Age range. Co-educational 3–16.
Number in school. 360.
Fees per term (2024-2025). Autumn term: £4,245–£6,432 exc VAT.
Gad’s Hill School is set in the expansive and beautiful grounds of the former family home of Charles Dickens in the historic village of Higham, just on the outskirts of Rochester, Kent.
Our wonderfully happy and vibrant independent day school educates girls and boys aged 3–16 years in the Lower and Upper School. The site boasts modern facilities, courtesy of its main building, which include a theatre, refectory and sports hall, while also retaining the famous literary heritage of the 18th century Grade I Listed Gad’s Hill Place, where Dickens lived for the final 14 years of his life, and many of the traditions established since its foundation as a school in 1924.
Pupils are taught in classes of no more than 20 and benefit from a friendly and purposeful learning environment where teachers know and cater for each child as an individual across an exciting and engaging curriculum. This allows teachers greater knowledge of pupils’ individual strengths, from Nursery to GCSE. The curriculum values the creative and practical alongside the more traditionally academic: an innovative Combined Cadet Force programme, for example, results in qualifications including Institute of Leadership and Management, BTEC, Duke of Edinburgh and First Aid awards delivering vital life skills. Indeed, the School’s ethos is that the development of self-confidence, resilience, leadership and teamwork is essential for successful adulthood.
We are different from other schools and are rightly proud of this. We stand for traditional values, self-respect, self-discipline and have a strong sense of friendship, family and community spirit. Through the school’s curriculum, children learn how to look after their own wellbeing and develop compassion for the wider world. Our School is a caring and compassionate environment offering outstanding pastoral care which encourages the children to give their best.
Enrichment activities throughout Gad’s Hill include London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) courses, rock climbing, karate, air rifle, dance, singing and instrumental music lessons. Our younger pupils make wonderful use of the on-site Forest School, a child-centred, hands-on learning experience in a beautiful natural setting.
Gad’s Hill provides bus services throughout the surrounding area and to South East London and offers wraparound care from 7.30 am–6.00 pm to support working parents of Lower School-aged children.