Our boarding school comprises a vibrant community of students in Years 7 to 12.
The transition from home to boarding can be challenging, but our attentive staff and warm environment make it much easier — along with our unbeatable location and opportunities for recreation and co-curricular activities. Whether your son comes to Scotch from regional Western Australia or as an international student, he will be equipped with the tools to thrive during his time at our boarding school and beyond.
A space for boys to grow and learn
Guided by family values and our pastoral care programmes, our students have strong relationships with peers and respectful relationships with staff. We support frequent and transparent communication with families, enabling us to best reflect a "home away from home" for each student. As a home to students from many places across the globe, our boarding school also values and celebrates diversity.
In the formative years of your son's education, a comfortable and supportive environment is key. We've created a warm community and culture of compassion at our boarding school, which enables your son to succeed emotionally, socially and academically.
A sought-after location
Nestled in the coastal suburb of Swanbourne, our private Boarding Houses overlook 10 hectares of playing fields and the adjoining Lake Claremont. There is no shortage of space for our students to exercise or relax. The size of our campus is remarkable, given we are in the heart of one of Perth's most sought-after locations.
Situated less than 2km to both the Swan River and Indian Ocean, your son will have plenty of opportunities to try activities like surf lifesaving, rowing and sailing. Swanbourne Train Station is only footsteps away, so travelling and weekend recreational activities are made simple too. Our students enjoy visiting Fremantle, Perth CBD and Claremont Quarter with ease.
Western Australia's sunny climate and relaxed lifestyle offer international students a wonderful environment for their educational journey. The region's excellent quality of life supports a balance of both academic success and leisure pursuits, enabling students to thrive throughout their time at our boarding school. Scotch is conveniently located 7km from Perth City and 30km from Perth Airport.
Remarkable opportunities
Frequent outdoor activities are a highlight for our students, including the unique opportunity to walk the Bibbulmun Track in stages. By Year 12, your son will have completed the entire track, learning about resilience and teamwork along the way.
Our boarding family
Our Boarding Houses are home to approximately 10 per cent of the school's population, cared for by a passionate team of boarding and academic staff. Six families live onsite to provide prompt care and guidance to our students in boarding. We also have an expanded team of boarding and academic staff who work with our students each day and provide expert academic support, coaching and care.
I invite you to explore our vibrant community, meet our incredible team and discover how your son will thrive during his time in boarding.
Undertaken in stages by boarders from Years 7 to 12, the Bibbulmun Track is a 1,000km walking trail from the Perth Hills to Albany and is an iconic rite of passsage to boarding at Scotch College.
The experiential learning that the Bibbulmun Track provides is unique and cannot be achieved in the classroom. Students discover self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision making every time they step out onto the track.
These experiences bond boys for life. Long after students finish their schooling at Scotch, many still recall their Bibbulmun Track experience as the most memorable time at school. The shared experience strengthens our community and culture while allowing boys to discover what it takes to develop independence and resilience.
All Scotch College boarders have the opportunity to become an ‘End to Ender’. This means they have completed the full 1,000km track.
Student wellbeing
To ensure your son always feels like there is someone he can turn to, we have a very high staff to student ratio in our boarding school. Each of our Boarding Houses has a Housemother whose role is to provide emotional support for your son and act as a link between the College and your family.
The Head of Residence keeps a close eye on all students' wellbeing. This academic staff member lives onsite and is the central point of contact for boarders, teachers and parents. They have a holistic view of how your son is developing and, if needed, will draw on the expertise of our registered nurses, school psychologists, Chaplain and other support staff.
Tailored pastoral care and wellbeing programmes are a constant for each student at Scotch College. While at school, our students have multiple avenues to get support and foster positive wellbeing strategies.
Academic support and tutoring
Scotch College has an outstanding reputation for its three-stream academic programme, across ATAR, International Baccalaureate Diploma and VET.
Our Head of Residence and Assistant Heads of Residence work together to monitor our students' academic progress, helping them achieve their potential. Our Heads of Residence work closely with each student's homeroom teacher and House Heads to ensure they are well supported academically.
Tutoring and resources
When it comes to homework, assignments and study, your son can get help whenever he needs it with our open-door tutoring system. Running every weekday evening, academic staff and tutors provide ongoing tutoring support in specialist areas such as Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics and English Literature. They work alongside our students to tackle individual problems and build strong study skills. Many of our tutors are recent high achieving graduates now studying at university. Often close in age, they frequently become mentors and role models for our students.
Borders also have access to the College's library and Academic Support Centre before and after school.
Recreational activities
At Scotch College, we provide numerous recreational activities that challenge and enrich our students physically, socially, emotionally and academically.
Sporting events
Where possible, boarders can attend local and international sporting events, including the AFL, Super XV Rugby, international hockey, A-League soccer and NBL.
Sporting clubs
We have relationships with many local sporting clubs that invite our students to join their teams for weekend games. These are fantastic opportunities for boys to meet new friends, engage with the community and further develop their sporting skills.
Cultural life
Boarders enjoy the cultural life of Australia's westernmost city, including trips to the cinema, Perth Festival, Fringe Festival, live music, museum tours, theatre and more.
Weekend activities
Scotch College often partners with our neighbouring boarding schools (boys and girls) to go ten pin bowling, paintballing, ice-skating, go-karting and more.
Community service
Supporting our wider community is highly valued at Scotch College. Both our day and boarding school students undertake community service, including at aged care facilitates, Surfing for the Disabled, and Horse Riding for the Disabled. Each year, our boarders hold a fundraiser to support the Royal Flying Doctors Service.
Part-time employment
The College is always happy to support interested students in finding part-time employment with local businesses.
On-campus
Boarders have access to our College facilities, including the gymnasium, weights room, libraries, manual arts and kitchen facilities, and of course, the acres and acres of our playing fields. We have a plethora of Sport and Co-Curricular opportunities to suit every preference.
There's no need to hang out alone when you've got 30 other mates and brothers to spend time with.
— Cambell Johnston and Jayden Clarke, Year 8 boarders
Our Boarding Houses are composed of two distinct residences – a Middle School Residence for Years 7 to 8 and a Senior School Residence for Years 9 to 12.
The houses mirror our day-school campuses. Linking our Boarding Houses to our sub-schools ensures we can best support boys at their stage of development. It also enables us to form strong links between teaching and boarding staff.
Students commence their boarding journey in dormitory-style accommodation, which provides a balance of privacy and plenty of opportunities to socialise. In Years 9 to 10, boys share double rooms. By Years 11 and 12, all boarders have their own private room.
Explore our Boarding Houses from home with our virtual tour.
Clans
As boys move into Senior School Boarding, they are divided into two 'clans' with a Head of Clan who supports and follows them through to graduation. The Head of Clan is the main contact point for boys and parents, enabling seamless communication between families and the College.
Food and catering
All boarders eat together in our spacious Dining Hall, overlooking our playing fields. On weekdays, they collect their recess and lunch from the Middle or Senior School Canteen.
Our dedicated catering team work tirelessly to ensure all boarders have a wide selection of flavours and ingredients for each meal. Each dish is prepared with fresh produce, often locally grown. Dietary requirements and preferences are always catered for in our expansive menu. Five meals are provided each day, with snacks readily available.
Dinner includes two protein options, a vegetarian option and a choice of several different types of vegetables and salads. Of course, dessert is also available after every meal.
Fresh fruit is always available from the Dining Hall, Canteen and Residences and is replenished regularly.
Health Centre
Located next to our Boarding Houses, our Health Centre is staffed by a team of registered nurses from early morning until night and on-call 24 hours a day. Health Centre staff manage medical appointments for all boarders and arrange transport to any appointments as needed.
Health Centre staff provide emergency nursing management, primary health assessment, referral to relevant health specialists, health education and pastoral care. Our experienced Health Centre staff support students as they settle into the boarding community and are approachable at any time of the day.
Temporary or weekly boarding
All Scotch College, families can take advantage of our temporary accommodation facilities, located within our Boarding Houses. A student can stay full-time for short-term periods, usually for four weeks. Another flexible option is weekday boarding – boarding from Sunday evening until Friday afternoon and returning home on weekends.
With many parents working full time, weekly boarding has become an excellent option to not only alleviate pressure on families but to gain all that living within our boarding community provides. All our boarders receive five meals a day, laundry, structured homework times, nightly tutoring and the ease of school activities right at their door.
Get in touch to learn more about our temporary or weekly boarding school accommodation offers. We are always happy to offer a boarding trial to our students to ensure that this is the right option for them.
Our onboarding programme
Our six-month online Taigh programme, involving incoming Year 7 and 8 boarders, eases the transition to boarding.
The journey starts with a camp at Scotch in July, where they meet each other and collect their devices. We continue with weekly one-hour online sessions until the end of November. Each session carries an investigation where they can showcase their work creatively. Our boarders have produced photography, videos, charts, tables, drawings and more!
Before their first day of school, they've made new friends, are familiar with our staff and campus and are optimistic about the journey ahead.
I have loved being involved in the Taigh programme because it makes me feel like I'm already part of the Scotch community.
Click and drag to explore our expansive campus and state-of-the-art facilities.
Senior School Boarding Virtual Tour
Our virtual tour was developed by Droneify, created and operated by our current Year 12 student, Ethan Buzza (OSC 2024).
Contact Us About Our Perth Boarding School
If you have any questions about enrolling your child at Scotch College's private boarding school for boys, we would love to hear from you. Please contact our Boarding Admissions Officer Catriona Nixon on +61 8 9383 6800 or admissions@scotch.wa.edu.au.
