Become a Host Family in the UK for Students

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How to become a host family for international students

One of the best ways for an international student to improve their English is by living in England, speaking to local people and experiencing UK life and culture - and you can help by joining ELC’s Homestay programme as a host family.

Why become a homestay host for international students?

The English Language Centre (ELC) offers accommodation to all students who choose to study at one of our three schools, in Brighton, Chester and Eastbourne. We understand how important it is for newly-arrived overseas students to feel at home, and we place huge importance on making them feel cared for and comfortable.

The vast majority of the students who take an English language course at one of our schools choose to stay with a ‘host family’. Becoming a host family in our homestay scheme for international students can be a very rewarding experience.

In addition to earning extra income from a spare bedroom, you can learn about different cultures and make friends from across the world. You will also play an integral part in the lives of these students, and create a ‘home away from home’ for them while they study in the UK.

A photograph representing an older host listening intently to a younger student whilst sitting out at a wooden table and chairs in a garden setting. The pair seem to be enjoying a cup of tea and piece of cake.

What if I’m single or live alone, or we’re not a typical ‘two parents, two kids and a dog and cat’ family?

We use the term ‘host family’ here just because that’s what ‘hosting a student from overseas’ tends to be labelled.

Within English language teaching circles, however, we tend to use the term ‘homestay provider’. Whilst this might seem a bit formal and clinical, this is a better term as it recognises that the constitution of your household does not have a bearing on your ability and appropriateness to welcome an international student to your home.

Eligibility requirements to become a homestay host in the UK

Staying with a host family (or ‘in a homestay’) might well be the most important part of a student’s stay. That means we place a lot of importance on our relationship with our homestay hosts.

As a potential host we visit all of our ‘host families’ in advance. In addition to seeing the facilities you can offer, we are also looking for a warm, friendly welcome for our students.

Here’s what we’re looking for:

You have at least one spare bedroom - the room should be clean, with adequate heat and light. It should contain a chair and table/desk for private study, a wardrobe or hanging rail and chest of drawers or shelves for clothes
You should ideally live within 30 minutes of school by public transport, maximum 40 minutes. You can find the addresses of our three schools here
You are able to provide breakfast and dinner every day
If need be, you can cater to special diets - for example celiac, vegan, gluten-free, lactose-free or nut-free (you receive a £30 per week supplement for this service)
Free Wi-fi internet access
One load of laundry washed per week (included in the fee you receive)
A willingness to spend time engaging with your student, eat together and provide shared spaces where they can interact with the you.

Benefits for host families (homestay providers)

Being a homestay provider can be a hugely rewarding experience. You are offering your student a safe space where they’ll find familiar faces and friendship, support, and a comfortable place to live while they are on their learning journey in the UK.

Some homestay students will be with you for as little as three weeks, others for the entire academic year. Whatever the duration, as a host family we’ll look to you to create a ‘home away from home’ for them, where they will be able to relax after lessons, join in with your family, and get to learn even more about the UK, the English language and our culture.

The goodwill benefits:

gain a unique perspective on different cultures and world views.
experience the joy of sharing your home and culture with people who are particularly interested in the British way of life, and your take on it
create lasting memories
help students develop their English language skills and see their confidence soar
offer students occasional support and advice with their coursework
make lifelong connections with people from around the globe.

There are also financial benefits for host families as each student will pay certain fees for their homestay accommodation. ELC makes no profit on homestay fees - we pay you what we charge our students.

The support you get from ELC as a homestay provider

In this world of algorithms, AI and automation, we still place our students in a very human way, according to what we know about the student, and what we know about you and your home environment. That’s why our home visit is so important. But once a student has been allocated to your home, we don’t just leave you to it.

We appreciate it’s a responsibility to host an international student, and there are going to be times where you need some help, an opinion or recommendation from us as to how to deal with a certain situation.

ELC’s Accommodation and Welfare Officers are always available during office hours if you have a concern or question. We want you to feel comfortable reporting any concern or incident - however small - to our Accommodation and Welfare Officer who will know the appropriate course of action to follow. We also have a number that is available 24/7 in case there is an emergency and you need support.

A student sits cross legged on a sage green sofa. You can only see their crossed legs wearing jeans, with a laptop in their lap. They are wearing a grey woollen jumper and one finger is hovering over the track pad of the laptop.

How to help students feel at home

Students need to feel comfortable and cared for when staying with a host family. New students, often away from home for the first time, can experience a degree of ‘culture shock’ for the first few weeks in the UK so they can really appreciate a little help to adjust to their new way of life.

Over the years, students’ needs have changed quite a lot, and a lot of it is to be blamed on social media and mobile phones. On the whole, students tend to be less inclined to seek out company, and probably spend more time in their rooms and connected to friends and family around the world.

That means students will often be very happy with being left to their own devices – literally! That said, we’ll often find that as they settle in, as their surroundings start to feel more familiar, and as they gain confidence in their English language abilities, they will feel more comfortable talking to you. This is where they will really benefit from open and friendly communication with you as their host.

By getting to know your students, their home circumstances and friendship groups, it makes it easier to spot changes in their behaviour, or potential problems, and pick up on any issues early.

Our code of practice

As a host family (homestay provider) we will ask you to abide by the English UK Homestay Code of Practice for providers of homestay accommodation for English Language Students.

This means you will be asked to:

encourage the student to speak English as much as possible in your home
encourage the student to feel at home and to treat him/her as a member of the family rather than a paying guest.
not host another student of the same native language at the same time unless by special arrangement with the students and the schools/centres.
provide a clean and comfortable student room, meeting the requirements laid down by the British Council
provide a homely environment in which it is possible for the student to carry on his/her English studies properly
provide the student with a balanced and appropriate diet.
show due concern for the welfare, safety and security of the student during their stay.
provide one load of laundry per week, along with bedding and towels washed weekly.
give the student reasonable and regular access to bathroom and laundry facilities
maintain a close liaison with the student’s school/centre and so be in a position to help resolve any problems that the student may encounter during their stay.
respect the student’s different cultural background and to be sensitive to the needs of the student.

Other things to think about before becoming a homestay provider

You may need to consider your home insurance and your tax status, given that you are receiving payment for hosting. By law you must inform HM Revenue and Customs of any earned income.
Fire and gas safety also needs to be considered. For example, host families are classed as landlords under Gas Safety Regulations (Installation and Use). If you become a homestay provider, your premises must conform to these regulations and all gas appliances should only be fitted and checked by a competent person (if done by an outside professional they should be on the Gas Safe Register). A Gas Safety Certificate should be obtained annually and shown to the school’s representative who will keep a copy for school records.
The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 makes hosts responsible for taking steps to protect students living in the homestay from the risk of fire. You must carry out a Fire Risk Assessment, keeping the risks and your fire safety measures under review. It is good practice to do an annual review and keep a written record of assessments. There is more information available on Fire Safety & Paying Guests.

Upon arrival at your home it is necessary that you advise the student of your emergency evacuation plan in the event of fire.

Apply to be a homestay provider

If you’d like to speak to us about becoming a host family/homestay provider in Chester, Brighton or Eastbourne, please contact us and we’ll arrange time to speak to you personally. Thank you!