Benenden School, Cranbrook | The Good Schools Guide

Benenden School
Cranbrook Road
Benenden
Cranbrook
Kent
TN17 4AA
Head: Mrs S A Price
T 01580 240592
F 01580 240280
E registry@benenden.kent.sch.uk
W www.benenden.kent.sch.uk
An independent school for girls aged from 11 to 18.
Boarding: Yes
Local authority: Kent
Pupils: 550 (all full boarders); sixth formers: 188
Religion: Church of England
Fees: Boarding £35,700 pa
Open days: Three per term on Saturday mornings, plus two per term weekdays for 11+ only, contact Registry for dates.
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..

No real behaviour issues - this is a happy ship, and the care and support given to the girls were praised everywhere. 'It was a big move to the UK for my daughter,' wrote an overseas mother, 'and the house staff looked after her as if she were their own, giving cuddles and love whenever she needed it. They still do so now.' No danger of gender bias in this forward-looking school: DT is one of the most popular options, taught in an excellently-resourced technology block which even sports its own ICT suite. The school has introduced a Professional Skills Programme for the sixth form, which enables girls to…

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What the school says...

Founded in 1923, Benenden is a fully boarding school for 538 girls aged 11-18. Set in a beautiful rural position, the school has 224 acreas of parkland. There are 179 students in the Sixth Form. The average class size is 16, with a teacher pupil ratio of 1:7. Usual ages for entry are 11, 13 and 16. Entry is through Common Entrance or Benenden's own examination. Academic, Music, Art, Sport, Drama and Design and Technology scholarships are available. All girls are prepared for GCSE, AS Level, A Level and university.

Ofsted inspectors awarded Benenden Outstanding in every category. According to the Lead Inspector, the questionnaire reply rate from Benenden parents was exceptionally high and positive. The inspectors gave very warm praise to the students too. ...Read more

What the parents say...

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What The Good Schools Guide says

Headmistress

Since January 2014, Mrs Samantha Price, 40s. Attended Malvern Girls' College (now Malvern St James), so knows about life at a girls' boarding school from both sides. Read history of art at Edinburgh University and began her career in the Tate Britain marketing department, but soon felt office-bound and switched to teaching. Worked at Reading Blue Coat School, King's Canterbury and Hereford Cathedral School before taking up her first headship at Godolphin School in Salisbury, from whence she was headhunted for her present post. Leaving was a very difficult decision, she says, but she has no regrets: 'Benenden is my dream school, and full boarding is in my DNA.' Married to Iori, an army chaplain, with a young daughter and son.

A passionate devotee of girls' education, and a powerhouse of...

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Special Education Needs

The School employs its own SEN co-ordinator; she and her team of full time and visiting tutors offer study skills support lessons for students with special needs and provide a framework of support and identification. We have a visiting Educational Psychologist who, from time to time, diagnoses mild language disorders or mild working memory problems, which may not fall into specific disorder categories. While the School may provide monitoring for those with ADHD, Hearing and Visual problems, such cases are rare. 10-09

Condition	Provision for in school
ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder
Aspergers
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
HI - Hearing Impairment
Hospital School
Mental health
MLD - Moderate Learning Difficulty
MSI - Multi-Sensory Impairment
Natspec Specialist Colleges
Not Applicable
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

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