Our family of six schools offers a ‘Diamond model’ with co-educational and single-sex tuition for boys and girls, providing the best of both worlds in one family of Schools. At the Pre-Prep and Prep, boys and girls are taught together until the age of 11, separately from 11–16 (Berkhamsted Boys and Berkhamsted Girls), enabling them to flourish academically, with numerous co-educational activities, trips and events, before coming back together again in a joint Sixth. Heatherton provides a co-educational nursery class (3 2–4) and single-sex education for girls from age 4 to 11. Please also refer to separate entries for Berkhamsted Prep, Berkhamsted Pre-Prep and Heatherton. We are a family of Schools with a long history and proud traditions, yet we have a firm eye on current best educational practice and use of leading-edge teaching technologies. We are proud of our excellent academic standards without being academic hothouses. The Berkhamsted family of Schools have all the advantages of access to large-school resources with a small school sense of community and individual care. There is a range of options to make life easier for time-pressured families: a day nursery that operates 50 weeks a year from 07.30 to 18.00, wrap-around care and extended hours, the choice of flexible, weekly or full boarding, coach routes and a multi-activity holiday camp and other courses on offer during the main school holidays through Camp Beaumont: Berkhamsted.
There are 462 pupils in the flourishing co-educational Sixth, 544 boys at the Boys School (Castle) and 429 girls at the Girls School (Kings). Between the ages of 11 and 16, boys and girls are taught in single-sex groups.
Aims. At Berkhamsted we believe that excellent academic results do not have to be won at the expense of the wider attributes of a good education. All pupils are supported and encouraged to reach their full potential, with appropriate teaching environments for each age group and a structure that offers the best of both co-educational and single-sex tuition. In addition to the development of the intellect, social, sporting and cultural activities play an important part within the framework of a disciplined and creative community based on Christian values. It is important that pupils come to value both the individual and the Community through school life. The School seeks to encourage spiritual and moral values and a sense of responsibility as an essential part of the pursuit of excellence.
Location. The School stands in the heart of Berkhamsted, a historic and thriving town only 30 miles from London. It enjoys excellent communications to London, the airports, to the Midlands and the communities of Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire.
Facilities. The original site has at its heart a magnificent Tudor Hall used as a schoolroom for over 300 years. With separate Pre-Prep and Prep sites, and two Senior School campuses, the School is well equipped with a range of modern facilities. Recreational and sports facilities include extensive playing fields, Eton Fives courts, Squash courts, Tennis courts, Gymnasium, Drama studio, Music school and Art studios. Additional facilities include a Sports Hall and 25m indoor swimming pool and a state-of-the-art Design Centre as well as a modern 500-seat theatre. More recent additions include a new sports pavilion and changing rooms at the School’s Chesham Road Playing Fields and upgrades to the Football and Rugby pitches, as well as a high ropes course at the Haresfoot site and a brand new, floodlit 4G AstroTurf sports pitch at Kings.
Curriculum. The Senior School curriculum includes: English, English Literature, Mathematics, Biology, Chemistry, Physics, History, Geography, Religious Studies, French/Spanish, Latin, Music, Art, Physical Education and Design and Technology. Up to eleven subjects may be taken for GCSE. In the Sixth Form, courses are offered in 27 subjects and all students benefit from an Enrichment Programme with the option to complete an Extended Project Qualification. Pupils are prepared for university entrance, including Oxbridge. Careers guidance and personal tutoring are offered throughout.
Day and Boarding. Pupils may be full boarders, weekly boarders, flexible boarders or day pupils. Boarders are a mixture of overseas and British students. The two Boarding houses, accommodating boys and girls separately, are well-equipped and within a few minutes’ walk of the main campus. There are up to 60 94 boarding places. Day pupils come from both Berkhamsted and the surrounding areas of Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Bedfordshire.
Pastoral Care and Discipline. The School Houses are the main social and pastoral unit; the Head of House and House Tutors. They provide continuity of support and advice and monitor each individual pupil’s progress. The aim is to encourage self-discipline so that pupils work with a sense of responsibility and trust. Pupils are expected to be considerate, courteous, honest, and industrious.
Pupil wellbeing is of vital importance at Berkhamsted. The Deputy Heads, alongside the Pupil Wellbeing and Personal Development team, support teaching staff across the whole school in implementing a proactive strategy that focuses primarily on keeping pupils well and looking for early signs of potential issues. There is a Medical Centre with qualified staff. The School Medical Officer has special responsibility for boarders. Qualified Counsellors are available to all pupils for confidential counselling. The School also has a full-time Chaplain.
Sport and Leisure Activities. Major sports for Girls are Lacrosse, Netball and Tennis and for Boys, Rugby, Football and Cricket. A number of other sports are also pursued including Athletics, Badminton, Cross-Country, Equestrian, Eton Fives, Golf, Hockey, Judo, Rowing, Shooting, Squash and Swimming. Team games are encouraged and pupils are selected for regional and national squads.
There is a flourishing Duke of Edinburgh’s Award at all levels. The CCF, community service, work experience and Young Enterprise are offered. The format of the school day allows pupils in the Senior School to choose from a wide range of clubs, societies or courses, which are attended during school hours. Regular school theatre productions, orchestral and choral concerts achieve high standards of performance.
Enrichment. At Berkhamsted, we recognise that intelligence takes many forms and we encourage all our pupils to pursue their talents and interests through the many enrichment opportunities on offer for each age group. These opportunities are available for academic subjects and co-curricular topics. For the more academically adventurous, there are a number of avenues through which to fulfil their potential at each school.
Careers. A team of advisors, internal and external, is directed by the Head of Careers who also arranges Careers Lunches, Applying to Higher Education training sessions, Medicine and Law Careers Taster Days and an annual Higher Education, Careers, Apprenticeships and GAP Year Fair. Heads of House oversee pupils’ applications for higher education, together with parents and Careers advisors. The great majority of leavers proceeds to university and higher education.
Entry. Entry to the Pre-Prep School is from the age of 3, entry to the Prep School from 7, and entry to the Senior Boys & Girls from 11. Children are assessed for entry to the Nursery year group during a meeting with the Headteacher and attend an informal assessment day for Year 2 entry. The School’s Entrance Assessments and an interview are required for entry to the Prep and Senior Boys and Girls.
In order to gain admission to Berkhamsted Sixth, external students require 43 points across their best 8 GCSE subjects with a minimum requirement of a Grade 6 in the subjects they wish to study. For external students joining Berkhamsted Sixth, There are also specific admission requirements relating to certain courses, although competition amongst external candidates means that it is the norm that top grades are required.
Fees per term (2024-2025). Day Pupils (Reception–Sixth Form) £4,334-£9,938; Boarding Pupils £16,391 (full), £13,715 (weekly). Please refer to our website for the full fee breakdown, including information on VAT.
Charitable status. Berkhamsted Schools Group is a Registered Charity, number 310630.