Epsom College A GSG School
- Epsom College
College Road
Epsom
Surrey
KT17 4JQ - Head: Sir Anthony Seldon (interim)
- T 01372 821234
- F 01372 821237
- E [email protected]
- W www.epsomcollege.org.uk
- Epsom College is an English independent day and boarding school that educates over 850 boys and girls aged 11 to 18. It is located on the slopes of Epsom Downs in Surrey and was founded in 1853 as a boys’ only school to provide support for poor members of the medical profession.
- Boarding: Yes
- Local authority: Surrey
- Pupils: 1,100; sixth formers: 320
- Religion: Church of England
- Fees: Day £23,178 - £30,909; Boarding £41,403 - £46,533 pa
- Open days: September, March, June
- Review: View The Good Schools Guide Review
- Ofsted report: View the Ofsted report
- ISI report: View the ISI report
What The Good Schools Guide says..
Selective to a degree, but with breadth of intake, staff have to pass muster in proving they can teach a range of abilities, ‘which ultimately means having a range of strategies at their fingertips to capture all hearts and minds, not just teaching to the top end,’ said previous head. The word ‘unbeaten’ features widely but never with expectancy or smugness – in fact, school wears success surprisingly lightly: numerous impressive sports cups casually on display. ‘Nobody is on the bench at Epsom’...
What the school says...
Epsom College is consistently among the UK’s leading schools, based on its performance in public exams. In its last set of league tables, the Department for Education places us in the top 1% nationally.
However, an Epsom education has always been about far more than results alone. We pride ourselves on offering all our pupils every possible opportunity to develop passions and interests that extend far beyond the classroom and last long after they have left school.
Benevolence & Excellence
The College was founded in 1855 by Dr John Propert. His vision was to build a College that would house, feed, clothe and educate the widows and orphans of medical men – a treacherous profession at the time. His guiding principles, which in turn became the founding principles for the College, were ‘benevolence and excellence’. To this day these words guide and inform everything we do. Propert’s founding ideals have become our core values.
Time, Space & Tradition
Following a traditional boarding school model, the school day extends until 6pm and Years 9 and above have lessons and fixtures on Saturday. This provides our girls and boys with the gift of time. The longer days allow all activities, lessons, sports, service in the community and academic extension to take place within the timetable, on our grounds.
The structure and routine of our days and weeks are guided by the philosophy that children learn as much from each other as from adults, and as much outside the classroom as inside. It also means that we can deliver on all the initiatives and values outlined below.
Supportive, Ambitious & Dialogic
We support all our pupils to become the best version of themselves – we extend and enrich, we support and intervene, we encourage independent thinking, and we welcome debate and dialogue.
The lifeblood of Epsom is conversation. Not just between pupils and their teachers but among themselves. Over lunch, on the way to the sports pitch, before lights-out, conversation permeates every aspect of Epsom life.
We view our pupils as young people. Ready to emerge from Epsom able to talk to just about anyone, in just about any situation, about just about anything. We believe in a great education which prepares our pupils for life beyond the school gates, this isn’t just a luxury – it’s essential.
Diverse, Equal & Inclusive
Our pupils represent a multitude of experiences. Epsom is a melting pot of nationalities, ethnicities, religions, families, sexual orientations and social and economic backgrounds. Individuals from myriad backgrounds, embarking on a collective educational endeavour.
Refugees, children in care and pupils on full bursaries learn alongside those lucky enough to be born into greater privilege. Ukrainians board with Liverpudlians. Kosovans dine with classmates from Kingston. Chinese students enjoy movie nights with friends from Cheam.
This diversity of attitudes and experience, backgrounds and beliefs, means that our pupils develop an interest in and understanding of others. They embrace difference, and revel in the new. ...Read more
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Curricula
Cambridge Pre-U - an alternative to A levels, with all exams at the end of the two-year course.
Sports
Rowing
Fencing
Shooting
What The Good Schools Guide says
Head
Since March 2023, Sir Anthony Seldon. Educated at Tonbridge and Worcester College, Oxford (PPE), followed by a PhD in economics from LSE and later an MBA from what is now the University of Westminster. Historian, author, journalist, visionary, educational alchemist. Cut his teeth at Whitgift teaching politics before stints at alma mater Tonbridge and St Dunstan’s College. First headship was at Brighton College. Best known as transformative 13th master of Wellington College, where he pioneered wellbeing and mindfulness as the basis for a fruitful education. From there, undertook a stint as chancellor of the University of Buckingham. Stepped out of the education scene in 2020 to concentrate on expanding his bibliography of some 45 books (most recently the latest in his series of co-written analytical biographies of British prime ministers, Johnson at 10). Agreed...
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Overall school performance (for comparison or review only)
Results by exam and subject
Subject results
Entry/Exit
Special Education Needs
The philosophy of the Learning Support Department is that all pupils can improve and achieve given the appropriate support for their special educational need, (SEN). At Epsom College, qualified and experienced specialist teachers are able to provide for a wide variety of mild SEN: dyslexia, dyspraxia, Asperger’s Syndrome, AD(H)D and other behavioural, social and emotional needs. On average, 8% of pupils have individual support. Within the Learning Support Department is an English as an Additional Language, (EAL), section. On average, 9% of pupils have EAL. Many of these pupils take specialist EAL lessons instead of a Modern Language. Learning Support staff provide additional support for EAL pupils in English Literature. Private tuition is also available. The generic provision is one of personalised learning. Teaching programmes are customised and take various forms: literacy or spelling programmes for pupils with dyslexia; handwriting, touch-typing and organisational support for those with dyspraxia; support programmes for pupils with AD(H)D; exam and revision technique; study skills and time management. The SEN provision often includes a counselling element. The aim is to produce confident independent learners who can invoke learned strategies and techniques automatically across the curriculum. Integral to the practice is close liaison with parents, Housemasters/mistresses, tutors, subject staff, the Medical Centre and other agencies. The Department maintains an SEN Register of all pupils with special educational needs. This list includes a description of the need, and strategies for supporting the pupil in class. LS staff are able to provide more detailed advice to staff and parents, as required. Literacy screening of all pupils on entry ensures that no difficulty goes undetected. Appropriate action is taken if there is a cause for concern. All LS staff are qualified to administer specialist SpLD assessments to tertiary level. This includes testing for access arrangements for public examinations. Occasionally, a recommendation is made for more specialist input, for example, from an educational psychologist. Specialist intervention and tuition consists of 30 weekly lessons of 45 minutes. These lessons are always arranged in consultation with the pupil and are outside the academic timetable and extra-curricular activities. Other programmes of support are offered according to need and can last from 6 to 12 weeks. The cost of these extra lessons is billed at the end of term.
Condition | Provision for in school |
---|---|
ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder | Y |
Aspergers | Y |
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorders | Y |
CReSTeD registered for Dyslexia | |
Dyscalculia | |
Dysgraphia | |
Dyslexia | |
Dyspraxia | |
English as an additional language (EAL) | |
Genetic | |
Has an entry in the Autism Services Directory | |
Has SEN unit or class | Y |
HI - Hearing Impairment | |
Hospital School | |
Mental health | |
MLD - Moderate Learning Difficulty | |
MSI - Multi-Sensory Impairment | |
Natspec Specialist Colleges | |
OTH - Other Difficulty/Disability | |
Other SpLD - Specific Learning Difficulty | |
PD - Physical Disability | |
PMLD - Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulty | |
SEMH - Social, Emotional and Mental Health | |
SLCN - Speech, Language and Communication | |
SLD - Severe Learning Difficulty | |
Special facilities for Visually Impaired | |
SpLD - Specific Learning Difficulty | |
VI - Visual Impairment |
Who came from where
School | Year | Places | Scholarships | Description |
---|---|---|---|---|
Danes Hill School | 2023 | 11 | 1 | Scholarships: 1 Academic |
Durston House School | 2023 | 1 | ||
Eaton House the Manor Boys’ School | 2023 | 1 | ||
Feltonfleet School | 2023 | 6 | 3 | 1 Academic, 1 Drama, 1 Sport |
Finton House School | 2023 | 6 | ||
Holy Cross Preparatory School | 2023 | 2 | 2 | |
Hurlingham School | 2023 | 3 | 2 | Scholarships: 2 Sports |
King's House School | 2023 | 7 | ||
Parkside School | 2023 | 3 | ||
Prospect House School | 2023 | 1 | ||
Rowan Preparatory School | 2023 | 1 | 1 | Drama Exhibition |
Shrewsbury House School | 2023 | 6 | 1 | Academic Scholarship |
St George’s School Windsor Castle | 2023 | 1 | ||
St Michael's Preparatory School | 2023 | 1 | ||
The Study Preparatory School | 2023 | 2 | ||
Thomas's Fulham | 2023 | 1 | ||
Tower House Preparatory School | 2023 | 1 |
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