Hosting Studio Students

Information for prospective hosts

If you love new experiences, are friendly, flexible, and enjoy the company of young people from around the world, we invite you to apply to become a Studio host. In wishing to accommodate Studio Cambridge students, you will be joining a well-established and very well respected provider of high-quality English language courses for people of all ages and from all walks of life.

Studio provides students with a complete educational and cultural experience within a friendly and supportive environment. Our aim is to grow and diversify in response to our customers' needs while maintaining our reputation for high quality.

Your contribution as a caring and welcoming host is fundamental to that goal. Studio Cambridge has a long and successful record in accommodating students from throughout the world.

  • Established 1954 (the oldest English language school in Cambridge)
  • Privately owned and managed (not part of a chain of schools)
  • Founder member of English UK and accredited by the British Council
  • Wide range of students of all ages and nationalities
  • Priding ourselves on providing personal attention to our students and host families

The following information summarises the main responsibilities of a Studio host. We will arrange to visit you in your home and will send you our:

  • Homestay Hosts' Accommodation Guide
  • Homestay Hosts' Questionnaire

Please contact us for further information.

How we select our hosts

As the experience of living in an English-speaking home is a very important part of our students' lives, we take great care when matching individual students to hosts. We aim to provide a good service to both our students and host providers. When you apply to be a host, we will arrange to visit you in your home to meet you and your family, and to take a look at the accommodation you have available. This visit also gives us the opportunity to discuss the many different aspects of looking after the international student and to get your thoughts about hosting.

Information about you, your family, your interests and the accommodation you have available will be entered on our computer system. This is used to match you to available students, paying close attention to their sex, age and interests.

Please note that we are registered under the Data Protection Act 1989. We can confirm that the information you provide will be kept confidential and used exclusively for the authorised purpose of accommodation and host administrative support.

Your responsibilities as a Studio host

Experienced and successful Studio Cambridge hosts are aware that taking care of foreign students, often away from home for the first time, is a significant responsibility. Studio Cambridge is bound by a very strict code of practice intended to ensure that students receive the services and support that they need. As a Studio Cambridge host you will share that responsibility, but please remember you will not be on your own. Our Accommodation and Welfare personnel are always available 24 hours per day, supported by over fifty years' experience in looking after our foreign visitors.

Fundamental requirements

Studio Cambridge is accredited by the British Council and is a founder member of EnglishUK. These two organisations have established Mandatory Requirements and a Code of Practice for the hosting of foreign students. We will not accept hosts if they do not comply with these requirements.

The British Council requires that accommodation should be appropriate for the student, be safe and comfortable and offer appropriate meals and refreshments.

The English UK Code of Practice requires that all providers of homestay accommodation are to take reasonable steps:

a) To encourage the student to speak English as much as possible in the home where English should normally be the language of communication
b) To encourage the student to feel at home and to treat him/her as a member of the family rather than a paying guest
c) Not to host another student of the same native language at the same time unless by special arrangement with students and the school
d) To provide the student a clean and comfortable room. This requires that students should be provided with: · a sufficiently spacious bedroom, adequately equipped with natural light · adequate heating and lighting · a table for private study · adequate hanging and drawer space for clothes · a change of towels and bed linen each week and a good supply of blankets
e) To provide a home environment in which it is possible for the student to carry out his / her English studies properly
f) To provide the student with a balanced and appropriate diet
g) To show due concern for the welfare, safety and security of the student during his / her stay and to show a friendly and caring attitude
h) To give the student reasonable and regular access to bathroom and laundry facilities
i) To maintain a close liaison with the student's school and be in a position to help resolve any problems that the student may encounter during his/her stay
j) To respect students' different cultural backgrounds and be sensitive to their needs

Studio Cambridge requirements

In addition to those stated above, Studio Cambridge has established additional criteria for selecting and monitoring hosts. These will be explained to you, and cover such areas as:

  • Supervision and safety
  • Curfews and bedtimes
  • Social interaction with students
  • Different rules for different ages
  • The maximum number of students in your home
  • The nationalities / native languages of students
  • Students' friends
  • Leisure time
  • Medicines and illness
  • Emergency procedures
  • Liaison with Studio
  • Fire Alarms
  • Bedrooms
  • Bathrooms and Toilets
  • Meals
  • Laundry
  • Keys
  • Use of the telephone
  • Room Cleaning
  • Heating
  • Travel to and from school

If you feel you would enjoy the experience - and the responsibility of hosting our students, please email us stating your interest in becoming a host, or contact us by telephone (01223) 369701.