Boarding

Pembroke children are surrounded by people dedicated to their happiness, personal development and well-being. They are all working to guide each child to be the very best version of themselves, and to support them in resolving any issues or problems. As we are a small school, each child is known by everyone, allowing us to be fully aware of individual needs and personalities.

Pembroke recognises our moral and statutory responsibility to safeguard and promote the welfare of all pupils. We endeavour to provide a safe and welcoming environment where children are respected and valued. We are alert to the signs of abuse and neglect and follow our procedures to ensure that children receive effective support, protection and justice. Child protection forms part of the school’s safeguarding responsibilities. While our Safeguarding Team is especially dedicated to ensuring the welfare of all our children, we also understand that safeguarding is the responsibility of every staff member. As such, all staff undergo safeguarding training each term, as well as specific professional development in this area.

Our pastoral care also extends to the Boarding Houses, our tutor system and our Heads of School. For parents, their child’s tutor usually serves as the first point of call for any concerns or issues, and they are supported by Boarding Houseparents and Assistants, as well as the Heads of School, where necessary. In the Junior School, Form Teachers are also tutors, and in Years 5 - 8, students are placed in tutor groups and allocated a tutor who remains with them until they leave. We hold weekly tutor meetings, which are specific opportunities for students to discuss any issues or problems with their tutors, but tutors are available at any time to help their tutees, as are all staff.

Please see our full Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy here.

We have a wonderful onsite catering team, led by our experienced caterer and overseen by our Special Projects Officer, to ensure meals are nutritious and appealing to all ages.

Meals are served in the dining room and all of our food is cooked from scratch, using fresh ingredients and local suppliers wherever possible. We cater for over 70 pupils with special dietary requirements, such as dairy or lactose intolerance, gluten-free, nut allergies, high protein and vegetarian to name a few.

We also provide the pre prep pupils with their own specialized menus when called for.
The team produce weekly menus, which include breakfast, break, lunch, tea and dinner and are adjusted each week based on the fresh produce available.

A sample menu is available below:

Sample Weekly Menu 

The health of the children in our care is one of our biggest priorities. We understand that it is never fun for children to be unwell, but that this is especially true when they are away from home, and that this is a major concern for parents. Therefore, we aim to ensure we deal with any medical issues in a caring, prompt and professional manner. We have a San (Sanitorium) attached to Scholes House, and there is always at least one fully qualified nurse on duty, including overnight. The nurses hold clinics several times a day, where they deal with any illness or injuries, as well as dispensing regular medication. There are always nurses on the sports' fields during home matches to attend to sporting injuries.

The school doctor also visits the school weekly, to help review more serious cases. Children who are particularly ill are admitted to sleep in one of the beds in San (there are four beds in each of the boys’ and girls’ sections, as well as separate bathrooms), so they can be closely monitored and attended to by the nurses. If their illness becomes more serious, they will be referred to hospital, as in emergency situations. Children with prolonged illnesses will be sent home to recuperate. There is also appropriate access to visiting specialists, such as the optometrist, podiatrist, physiotherapist and dentist. We are also introducing a visiting counsellor to assist students when they need this kind of help.

All new students must have a comprehensive medical form completed, so that we are aware of any particular medical needs, including food and other allergies. All prescribed medication is stored in San for safety reasons, and dispensed as needed. All students must also hold an AMREF card to show they are a member of the Flying Doctors, and should provide evidence of being covered by a private health insurance policy. For away matches and school trips, the nurses pack a medical kit with all the relevant medication, including specific medication required by individual children, which travels with them on the bus. All staff also undergo regular first aid training by accredited providers.

We take security extremely seriously at Pembroke. We are fully aware of the relatively precarious nature of security in East Africa, and take every precaution to ensure our students and staff are always safe. The school is fully enclosed by an electric fence, and is protected by security guards 24/7, who also patrol the grounds hourly. There is a system of all visitors being checked and signed in by security guards, and being issued with visitor passes. Students leaving the school also need to be issued with a gate pass by a staff member, so we are always aware of their whereabouts.

Three times each term, we have intruder and fire drills, so that children and staff can practise what to do in case of these emergencies. This includes a nighttime drill. These are highly effective in making everyone familiar with a safe course of action. Our extensive alarm system notifies our reputable, outside security provider about a potential emergency, as well as alerting everyone on site to the problem. As part of this, we have an extensive call tree, involving parents and community members, who have the knowledge and resources necessary to assist quickly and effectively in an emergency situation. We attend regular information sessions with institutions like the British Defence Force, about any security developments in the region. We also maintain strong relationships with other IAPS schools, emergency service providers and security experts, to ensure that all our information about security is current and pertinent.

When travelling on school buses, children always have a teacher or escort with them. All children must have their own seat and wear a seatbelt at all times. Drivers are trained in defensive driving and know what to do in case of an emergency. Buses travel in convoy whenever possible, and are in touch with the school as to their location, especially in case of a diversion or traffic accident. We also have a strict policy of vehicles not travelling in the dark.

To help accommodate the needs of parents who live some distance away, or who cannot travel easily to school drop offs and pickups, Pembroke offers a number of transport services. We run a bus to and from Naivasha most days, as well as Nairobi buses on select days around the weekend, which usually includes Friday afternoons, Saturday midday and Sunday afternoons.

When we break up and return from exeats, half term and end of term holidays, there is also a comprehensive transport system to Naivasha, Nairobi, Wilson and JKIA airports. Parents need to liaise with the office to arrange whatever transport they need for their child by emailing admin@pembrokehouse.sc.ke.

These bus trips are always accompanied by an escort, with information about drivers and travel times clearly conveyed to parents.