We re-open to new members in April 2026
The Tuck Shop
A Community for Boarding School Survivors
A supportive community for ex-boarders and their partners, where we come together to explore the long term impact of our boarding school experience and find new ways to heal.
What is The Tuck Shop?
The Tuck Shop is a new community offering a safe space for reflection, learning and growth to ex-boarder men, women and their partners. It is not therapy; it's a place in which to share experiences and learn from each other.
It includes:
Regular online sessions
Masterclasses on specific topics
Guest speakers (all ex-boarders) bringing fresh perspectives
Exclusive discounts on courses and group coaching programmes
How does The Tuck Shop work?
The Tuck Shop offers just enough structure alongside flexibility, so you can take part in a way that suits you.
Weekly sessions
Live online on Tuesdays at 12pm (UK) for around one hour, with space for reflection, questions and discussion.Masterclasses and guest speakers
Held in the evenings, exploring specific topics in more depth and offering new insights and perspectives.Recordings included
All sessions are recorded and uploaded to a private Resource Library, so you can watch in your own time if you can’t attend live.
There’s no pressure to attend everything - members engage in different ways depending on their needs and availability.
Who is it for?
The Tuck Shop is a supportive community for men and women who went to boarding school and for their partners and adult children.
It’s a place to connect with others who understand what it was like to grow up in that unique environment, and to discover more about how those early experiences can continue to shape our adult lives.
- £45/mo or £450/yr
The Tuck Shop
A community for ex-boarders and their partners who are looking for more love & happiness and a sense of belonging. Join a group of fellow boarding school 'survivors' who are on the journey to discover what lies hidden behind the mask of their survival personality. Reconnect with your feelings and peel away the barriers to love so that you can enjoy more closeness in your life.
Sign up now for the Tuck Shop and get £5 off the monthly fee - £45/month or £450 for the full year. (The price goes up to £50/month on April 21st). Your partner gets 50% off the price if they join with you.
What kind of community is this?
The Tuck Shop is a facilitated, supportive community, with a focus on personal growth. It is not a competitive, performance-led environment.
Our sessions will include some teaching, guided discussion, shared reflection or listening quietly - all forms of participation are welcome, and there’s no expectation to speak unless you want to.
From February or March, smaller facilitated groups will be introduced, shaped by the needs and wishes of the community as it develops.
What challenges does it address?
Many ex-boarders find that certain behaviour patterns or feelings linger long after school days are over, such as:
Painful or confusing memories of school life
Anxiety or depression
Fear of judgment or abandonment
Overworking or finding it hard to slow down
Difficulties forming or maintaining close relationships
If any of these sound familiar, you’re not alone.
The Tuck Shop was created to help you move forward.
What happens in Tuck Shop meetings?
We meet weekly on Tuesday lunchtimes for an hour. Meetings are led by Sorrel Pindar who is a coach with lived experience of boarding school. We're a small community which has allowed trust to develop among the members, who feel able to speak openly about the challenges we face.
Topics covered have included:
Safety
Acceptance
Feelings
The stories we tell ourselves
Relationships
As the facilitator, Sorrel ensures that everyone gets a chance to speak and that no one dominates the conversation.
What will I gain from joining?
As part of The Tuck Shop, you will:
Deepen you understanding of how boarding school shaped your mental health, self-esteem, and relationships
Meet others with similar experiences and share the journey together in a safe, compassionate space
Start to reconnect with things you left behind when you went away to school
Explore healthier, more connected ways of being in relationships
- £45/mo or £450/yr
Join the community and start the journey back to yourself
Sign up now for the Tuck Shop and get £5 off the monthly fee - £45/month or £450 for the full year. (The price goes up to £50/month on April 21st). Your partner gets 50% off the price if they join with you.
What people are saying...
Lois D.
"I learn something new every week at the Tuck Shop. It is helping me to think through the connection of some of my current issues to the time when I was at boarding school. It is well worth the time, effort and money. Thank you, Sorrel!"
Phil G.
"I joined The Tuck Shop a couple of months ago and really enjoy the community. I was sent to BS at eight years old and being in the group really helps me identify, unearth and examine some of the unhelpful thought processes that I developed at that early age from the early trauma of abandonment, imprisonment, excessively structured time, the deep loneliness, loss of home, family and siblings, and the ever lasting sense of limbo. I'd recommend The Tuck Shop to any ex-boarder who wants to gently explore how being a boarder has affected their emotional and psychological development."
Nick J.
"The tuck shop provides a safe open space to share with other ex- boarding school pupils. A place to find witness for your feelings and issues. And gain more perspective on them."
R.J.
"The Tuck Shop is a place where you can think, reflect, share and learn from and with others who experienced boarding school. It is safe and beneficial to be part of."
Meet The Tuck Shop Founder, Sorrel Pindar
Sorrel is a trauma-informed relationship coach who works with people who feel stuck in their relationships - especially those who spent part of their childhood in boarding school. Drawing on her own experience of seven years as a boarder, she offers both couples coaching and individual coaching for survivors and their partners.
Her coaching journey began in 2017 when she became an NLP Master Practitioner. Since then, she has trained with Jamie Smart to become a Certified Advanced CLARITY® Coach & Facilitator, and is a licensed One of Many™ women’s coach. In 2025, she qualified as a Relational Life Coach through the Relational Life Institute, giving her some unique tools to work with couples.
Before starting her coaching journey, Sorrel spent 20 years as an osteopath, retiring in 2022 to focus on helping people heal emotionally and in their relationships. She holds a BSc and MPhil in Psychology, and deeply believes in our spiritual “true self” - the inner source of wisdom, creativity, and well-being that enables us all to heal from the inside out.
- £45/mo or £450/yr
Join the community and start the journey back to yourself
Sign up now for the Tuck Shop and get £5 off the monthly fee - £45/month or £450 for the full year. (The price goes up to £50/month on April 21st). Your partner gets 50% off the price if they join with you.
Frequently asked questions
What is The Tuck Shop?
The Tuck Shop is a supportive online community for adults who went to boarding school – and their partners. It offers a warm space to explore how early boarding experiences may still shape emotions, relationships, and everyday life, while connecting with others who truly understand.
Who is The Tuck Shop for?
It’s for anyone who spent part of their childhood in boarding school, and for partners who want to understand these patterns better and build stronger, more connected relationships.
Why are partners included?
Because boarding-school patterns often show up most strongly in adult relationships. Partners are welcome because understanding the patterns and pressures that come from boarding school can help create more empathy, closeness, and communication. Your partner does not have to have gone to boarding school to be a member of The Tuck Shop.
Do I need to have had a difficult boarding-school experience to join?
No. Some members faced real hardship; others simply want to understand the long-term influence of boarding school on their emotional style or relationships. All experiences – positive, negative, or mixed – are welcome.
What can we expect when we join?
You’ll find a compassionate, non-judgemental community, sharing of experiences & reflections and gentle guidance from a facilitator experienced in boarding-school psychology and relationship dynamics. You can join as a couple or individually and take part at your own pace.
Is this therapy or counselling?
No. The Tuck Shop isn’t therapy. It’s a coaching-informed community space offering support, self-understanding and tools for well-being and healthier relating. Many find it complements other personal work, but it does not replace therapy.
How is this different from other alumni groups or social networks?
Traditional alumni networks often focus on achievements or nostalgia. The Tuck Shop is different – it centres on your well-being, relational patterns and personal growth rather than institutional identity.
How private and safe is the community?
Privacy and confidentiality are core values. The Tuck Shop is intended to be a safe, non-judgemental space for honest exploration – you control what you share, and you participate only as much as you feel comfortable.