Ananova:

A group of English boarding schools are to tout for business in the US for the first time.

Fourteen of them - including one that has existed since 604AD - will be attempting to drum up trade at a conference in Washington next month with a pitch based on their heritage and traditions.

Among those going to the Association of Boarding Schools conference are Roedean School in East Sussex and King's School, Rochester, in Kent, which was founded 1,396 years ago.

British boarding schools, which have seen a decline in the number of domestic applicants in recent years, already take around 8,000 pupils from around the world including the East Asia, Africa, Russia and mainland Europe.

North Americans account for about 10% of that intake.

Announcing the conference visit, Paul High, senior consultant to the Independent Schools Information Service International says many US families are still largely ignorant of what British boarding schools have to offer.

"There is no serious language barrier, unlike the situation facing many of our Far Eastern and European pupils.

"As to value for money, £15,000 for a year's education, accommodation, food and books in a good British boarding school compares very favourably with similar schooling in the USA.

"We have the added bonus of our heritage, traditions and quality of lifestyle."