Founded in 1432, Sevenoaks School is one of the leading co-educational schools in the UK for day and boarding pupils aged 11 18. Alongside academic excellence, it offers strong pastoral care, co-curricular breadth, innovative thinking, and an inclusive global dimension inspired by the International Baccalaureate. Half an hour from Central London and from Gatwick International Airport, it is situated on an attractive 100-acre campus adjoining Knole Park. There are over 1100 pupils in the school, including international students from 40 countries around the world.
Approximately a third of all students are boarders, and boarding is an important element in the school’s life and ethos. There are seven boarding houses catering for ages 13–18, with accommodation ranging from a charming Queen Anne house to modern, purpose-built facilities. Our two single-sex Sixth Form houses (16–18) particularly welcome international students joining the school for the Sixth Form. The facilities are first-class. In 2018 a state-of-the-art science and technology centre opened, uniting the four core fields of science, with an innovative new Sixth Form Global Study Centre alongside, providing the school’s first dedicated space for the IB and higher education. Other recent developments include a sports centre providing outstanding facilities and an award-winning, world-class performing arts centre.
In 2018 Sevenoaks was the Sunday Times Independent Secondary School of the Year, and the Department for Education placed Sevenoaks at the top of its GCSE performance tables and ranked it as the top performing independent school for its IB results. In 2017 Sevenoaks was the top UK fully co-educational IB school in the Education Advisers Ltd rankings. In 2015, Sevenoaks was the highest performing fully co-educational school in the Sunday Times Parent Power list of the top 50 fee-paying schools for the IB. In 2013 the Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI) awarded Sevenoaks School the rare accolade of ‘Exceptional’ for its students’ achievement. In 2009 Sevenoaks was described as ‘outstanding’ in the Ofsted Boarding inspection.
Sevenoaks School rightly has a reputation for exploring new ideas. We were the first HMC school to adopt the IB and the first all-IB public school in England. We have taught the IB since 1978. Sevenoaks pioneered one of the first school voluntary service units in 1961, while recent innovations include the Sevenoaks School Certificate (SSC), which is taken at the end of Year 11 and is fully recognised by UCAS, and the Middle School Diploma for Year 9, which records pupils’ academic and co-curricular achievements in creativity, action and service as well as in the enriching Sevenoaks Core courses, Ten Ideas That Changed the World and Critical Perspectives.
