Travelling to and from Barker from Manly was tough, I did that for my years of 7,8,9, and 10. I then asked my parents if for years 11 and 12 I could go into boarding (my cousins and my older brother were all boarders and they loved it) so that I could use the extra time (what used to be travel time) to help me have the time to do: - Study - Musicals - Plays - Volleyball - Prefect Tasks - and of course Rest and Relaxation. Boarding provided me with the Time to do all if these things and all I needed was the motivation to do them. Now any meal away from home can't be nearly as enjoyable, however for the chefs to be cooking three meals a day (lunch provided for ALL BARKER STAFF) is very impressive and the quality of the food was perfectly acceptable. To be honest, if I had my time again to go through school - I wish I boarded in year 10 as well. I have formed long lasting friendships an I'm still in touch with guys that Havnt left yet, and the guys that were in my year. I'm proud to have been a Barker Boarder. here's a pic just for fun read more

Barker College - the year 12 boarders of 2012 - Education Near Me - Hornsby, NSW

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Due to my parents living overseas at the time, I decided to enroll at Barker College as a boarder. While I LOVED the school itself, the boarding facilities and the way in which it was run was simply mind-boggling and dreadful. The house mistress and master have since been replaced, despite being one of the better things about the place. Barker College put more effort and money into their roses and gardens than they did the boarders. The food was worse than what you would feed to a pig (think diseased apples, salad crawling with bugs and grey meat). Once a term we would have an end of term dinner where the headmaster would attend. This was the only time the food was decent- perhaps because he wouldn't eat anything less. When the parents were invited to these end of term dinners, they were under the impression the food was excellent. Despite the girl's boarding school having had a renovation, the place has a dreadful reputation. 33 girls in one small house and "Mothers of the Day" (teacher supervisors who are on a power trip. I definitely recommend other boarding schools like PLC and Abbottsleigh. Barker College has no activities on the weekends apart from the once a term dinner. There are bars on the windows and there is little light- possibly the most depressing place to spend a few years! read more

I graduated last year (2012) from Barker College, and can safely say it was the best decision I've made in my life so far, and my attendance for years 11 and 12 would not have happened without the Boarding community that is there. Being a boarder at Barker has deeply influenced me and my life after school, as it made me a more independent person and therefore less reliant upon my parents now that I am studying at university. I also feel that I am a more social person, and that I can interact with others far better due to the environment that boarding provides. I lived with about 20-25 girls and around 50 boarders all together; a smaller and closer co-ed community compared to other schools which provide boarding on the North Shore. The girls boarding house itself was one of the original boarding houses and so was old, but furnished and looked after in a way that made it ideal for us to live comfortably. I lived in both a twin room for year 11 and single room for year 12, both of which were great, and allowed me to make lifelong friends with people who were considered to be part of my family when we all lived together. The access that boarding provided to other activities within the school was really helpful to my experience of the school itself. I participated in. Both the Senior Choir and the Chamber Choir, Firsts Hockey and after school academic help for maths and science, all without the worry of having to travel for 2 hours to get home. Along with this, weekends gave me the opportunity to go home, go to a friends house, go to the shops, or just stay in the boarding house to focus on work or use the TV facilities including Foxtel IQ. Going home was a simple process of providing an exeat, and going to the shops was simply signing out with the MOD who looked after us during the day. We also had organised activities during the term, including birthday gatherings, organised outings and terms dinners. The terms dinners were organised by a year group in boarding, and was often themed, and was a night where we could all come together as an entire boarding community to celebrate the end of the term. We also had a formal end of term dinner for the Year 12's where the headmaster was invited, and was a great night. While I was boarding we did external activities such as laser tag, going to the movies and going out for dinner as a community to name a few. And when it was someone's birthday the would be a gathering including the people from that person's year group from boarding. Overall I enjoyed my experience of boarding at Barker as it provides great opportunities in academia, social development and independence. Boarding helped me to reach the ATAR I needed due to the close at hand facilities, and was an experience I'll never forget and will cherish when I remember my time at Barker! read more