Ipswich School: Our boarding experience

Our boarding experience

A boutique boarding experience in an outstanding British co-educational independent school

Our boarding houses are situated in historic grounds in the centre of Ipswich.

Ipswich School is located close to the stunning Suffolk coast and neighbours the historic Christchurch Park with rolling lawns, wooded areas, and an arboretum.

The school is within an hour of London Stansted Airport, London and Cambridge.

We offer both full boarding and weekly boarding. Weekly boarding is an excellent option for pupils living some distance away, and a particularly popular option for Sixth Formers.

Ipswich School is the top independent school in Suffolk and is in the East Anglian top ten for academic achievement (Sunday Times Parent Power).

In 2022, the Senior School achieved ‘double Excellent’ rankings by the ISI inspectors - the highest possible gradeand was also ‘Commended’ (second place) as co-educational independent school of the year in the national Independent School of the Year awards.

Founded earlier than 1399 Ipswich School has a long-standing educational heritage and is the only school to be mentioned in one of Shakespeare’s plays.

Our students achieve excellent examination results and progress to top Russell group universities, including Oxbridge.

Most importantly, our students are happy – reaching their potential, supported by outstanding pastoral care and part of our friendly community.

Westwood is a Victorian mansion set in wooded grounds, just a five minute walk from the main school site.

Anglesea Heights is also within minutes of the main school. This is a modern attractive space, with ensuite facilities.

Both have a welcoming atmosphere, and there is a real community in the boarding houses.

The majority of our boarding students come from overseas but we also have a small number of UK boarding students and overall the significant majority of students are British pupils.

Ipswich School has excellent provision for boarders who have English as an additional language, and they receive a minimum of two lessons of specialist EAL tuition weekly. Sixth Form students study for IELTS with our specialist EAL teacher.

All boarders benefit from a friendly, homefrom-home experience combined with the best of British schooling.

All boarders benefit from a friendly, homefrom-home experience

Outstanding results and curriculum

Inside the classroom, our teachers enthuse pupils with their passion for their subject. Ipswich School is consistently the top independent school in terms of exam results in Suffolk.

In 2023, over 1 in 5 pupils achieved grades 9-7 in all their GCSE exams, and 63% of GCSE exams were graded 9-7. 100% of students achieved 5 or more GCSEs at grade 4 or above, including English and Maths.

Over 80% of A Level exams were graded A*-B, with over 1 in 6 graded A*, and we had a 100% pass in all 26 subjects offered at A Level. In addition, 70% of our BTEC students achieved Distinction or higher. 82% of students secured places at Russell Group or competitive universities, with destinations including Cambridge, Exeter, Bristol, Loughborough, Newcastle, Manchester and York.

Whilst academically highly successful, the school provides significant value-added and participation is high across music, drama and sport.

Tutors keep a close eye on each individual student to ensure that they balance their activities and are happy and fulfilled.

In the Sixth Form our offer expands to 26 A Level subjects including Economics, Politics and Psychology. A BTEC in Sport and Exercise Science is also available.

Co-curricular activities

Our rich and varied co-curricular activities promote physical and mental well-being and foster a sense of belonging and community spirit, as well as giving our pupils the opportunity to develop many valuable transferable skills.

We have excellent music, sport and drama provision in particular, and boarders are encouraged to join music ensembles, sports teams and take part in clubs and activities during the school day as well as at weekends.

In the Sixth Form, students take part in The Edge, which includes training as a Mental Health First Aider, a cooking programme, and presentation and public speaking skills plus a week away at an outdoors study centre in South Devon.

In the boarding house

Many of our boarding students start their Ipswich School boarding experience in Westwood House, under the careful watch of Mrs Christie, our Head of Boarding. They enjoy shared bedrooms, while our older students at Westwood have their own rooms.

Shared facilities in the boarding houses include a warm and welcoming lounge and IT suites. There are also music rooms for pupils to use, while at Westwood there is a large astroturf pitch.

Meals are provided by our gold awardwinning Catering Team, who cater for all food requirements.

The Anglesea Heights boarding house is looked after by Miss Rebecca HalfordThompson. Miss Halford-Thompson is also our School Nurse and she has two teenage daughters, which gives her an excellent background to work with our boarders.

She has been at Ipswich School since 2012, and is part of the school’s pastoral team, looking after pupils and staff when they are ill, injured or in need of emotional support. Miss Halford-Thompson says she loves getting to know pupils through the life skills lessons she teaches, covering essential topics such as consent and relationships.

Anglesea Heights is a fantastic boarding house. Staff are on hand to support our students, and make sure that we offer a good balance between working hard and relaxation.

Meet our Head of Boarding

Mrs Justine Christie taught chemistry at Ipswich School for 20 years, and started working in boarding ten years ago. She has been Head of Boarding here for the last seven years.

Mrs Christie lives at Westwood with her husband Simon (a nurse practitioner) and has two sons, Oliver and Joseph.

weekends, or visit family friends and guardians with their parents’ consent. We have a relaxed feel at weekends. Saturday mornings for example start with fun lessons in our pavilion in the garden, followed by a very popular brunch.

Students might choose to play football in the afternoon, go to the beach or visit the shops in town. We want them to have space to relax and enjoy being with their friends.

QWhat’s special about the Ipswich School boarding experience?

Having small boarding houses means that House Parents get to know their boarders well. I love the fact that I know everyone and everyone knows me.

QMrs

Christie, you live in a house with your own family and 45 children from all over the world. How do you help everyone to get along together?

We all get along as we are all sharing the same experience. We are dining together, studying and going on trips together.

I also believe in being available to talk to boarders every day, like I am for my own children. This means that any issues can be discussed in a timely way, so problems don’t arise.

We have a House Promise, which is to be respectful. I find that if we are all respectful of each other, we can get along very well.

QWhat do you like most about being a boarding house parent?

The laughter, I laugh every day. I enjoy the company of children and young adults, they have a fresh and positive perspective to life, and they are a lot of fun.

I find it a huge privilege to be part of a young person’s life and it is really rewarding, watching them grow and reach their potential.

QWhat are the qualities that make a good boarding parent?

Huge amounts of patience and the ability to listen to the voice of the boarder and not interrupt.

Experience is also important. I have been involved in the Duke of Edinburgh Award and Cadet Force, and have taken part in many residential trips.

This experience has given me great confidence in looking after children outside of the classroom.

QWhat do the boarders do at weekends?

We do not have exeats so boarders are welcome to stay with us for all their

The boarders get to recognise everyone in their House and this results in a relaxed and friendly atmosphere. We do not have large dormitories, so boarders’ rooms are relaxing and homely.

Students at Anglesea Heights often pop in to see me at Westwood for a chat and this makes me very happy.

I’m proud that this is a place they feel so comfortable in.

QWhat have been your favourite boarding moments?

I really like being in a multicultural boarding community. We really enjoy celebrating our different cultures, and we also celebrate Christmas in traditional English style with stockings, crackers , presents and silly games.

Our school history

The earliest record of Ipswich School is a bill, sadly unpaid, dating back to 1399. The school, which has Cardinal Thomas Wolsey as one of its former pupils, was established on several different sites throughout Ipswich until it moved to Henley Road.

Prince Albert laid the foundation stone for this building in 1851, and it was occupied from 1 July 1852. Acknowledging its Tudor past, the school has a tower, reminiscent of both the Dean’s Turret House of Cardinal College and Christchurch’s Tom Tower at Oxford, and a main entrance recalling Wolsey’s Gate - which can be found near Ipswich Waterfront.

Otherwise, the frontage is Elizabethan in nature, in keeping with Headmaster Rigaud’s keenness on Queen Elizabeth’s Letters Patent to the school of 1566, which re-established the school’s Royal Charter.

Among many interesting facts about Ipswich School is that it is the only school which is mentioned in any of Shakespeare’s works. The reference is in Henry VIII, Act iv, Sc. 2, in a reference to Cardinal Wolsey, and his ‘twins of learning’Ipswich School and Cardinal College in Oxford.

Ipswich School Information

Co-educational school aged 4 to 18 years. Boarding from Year 9, aged 13

Number of pupils: 1115, with 890 in the Senior School.

Number of boarders: 68

Fees per term: Full Boarding: £13,455; Weekly Boarding: £12,213

Nearest international airports: London Stansted (1 hour), London Heathrow (2 hours)

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