Welcome to the Exciting World of Hosting!

Step 1: Home Assessment

• Meet Our International Student Officer: Your journey begins with a visit from our International Student Officer. They’ll assess your home to ensure it offers a comfortable, safe, and clean environment – perfect for a student’s study and relaxation time.

Step 2: DBS Checks

• Ensuring Safety and Trust: For the safety of our students, all adults over 16 in your household will need to complete DBS (Disclosure & Barring Service) forms. This process is vital in maintaining a secure and trustworthy environment for everyone.

Step 3: Welcome to Our Homestay Register!

• Creating Your Profile: Once your DBS checks are clear and your home is deemed suitable, we’ll create your Homestay profile. This marks your official welcome into our community of caring and dedicated hosts.

Step 4: Keeping Us Updated

• Your Dynamic Homestay Life: We understand that life changes. Whether it’s a new room decoration, a change in household members, or any significant adjustments, just let us know! Keeping us informed helps us keep our records up-to-date and ensures a smooth experience for you and your guests.

Step 5: Ready to Host

• Begin Your Hosting Adventure: With all the formalities complete, you’re now ready to welcome students into your home. Embrace the joy of cultural exchange and the rewarding experience of making a difference in a student’s life.

We are now hosting our fourth international student through Itchen College and have really enjoyed the experience. We have learned so much about other cultures, tried a lot of new, delicious foods, and have even welcomed one of our students and her family to our home while they holidayed in the UK months after the student left us. They are now good friends and we hope to stay in contact for a long time.

Overall, welcoming students into your home can feel a little awkward for the first couple of days but once everyone has settled in, it is incredibly easy, enjoyable, and rewarding. Our own daughter has loved having new, grown up ‘siblings’, and us adults have enjoyed sharing British culture, and dispelling many myths about ‘awful’ British food!

I cry every time we say goodbye to our students. They really are part of our family that grows bigger every time a new student arrives. We are off to Germany to visit our very first student and her family in December.

The staff at the college are incredibly helpful and supportive, even for the smallest questions.

I would 100% recommend hosting to anyone, and we plan to continue to do so for many years to come.

Dear Janni, Dave and Archie,

Lucia came back happy from her study journey in Southampton.

I would like to thank you from my heart for your hospitality that also welcomed Francesca many times.

Lucia always felt like at home, at your house, welcomed by the warmth of your family.

Thank you Janni for your so tasty cooking which Lucia many times talked about, for the clothes that you gave them; when they’re going to wear them they will, for sure, think about you.

Thank you Archie for your friendliness and spontaneity.

Thank you Dave for your kindness and for always being there.

You will always be in Lucia and Francesca’s heart.

A kind goodbye

Giovanna