Kingswood School: The bedrock of success

08 Jan 2019

Kingswood School is an independent, co-educational day and boarding school located on a magnificent 200-acre site in Lansdown, Bath. It offers an inclusive community and a holistic education to children, all set against the backdrop of one of the UK’s most beautiful cities.

Kingswood boasts a gorgeous and accessible location. The city of Bath is set in England’s beautiful rolling countryside, known for its natural hot springs and 18th-century Georgian architecture.

Only a 90-minute train journey outside London, with Bristol a mere 10 minutes away, the school is not far from both London and Bristol airports. The school itself also provides transport options to local day pupils.

The school is renowned for balancing academic rigour, strength in the arts and sport, as well as outstanding pastoral care with a forward-thinking approach. In both the Prep School and the Senior School, pupils are encouraged to develop self-belief and high levels of personal motivation.

This is an environment in which pupils achieve success and are constantly encouraged to progress beyond their natural potential. The consistently excellent academic results at Kingswood undoubtedly speak for themselves.

Kingswood School, Bath

As a result, the school regularly lands in the Top 10 co-educational boarding and day schools in the country. The majority of students go on to attend university. On average, over 80 percent of Kingswood students achieve the A*-B grades required for entry to Russell Group universities year after year.

Outside of the classroom, Kingswood is widely recognised as one of the top schools for sport in the region, with learners competing at both national and international levels. With strong links to professional clubs such as Bath Rugby and Team Bath at Bath University, the school helps talented sportsmen and women to fulfil their athletic capabilities.

Kingswood wholeheartedly believes in sport for all, encouraging all students to enjoy exercise and team sports. Many pupils also participate in the Duke of Edinburgh Award and other outdoor pursuits.

In fact, there are over 100 co-curricular activities offered here each term, helping students discover new talents, improve existing skills, work as part of a team and find activities and hobbies they enjoy. Often, these pastimes thrive long past school and become lifelong interests.

Kingswood School, Bath

Academic societies, departmental trips and activities complement the curriculum and help students demonstrate a passion for their subjects – invaluable for students completing university applications.

The school provides a broad range of opportunities like the annual Bath Schools Model United Nations conference, jewellery club, Young Enterprise, street dance, badminton, climbing, cookery club, Simpsons auf Deutsch, riding, scriptwriting club, Kingswood Radio, beginner’s guitar, computer programming, football training and Aikido.

Then there’s the brand-new nursery with wraparound care and boarding from the age of 7. High Vinnalls is the Kingswood Prep boarding house which looks after a maximum of 20 boarders. The living option makes sense when you consider that pastoral care is central to the Kingswood ethos.

There is nowhere more homely, relaxed and happy than High Vinnalls; a home-away-from-home run by House Parents Andrew and Alison Ward, who have two boys of their own attending the Senior School. They offer support with homework, help with reading, reminders about music practice and all the other things that mums and dads should do!

In the senior school, six of the seven houses are boarding houses, all located on campus. They house full boarders from the UK and abroad, also providing flexi-boarding options. Boarders have the chance to pursue a host of activities such as early morning yoga, swimming, tennis and cricket (in season), as well as evening floodlit hockey or tennis.

Kingswood School, Bath

At the weekend, the school organises trips to theme parks, including Harry Potter World, Longleat, Cotswold Water Park, Air Hop Trampoline Park, Swindon Oasis, Hidden Woods and activities such as bowling and shopping. There are always in-house activities to do and the Music and Art blocks are open for anyone who wants a bit of extra practice.

But don’t just take our word for it – Kingswood was rated ‘excellent’ in every category in its latest Independent School Inspectorate (ISI) inspection. Categories strongly praised included teaching and learning, pastoral care, extra-curricular provision, boarding and the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils.

At Kingswood, every aspect of a child’s education is wholly catered for, a template which has meant great success for the school and its pupils. Graduates from Kingswood have had success achieving places at world-renowned higher education destinations such as the University of Oxford, UCL and the University of Edinburgh.

Kingswood offers unbelievable opportunities for children to grow and develop, through academic and sporting excellence, pursuit of the arts and co-curricular activities – not to mention amazing school trips and projects underpinned by the highest quality pastoral care.

Above all, Kingswood encourages learners to develop into a well-rounded, knowledgeable, happy and capable young people, ready to tackle the challenges of secondary education and beyond.

Click here to find out more about Kingswood School Bath