Tudor Hall School

Tudor Hall are experts in all-girl boarding and education; we have been tailoring everything we do to optimise girls’ experience and outcomes for 175 years. Surrounded by acres of parkland in rural Oxfordshire, but only 1 hour from London and 25 minutes from Oxford, girls are safe and secure – in every sense of the words – to be themselves and find their place in the world. 

The vast majority of our pupils board, making for a fully immersive school life, a supportive community and connections made that form lifelong friendships. 

Academic excellence is achieved through a wide-ranging curriculum that enables girls to broaden their horizons, exceed their potential and provides the foundation for them to speak their minds, take intellectual risks and believe that anything is possible – aligning with our adoption of the High Performance Learning accreditation. We are one of fewer than 15 independent schools in the UK (among 120 in the world) to be on the prestigious World Class School pathway.  Our Aim Higher programme affords all the girls a range of academic opportunities beyond the classroom, allowing them to pursue their intellectual curiosity whilst developing psychological and physical resilience. The girls are ambitious and determined to make the most of the many opportunities in school and further afield.  At Tudor, pupils are selected not just on their academic ability but also on their personal strengths and character. 

The whole community lives out the school motto ‘Habeo ut dem’, I have that I may give. There is genuine care for those within the school, as well as those beyond. The girls are impressive in their articulation of why Tudor is so special to them; being part of such a close community enables girls to be comfortable in their own skin and empowers them with everything they need to flourish in life. 

Full Boarding, Partial Boarding and Day

Our boarding houses are based around year groups meaning that, after Years 7 and 8 (in which they are members of our cosy Todd House, complete with its own garden and play area for our youngest girls), all the girls live together in a house dedicated to their age group and move up together each year (from Year 9 to Upper Sixth). Not only does this form an incredibly strong bond across the year, and allows individuals to ‘find their tribe’ among girls of their own age, but it means that each Housemistress and their pastoral team are experts in the needs and challenges that girls meet at each age, allowing the structure and priorities of each House to support every girl. 

Teaching and Learning

Tudor girls are encouraged to take risks, develop a growth mindset and ‘to aim high’. We are a High Performance Learning pathway school, the only one in Oxfordshire and one of fewer than 15 independent schools in the UK working towards the prestigious World Class School accreditation based on cognitive and neuroscience research. 

Years 7 to 9 (known as Todds, IIs and IIIs) at Tudor Hall provide a broad curriculum offering a wide range of subjects. By Year 10 (IV), pupils will begin to develop areas of specialisation and interest, reducing the number of subjects and studying chosen subjects in greater depth.   

Teaching and learning is very well resourced, with 21 subjects available at GCSE; 28 subjects at A Level and equivalent, plus EPQ (Extended Project Qualification) and Leiths Professional Cookery course. Girls are not limited by option grids; they are asked to select their preferences and the timetable is (as far as possible) built around these to allow unique and unusual combinations that are unlikely to be available in other, larger schools. 

Girls are encouraged to make subject choices for GCSE in which there is an interest and in which strengths lie. There is a wealth of Careers advice, talks and opportunities for girls at every age and support is given to avoid imbalances which could prevent entry into particular courses at university level.   

The Arts and Sport

Our art, ceramics, photography, design technology and textiles departments all have specialist experienced teachers with expert skill levels to inspire pupils. The standard of the girls’ work is exceptional, evidenced through their public examination results as well as by the numbers who go on to have their career in the world of art and design. There are new, first-class facilities for ceramics, textiles, photography and the Art Department was recently refurbished. 

There is a strong Drama tradition at Tudor and every student has experienced treading the boards by the time they leave the school, with frequent and regular productions for every age in our wonderful, state-of-the-art Studio, opened by OT (Old Tudorian) and Academy Award Winner, Serena Armitage. Several girls have successfully auditioned for the National Youth Theatre and we have a partnership with Chipping Norton Theatre. 

An average 200 individual music lessons take place per week and the girls achieve excellent results in instrumental examinations at every Grade. Music clubs are aimed at all standards: orchestra, junior and senior bands, junior and chamber choirs, junior and senior flute groups, and junior and senior string groups. House Music competitions and invites to community events across the year, including Chipping Norton Music Festival, allow girls to enjoy a wealth of performing opportunities at a high standard. 

Sport and PE is integral to life at Tudor Hall. Core sports are hockey, netball, lacrosse, tennis, athletics, swimming and cricket, with opportunities to participate in dance and gymnastics. Sports facilities on site include: 46 acres of grounds, heated swimming pool, floodlit astroturf, floodlit hard tennis and netball courts, Sports Hall, lacrosse pitches, state-of-the-art fitness suite, hall for dance. The Tudor Hall equestrian team is well established and takes part in a number of high-profile competitions.   

Beyond Tudor

Tudor Hall students achieve outstanding A Level results with girls achieving excellent outcomes and going on to a range of top universities in the UK and overseas, including St Andrews, Bath, Durham, Edinburgh, Exeter, Newcastle and York. In 2024 destinations included Oxford University (Classics), and the prestigious (and fiendishly difficult to get into) Jimmy Choo Academy.

Our alumni network is incredibly strong and widespread: it is no exaggeration to say that thousands of Old Tudorians (OTs) are actively engaged with the school, attending regular events, reunions and providing invaluable careers support in a multitude of ways.