King's School Rochester A GSG School
- King's School Rochester
Satis House
Boley Hill
Rochester
Kent
ME1 1TE - Head: Ben Charles
- T 01634 888590
- F 01634 888505
- E [email protected]
- W www.kings-rochester.co.uk/
- A mainstream independent school for pupils aged from 13 to 18 with a linked junior school
- Read about the best schools in West Kent and East Kent
- Boarding: Yes
- Local authority: Medway
- Pupils: 294; sixth formers: 106
- Religion: Church of England
- Fees: Day £23,055 - £23,295; Boarding £38,340 - £38,580 pa
- Open days: September and May
- Review: View The Good Schools Guide Review
- Ofsted report: View the Ofsted report
- ISI report: View the ISI report
- Linked schools: King’s Rochester Prep and Pre-Prep
What The Good Schools Guide says..
Exceptionally warm and caring – the kind of school where teachers know your child even if they don’t teach them. There are 26 grammars within a 25-mile radius so the last thing anyone around here needs is more of the same. Instead, King’s raison d’être is catering for a wide range of academic ability from average to Oxbridge, though a few parents felt ‘it’s probably not the first choice for the super academic’ and head says he’d ‘like to see more…
What the school says...
The overwhelming characteristic of King’s School Rochester is its warmth and friendliness, nestled in the beautiful cathedral precinct of historic Rochester.
As the Good Schools Guide says: “A tangible sense of community where everyone knows each other well...”
Founded in 604AD, King’s is the second oldest school in the UK and the world’s oldest Cathedral Choir School. It has evolved into an outstanding 21st century day and boarding co-educational School for ages 3 to 18. Located in North Kent, just 38 minutes by train from London, it benefits from high-speed services from St Pancras and direct services from Victoria and Charing Cross.
King’s School Rochester has a strong reputation for maximising the potential of pupils. A wide ranging curriculum, and extensive co-curricular programme, allow greater choice for GCSE and A level options.
In 2018, pupils achieved outstanding results at GCSE and a fifth of students achieved straight A*/A grades at A Level, securing their places at top universities, and scholarships to prestigious colleges.
King’s prides itself on knowing all students very well: pastoral care and links with parents and guardians have been graded as ‘Excellent’ in all inspections and it is this strength that makes King’s such a distinctive place to be.
We believe that independent thinking and a love of learning are just as important as great grades. To achieve this, we keep our class sizes small so that teachers know their pupils as individuals and can help each of them flourish. We encourage pupils to establish interests that stay with them for life, as well as learning the skills that will make them stand out in a fast-changing world.
Music is a huge strength and we are privileged to use Rochester Cathedral as our chapel. We hold seasonal concerts throughout the year in the Nave and the Cathedral Choristers are educated in our Preparatory School. Music Scholars go on to leading international conservatoires. Recent pupil success includes the BBC Young Chorister of the Year and an Oliver Award, and our brass section was commended by Julian Lloyd Webber.
Under the refurbished Vines Church is our Drama studio, equipped with digital sound and lighting. We are a proud RSC Associate School and our pupils have staged productions of Julius Caesar at the Marlowe Theatre and Macbeth at Dover Castle. King’s has a strong reputation for exceptional drama performances and recent productions of “Into the Woods” and “Les Miserable” have been in comparison with the West End.
Our coaches and many of our pupils play at County, National and International level. The King’s Rochester Sports Centre provides pupils with extensive facilities to train, in addition to playing fields, a heated indoor swimming pool and boat house, while the Paddock is regarded as one of the finest cricket fields in the country. All pupils play for a variety of games team and fixtures are held throughout the year.
The boarding community at King’s reflects the personal approach of the school. Boarding starts from age 11 and we have 65 beds across our two Boarding Houses, “St Margaret’s House” for girls and “School House” for boys. The small boarding community ensures a real family feel to both Houses which are comprised of both British and international students.
King’s School Rochester is truly a community which enables individuals to flourish. ...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.
Other features
All-through school (for example 3-18 years). - An all-through school covers junior and senior education. It may start at 3 or 4, or later, and continue through to 16 or 18. Some all-through schools set exams at 11 or 13 that pupils must pass to move on.
Choir school - substantial scholarships and bursaries usually available for choristers.
Sports
Rowing
Fencing
Shooting
What The Good Schools Guide says
Principal of King's School Rochester and Headmaster of the Senior School
Since 2019, Ben Charles BA PGCE, previously second master (senior deputy head) at Portsmouth Grammar. He has been director of music at Chigwell and Millfield, and joined Portsmouth as deputy head in 2009. Music degree from Exeter and PGCE in music from Durham. As an experienced choral conductor and singer joining this most traditional of schools, you’d think his first public solo in the cathedral to parents and pupils would be suitably highbrow but ‘in fact, he burst into song with Reach for the Stars accompanied by a pupil on the banjo – it was epic,’ a pupil told us. Worked a treat at breaking the ice and making his mark and, given his quite reserved persona, must have knocked his audience for six....
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Overall school performance (for comparison or review only)
Results by exam and subject
Subject results
Entry/Exit
Special Education Needs
King's School is co-educational with selective entry and a wide range of ability. It is the School's avowed aim to satisfy the educational needs of all the children on the roll, regardless of ability. As part of this responsibility, we seek to identify children with special needs and to make suitable provision for them. 09-09
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 | |
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 |
---|---|---|---|---|
King’s Rochester Prep and Pre-Prep | 2023 | Majority to the senior school |
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