a company email address.
You may in due course receive a call from the school to verify your information.
We want to support you to support our students and you will be provided with a school contact list for your student after arrival.
THIS FORM SHOULD BE COMPLETED BY THE APPOINTED GUARDIAN
