guardianship fees - choose your plan

Different families have different needs and preferences. We cater to both those who have accommodation support systems in place and those who need more comprehensive services.

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choose the right level of support for your needs

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Essential Guardianship

  • Family, Friend, Fly Home

  • This guardianship option is ideal for parents who have a family member or a friend living in the UK who will provide the accommodation for holidays, those who want their child to travel home for exeat weekends and half terms, and those who do not need to use our transportation services.

family in home

Full Guardianship

  • Host family, Airport & Travel Services

  • This guardianship option is ideal for parents who require a fully comprehensive safeguarding and care service for their child while they study in the UK. It will include a seamless provision of regular host family accommodation during the holidays and safe and secure airport and UK transportation.

guardianship application process

1. Enquiry Form and Quotation

Once you have completed our enquiry form, you will receive a personalised quotation and email from one of our team outlining the scope of our services and the choices of programme you have.

2. Meeting

Our team will invite you to an online meeting where you can get to know us and ask all the questions you may have. Of course, if you are in the UK, you are very welcome to come to our office in-person and meet the team in Sussex.

3. Application Form

Once you are ready to register for your guardianship programme, simply complete our online application form. You will receive a response during office hours, usually within the hour, with your confirmation documents, an invoice, and some further medical questions. Your guardianship journey then begins.

4. Choose a Host Family

If you need a host family, you can help us to choose one by using our online Host Family Selection Tool. The tool is full of information on our selection of host families, helping you to choose the best one for you.

5. Receiving Your Papers

Once you are fully paid up on our programme, your Guardianship comes into force. You will receive a full colour profile of your host family, your Bright World Buddy, and we will inform your school that we are your guardians. We can, at that point, also issue you with a Letter of Undertaking to support your visa application.

guardianship fees

Essential

£795 per term

  • Guardianship Care Manager assistance.

  • Regular check-ins and support from a local Bright World Buddy

  • Emergency assistance 24/7

  • 2 in-person visits per year followed by reports

  • Verification of family/friend holiday arrangements

Full

£795 per term plus £500 termly expenses fund

  • Guardianship Care Manager assistance.

  • Regular check-ins and support from a local Bright World Buddy

  • Emergency assistance 24/7

  • 2 in-person visits per year followed by reports

  • Provision of a fully screened host family for holidays

  • Provision of full screened drivers for airport and other UK Travel

*full programme fees are payable in advance (no termly payments)

extra costs

Host family accommodation and travel services

  • Host Family accommodation £60/day (increasing to £70 from September 2026)

  • Host family/Bright World Buddy mileage 55p/mile (all visits)

  • Emergency host family for removal from school for serious illness (including Mental Health issues) £240 plus £70/day host family stay (increasing to £80 from September 2026)

  • Taxi Transfers charged at cost plus £5 administration charge per journey

  • Airport Chaperone Service - individual quotation provided

extra visits, emergency and language services

  • Parents’ Evening £80 plus mileage in person, £40 online

  • Out of Hours attendance/Emergency Chaperone service £45/hour

  • Language Counselling Service/yr Mandarin - £300

short stay programmes

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Immersion Courses are designed as short experiences, typically lasting from a few weeks to a full term. They can provide an ideal taster of what school life is like and are ideal for students who want to try out boarding school life before committing to a longer programme in the future. 

expenses fund

teenager at Bright World host family

Our full guardianship package is £795 per term plus a £500 termly expenses fund. This expenses fund covers host family stays, taxi travel, mileage for host families, and mileage for our Local Coordinators when visiting or picking up our students. It can also be used in an emergency to offer assistance at airports for travel and accommodation.

emergency procedures

lady on emergency phone

What makes Bright World unique is our Emergency Services. We always have at least one Duty Manager on the 24/7 emergency phone and email service during waking hours.

All Duty Managers have instant access to our online systems so they can easily track the whereabouts and crucial contact details for our students and associated host families, house parents, and drivers.

James Foster, Commercial Director

James Foster

If you are not intending to use our host family or travel service then we can reduce the expenses fund to suit your needs. This will considerably reduce UK guardianship costs. James manages our student and parent finances and will ensure that your fees and disbursements account is kept up to date.

a personalised quotation

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ask us for a quotation

  • We will send a personalised quotation showing UK guardianship costs by return.

  • Tell us:

  • your child's name
  • date of birth
  • school
  • start date
  • half term plans
  • airport transfer needs
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Medical and Travel Insurance

  • Find our more about our approved international travel insurance for students.

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Read our Customer Reviews

  • Read what customers, students and schools have to say about Bright World

why choose Bright World Guardianships?

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Bright World is one of the UK's leading Guardianship Organisations and has placed thousands of students into UK boarding schools since its foundation. Bright World operates from its Head Office in Sussex, UK, and has over 30 local coordinators across the UK.

With over 25 years of experience working with students and host families, we are particularly proud of our ability to match students with host families successfully. We listen to parents when they enrol and throughout their guardianship stay and we also listen to students. By gaining information on their likes and dislikes, food preferences, and looking at their age and the profile of the host family, we consistently get it right.

Unlike many other guardianship organisations, we are proud to have AEGIS Gold Standard Accreditation, meaning our practises and processes have been thoroughly inspected and audited, enabling us to guarantee parents that we will act in your child’s best interests at all times and that students will receive the very highest standard of care under our guardianship.

To learn more about our guardianship programme or to make a guardianship enquiry, please get in touch with us today for more information.

FAQ - frequently asked questions

Are there any different levels of packages available?

Yes, we understand that different families' needs can vary. We therefore have two options for parents to choose from, Essential and Full. For those clients who want us to arrange airport transfers and/or regular host family stays, we recommend Full guardianship and we usually charge an initial deposit of £1,500. If you do not require either of these services you should opt for Essential Guardianship and we can just charge a nominal fee of £200 per term to cover emergency situations. This is fully refundable if not spent.

Are expenses for mobile phone bills and sim cards included or are they an additional cost?

Pocket money monitoring and distribution/management of student funds – is this a thing/how does it work?

Is help with choosing GCSE/A-level subjects provided/included in the cost?

Is a work experience arrangement placement included?

Can I pay my fees in termly instalments?

Is there a deadline for payment of fees?

What are your cancellation terms?

Can I pay by credit card?

testimonial

The past two years have been great for Kai and I think he really enjoyed it. Both Kai and I want to say thank you so much for all the things you have done for us and the time has really been pleasant for us working together as a team.
Renxia Dai, Bright World Guardianship parent