Ages 
A mock-up Penguin book sleeve in the foyer sums it up: ‘Papplewick School: snakes, ripsticks and other great adventures for boys’. Many of those adventures happen within the classroom, where boys given the freedom to think, challenge and explore with funny, passionate teachers. It’s horses for courses, though, and don’t expect glamour: a school with its knees out all winter and a big, crooked smile.
Rarely do we spend our drive home mulling over a relocation to Berkshire (lovely though it is). Indeed, it’s our policy not to fall in love: professional distance, don’t gush. Papplewick tested our mettle and seems to have the same effect elsewhere: ‘I can’t get him out of the place!’ said one mum, whose son had announced midway through a trip to the circus, ‘This is fun, but I wish I was at school.’ The truth? At a school like this one, we don’t blame him.
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Overview & data
- Pupil numbers
- 228 ·
- Offers boarding
- Yes ·
- Religion
- None
- Fees
- Day £23,610 - £33,060; Boarding £43,050 pa
- Local authority
- Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead Council
Headteacher
Headmaster
Mr TW Bunbury
Since 2004, Mr Tom Bunbury. BA (Hons) in law from Durham, criminal solicitor for four years, PGCE (Cambridge) and a year at Woodcote House. Joined Papplewick in 1993.
Absolutely adored by the school community. ‘Funny’, ‘sincere’, ‘caring’, say
Entrance
No academic selection. Mr Bunbury spends a couple of hours with each boy, looking for kindness and character: ‘I choose the nicest boys I can and surround them with other nice boys; we couldn’t run the school with so much freedom if they weren’t so
- Open days
- November and February
Exit
Almost everyone to boarding. Greatest number go to Eton, Harrow, Winchester, St Edward’s Oxford and Radley. ‘Lots of you seem to be scholars – is it difficult for those that aren’t?’ we asked the boys: ‘Not really – so many people are scholars that
Latest results
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Teaching & learning
Learning support & SEN
Boarders
Compulsory boarding from summer of year 6. Many flexi-board earlier. Evening activities compulsory throughout winter and spring but optional in the summer, when boys would rather run around building dens or playing cricket into the evening. No
Mobile phone policy
A clear mobile phone policy is a really important part of modern schooling. This school has provided us with their policy.
Mobile phone policy
Provided by the school and not part of our review Boarders are allowed non-internet connected phones (bricks!) but only for half an hour or so in the dorms.
Pupils
Money matters
Scholarships up to 15 per cent ‘for a really great all-rounder’; means-tested bursaries add a further 35 per cent. Work with Springboard; Forces bursaries too.
- Fee information
- Day £23,610 - £33,060; Boarding £43,050 pa
Our view
‘Set the bar high and they really go for it,’ says Mr Bunbury. Indeed, lessons are go go go, teachers and pupils firing on all cylinders as they try out new ideas and learn from each other. Exceptionally sparky – constant back and forth, whether in
The last word
A mock-up Penguin book sleeve in the foyer sums it up: ‘Papplewick School: snakes, ripsticks and other great adventures for boys’. Many of those adventures happen within the classroom, where boys given the freedom to think, challenge and explore with
