Fees:

Boarding fees for 2011/12 are €4,500 for the year, payable in three installments. There is a sliding scale of grants available depending on eligibility. The maximum grant for boarding 2009/2010 is €4,195  leaving a small balance of €305  i.e.€100  per term.

Considering the imminent increase in school transport next term of €300  per child, (€600  max per family) the cost of weekly boarding will be very affordable for many. Financial assistance is also available from other sources to families considering the option of boarding.

Pupils attending the Royal and Prior are still eligible for book grants, which is means-tested. Most families of boarder students receive financial assistance.

Further information on boarding grants is available from Mr. David Wynne, Administrator, Belgrade House, 15 Belgrade Road, Rathmines, Dublin 6. Tel 014975034, email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it   

Student Boarder Profiles:

• Name: Lorna Moffitt
• Year: 1st year
• Age:13
• Primary school: Ballymore N.S.
• Where do you come from? Dunfanaghy.
• Why did you consider boarding? I considered boarding because it is an hour-long journey from where I live to the school so it would have been a long journey to and from school everyday. My brother and other people I know were at the Royal already and I always wanted to go there too.
• What do you like most about the Boarding House? I like the fact that you are with your friends all the time. It is great fun and a happy environment.
• Would you recommend boarding to others? Yes without doubt. I have made some really good friends and the tournaments in table tennis and other sports are great fun in the evenings.
• What have been your most memorable moments at school this year? My most memorable moments at school were my first night in the Boarding House, meeting the other boarders in my year and the prefect as well as my first day at secondary school. I remember walking in to the school building that morning. I felt so excited and so looking forward to a new beginning.

• Name: Simon Russell
• Year: 1st Year
• Age: 13
• What primary School did you attend? Robertson National School, Ballintra.
• Where do you come from? Ballintra, Co. Donegal.Why did you consider boarding? I considered boarding because it is much handier to live right beside the school rather than take a bus or car. The Boarding House is just few minutes walk from the school.
• What do you like most about the Boarding House? I like the way you can live with people you hardly know at the start and end up knowing them from the inside out, becoming the greatest of friends.
• Would you recommend boarding to others? I definitely would. You can still see your mum and dad at weekends so you will get used to it when you leave your own house and go to college or elsewhere. Also it gives you a chance to bond with other people and to become better mates and gives you self-confidence.
• What have been your most memorable moments in school this year? Mine would probably be our first hockey match just before Christmas. We won 2-1 and I was in goals. The big advantage of boarding is that I can develop my hockeyskills by training with the Raphoe town hockey club on Thursday evenings as well as in school.