Ardingly College Senior

Ardingly College is an award-winning independent co-educational school offering an outstanding all-through education to over 1,000 children in a beautiful part of West Sussex, with excellent transport links locally and across the South-East.

The Prep School has over 220 pupils from Reception to Year 6, as well as a thriving Nursery. Reception to Year 3 pupils are based in the Farmhouse and Years 4 to 6 on the main school site in School House. The Prep School lives and breathes the values of Shaping My World, through which primary-aged children learn to explore the world around them in ways that are adventurous, curious, generous, and ingenious.

The Senior School has around 850 students aged from 11 to 18, more than 300 of whom are boarders. The curriculum is designed to be broad and stimulating, with over 25 subjects offered and a choice of A Level, IB Diploma or BTEC courses in the Sixth Form.

The wellbeing and welfare of our students is paramount, with a strong emphasis on pastoral support provided through House staff, the Health & Wellbeing Centre and additional pastoral support such as the Chaplain, DSL, and Mental Health Lead. Ardingly prides itself on every student being known and valued as an individual and achieves this through small pastoral groups (with a maximum of 10 students in each Tutor Group from Year 9 upwards) and a strong House system, which provides every pupil – whether day or boarding – with their ‘home from home’ at the College. In recognition of this outstanding pastoral care, during the most recent ISI inspection, the College was judged to meet all standards and have a “significant strength” in boarding, which is the highest accolade available under the new Inspection Regime.

Academic results are high. The College has been in the top 10 schools in the UK for nine out of the past 10 years and is regularly in the Top 50 schools in the UK for A Levels, according to The Sunday Times. While we are proud of these excellent academic results, however, Ardingly places equal value on ensuring our students are equipped with the mindset, personal qualities and skills they will need to succeed in a rapidly changing world beyond school. This is at the heart of our World Ready approach, and our innovative Enterprise & Employability programme recently won two national awards: The Week’s ‘Best Preparation for Life’ and the Independent School of the Year ‘Best for Student Careers’.

The College offers an outstanding range of more than 150 co-curricular activities and has a proud tradition of participation and achievement. In sports, pupils compete successfully at local, regional, and national levels in the main sports of football, hockey, swimming, netball, cricket, and athletics. Music, Art, and Drama are particularly strong, with exciting events such as concerts at school and in professional music venues, devised and scripted drama performances, and exhibitions both by talented art scholars and give-it-a-go artists among the pupil and staff population.

Partnership is integral to the College ethos. Within school, this applies to the partnership between teachers and operations staff to maintain excellent standards and quality of provision across the campus. Beyond the school gates, we work with a range of local primary schools, as well as supporting the local community through voluntary action and working with schools abroad in Africa and Asia. The College operates a bursary programme, which currently supports over 30 pupils with substantial or full fee remission.

Campus facilities are excellent, with considerable recent investment in the College campus bringing it up to the highest school standards. Recent additions include a new STEM faculty and upgrades to classrooms, as well as major refurbishments of boarding and day houses. A new café and dance studio were opened in 2021 and new Lower School and a third day boys’ house in 2022.