OF FEES &
Academic Year 2025/26
PAYMENT OF FEES
TERMS AND CONDITIONS
Parent(s) are referred to the School’s Terms and Conditions for full details on all matters relating to payment of fees. However, in summary, some of the key points to note are:
• All fees must be paid on or before the first day of each term, unless an agreement to do otherwise has been made with the Director of Finance.
• Failure to pay the fees by the due date will result in a late payment surcharge of 3% per month or part month being added to the outstanding amount.
• A pupil for whom there are fees outstanding is liable to exclusion. The pupil will not be allowed to return to school until all fees have been paid, or an acceptable arrangement for payment has been made with the Director of Finance. If neither action is taken, parents will be deemed to have withdrawn their daughter and fees in lieu of notice will be due.
• All payments are due in sterling. Any costs of clearing non-sterling payments or overseas cheques will be charged to, and are payable by parents.
• A full term’s notice of the withdrawal of a pupil from the School must be given to the Headmistress in writing, or parents will be liable for, and will be charged, a full term’s fees in lieu of notice.
BANK DETAILS
For payment by bank transfer, our bank details are as follows:
Bank: Lloyds TSB Bank (Newbury Branch) 5 Bridge Street Newbury Berks RG14 5BQ
Account No: 00136439
Sort Code: 30-95-89
Account Name: Downe House School Income Account
IBAN Number: GB61LOYD30958900136439
Branch Identifier Code (BIC)/Swift Code: LOYDGB21041
NB: Please quote your Pupil Code shown on the fees invoice
FEES IN ADVANCE SCHEME
For those wishing to make a lump sum payment of more than one year’s fees in advance, the School operates a Fees in Advance Scheme. Details of the scheme and a quotation can be obtained from the School Finance Department
CHARGING POLICY
SCHOOL FEES
School fees are divided equally across the three terms of the academic year and are applied irrespective of the length of the respective term. This includes the fee for terms when students complete public examinations and may choose to leave before the end of the academic term: the prevailing tuition and boarding fees for that term apply in full.
The School fees cover the cost of the following:
• Tuition in those subjects that are part of the School’s curriculum
• Accommodation (for pupils who board)
• Meals (for all pupils)
• Laundry (except for dry cleaning)
• Textbooks (except where a girl loses or annotates them, or wishes to keep them)
• A limited amount of stationery for each subject
• UK trips required as part of the academic curriculum
• UK based field trips required as part of the academic curriculum
• Personal accident insurance
The School fees do not cover the cost of any of the following:
• Uniform
• Examination fees (including retakes)
• Additional stationery
• Subscriptions to publications etc (unless a subject curriculum requirement)
• The travel cost of overseas field trips
• Additional subjects outside the School’s curriculum (tennis coaching, individual music tuition, language tuition (e.g. Japanese), learning skills etc.)
• Additional coaching (if available) in subjects that are part of the curriculum but that takes place outside the normal timetable for that subject (e.g. extra French)
• The cost of optional extras out of school time
• Trips not related to the academic curriculum
• Taxis and travel to/from school
• House outings
• Events taking place outside the normal timetable (unless a curriculum requirement)
• Breakages and lost, damaged or destroyed School property
This list is not exhaustive and, if in doubt, parents should ask the relevant Head of Department or Housemistress. As none of the above are covered by the School fees, the cost of such items has to be recovered from parents by adding the charge to their School fees bill and may attract VAT.
OCCASIONAL BOARDING
We offer occasional boarding to Day pupils and allow parents to book a boarding space on an ad-hoc basis. The occasional boarding fee is £95 per night + VAT which includes supper and breakfast. Availability is limited and is allocated on a first request basis.
ACTIVITIES
Parents will be asked for prior permission for additional items to be added to their termly bill, however, in order to simplify the administration involved on behalf of both parents and the School, we have adopted the following procedures:
a. House Activities
At the beginning of each term parents will be asked to notify their daughter’s Housemistress of the maximum amount their daughter can spend on House outings/activities before they need to be notified.
If, therefore, a member of staff wishes to organise an outing for a group of girls, they will check beforehand with the relevant Housemistress that the girls have enough preauthorised credit in their account to cover the cost of such an event.
If there is insufficient credit in her account, the pupil must get written permission from her parent(s), that they agree to the cost of the event and to this additional sum being added to the school fees bill.
b. Other Items/Activities
Parents will not be notified of any other additional charges below £40+VAT, unless they have specifically requested to pre-authorise all expenditure, regardless of the amount. However, staff will ensure that they have a signature from the pupil stating that:
• She wishes to take part in the activity, subscribe to the magazine etc.
• She has asked her parent(s) for their permission.
• Her parent(s) have agreed to the cost being added to their bill.
Any activities/items costing over £40+VAT require prior written approval from parents, with agreement for the cost to be added to the next school bill. Alternatively, parents may wish to pay the charge immediately by bank transfer.
STUDENT VISAS
Pupils requiring a Child Student Visa will be charged in line with the UK Government student visa application process. To ensure that we comply with UK Home Office regulations, Downe House requires parents and guardians to submit all applications and renewals through our immigration law partner, Newland Chase. The charge for this service is £705 plus VAT and also requires parents of all new starters to provide proof of affordability by making full payment of three terms’ fees in advance. The Child Student Visa Policy can be viewed on our website here
EXAMINATION FEES
The cost of all examinations is levied in advance by the Examination Boards via the School, and all such fees are charged to parents. Any failure by parents to pay the fees could result in their daughter not being eligible to sit the examinations. The typical charge is in the region of £50 to £200 per qualification.
Additional post-results services are available, please contact Mrs Pilkington, Examinations Officer, exam@downehouse.net for further details.
TEXTBOOKS
Textbooks are normally provided for all girls, up to and including I/GCSE examinations, at no extra cost. However, parents will be charged for the cost of those textbooks that have been lost, annotated by girls, or that are returned at the end of the course of study in poor condition. The cost of textbooks for AS/A2 level study is normally charged to parents where there is a requirement to annotate them.
OUT OF SCHOOL ACTIVITIES
The School normally subsidises the cost of activities that are directly related to the curriculum. Parents will be asked to contribute to the cost of any additional activities arranged for their daughter. Weekend activities are numerous, and parents will be asked to set a limit on the amount their daughter can spend on those activities that incur a cost.
FIELD TRIPS
Some departments (e.g. Biology and Geography) are required to organise field trips for those girls taking public examinations in these subjects. The School Fees cover the cost of any such UK-based events but, where field trips are organised overseas, parents will be asked to make a contribution to the travel cost.
EXPLORING EUROPE
For parents whose daughters are due to go to Sauveterre in their Lower Fourth year, an additional amount will be included in their fees invoice at the end of the Lent term to cover the cost of travel to and from the Chateau, and ‘extras’ such as day trips, gift shop purchases, coaches and taxis. In addition, parents of day girls should note that they will be charged the flexi-boarding rate for that term.
For those parents whose daughters will be travelling to Berlin in their Remove year, a contribution of £250 towards flights and transport will be added to the fees invoice.
TRANSPORT
Downe House has a network of local bus routes to bring pupils to and from School on a daily basis, and also operates a midweek and weekend London bus service. Bookings are made half termly in advance and payments are made direct to the service provider. Ad hoc travel may be available to book, dependant on availability and is charged at a premium. No refunds are given for journeys not taken. Full details of the routes and how to book are available on the Downe House School Transport portal
Parents will be charged for the cost of providing transport for journeys:
• To and from the airport/railway station
• For all medical or dental appointments
• For any other trips requested by their daughter and authorised by a member of her House staff.
Parents will be charged for waiting time and for cancellations if insufficient notice is given.
For any questions about School transport, please contact Bus@downehouse.net
INDIVIDUAL / EXTRA TUITION
General Terms and Conditions:
A charge per lesson will be made and added to the fees invoice at the end of each term. However, the following should be noted:
• If the teacher is absent and an alternative date for the lesson cannot be arranged, no charge will be made.
• If the pupil is unable to attend as a result of long-term illness (i.e. 10 days or more) and an alternative date for the lesson cannot be arranged, no charge will be made.
• If the pupil is unable to attend because of examinations or other legitimate school business and an alternative date for the lesson cannot be arranged, no charge will be made PROVIDING the pupil has given the teacher at least 7 days’ notice either in writing or by email.
If a pupil wishes to stop taking extra lessons or cease an activity, her parent(s) must give a full term’s notice in writing to the Head of the relevant department or pay a full term’s fees in lieu of notice.
OPTIONAL CHARGES
The following optional facilities are available and are usually charged termly in arrears, with the exception of the DH Society subscription.
PUPIL ABSENCE REFUND SCHEME
This scheme enables parents to claim back a proportion of the fees paid if their daughter is ill and unable to attend lessons for a continuous period of 8 days or more for boarders (flexi or full), or 5 days for day girls. Please note that participation in the scheme does not in any way affect parents’ liability to the School for any fees outstanding.
N.B. Parents whose daughters have been awarded a Bursary, pay a premium based on the net fee charged and are therefore eligible to claim in relation to the net fee only.
Further details of the Pupil Absence Refund Scheme can be found HERE
AXA PRIVATE MEDICAL SCHEME
Details of the AXA private medical scheme can be found HERE
Applications can only be made at the start of the academic year.
To sign up for this insurance please complete the following application form HERE.
PUPILS’ PERSONAL EFFECTS INSURANCE SCHEME
This scheme covers the loss, theft or damage of a pupil’s possessions whilst at school, or travelling to or from school, up to a maximum insured sum of £7,500 with a single item limit of £2,500.
Further details of the Pupils’ personal effects scheme can be found HERE
N.B. The School does NOT cover the loss of pupils’ personal belongings or cash, therefore parents are strongly advised to take out a polic through this scheme or to arrange their own all risks insurance which can normally be done as an extension of their Home Contents Policy.
DOWNE HOUSE SOCIETY
All girls are eligible to join the Downe House Society, which is our alumnae community. To become a lifelong member, a subscription is collected with the fees during a girl’s first five years at the School. If parents do not wish their daughter to join, they may opt out.
The Downe House Society offers: DH Links careers events; mentoring and careers advice; internships and work experience; reunions and social events; and limited travel and professional development grants. The Director of Development will write to all parents of girls joining the School to give further details and enclosing the information booklet.
INDIVIDUAL EXTRAS
INDIVIDUAL MUSIC LESSONS / MUSIC THEORY LESSONS
Individual music lessons can be arranged through the Director of Music, Alexander Leadbeater.
Pupils should receive a minimum of 30 lessons per instrument during the academic year. However, as each term varies in length, the number of lessons each term will not be the same.
The allocation of music lessons for the year takes place before the Michaelmas term when visiting teachers are engaged on a part-time basis. Although every effort is made to accommodate requests for particular teachers, much is determined by whether or not the availability of the pupil coincides with that of the teacher.
If a pupil wishes to change teacher after the start of the Michaelmas term, and it is possible to do so, one full half term’s notice in writing to the Director of Music is required. Pupils wanting to commence lessons or change instruments mid-year may have to wait until a vacancy arises. If a pupil wishes to terminate her individual music lessons, her parents must give one full half term’s notice in writing to the Director of Music, or pay a full half term’s fees in lieu of notice.
A full half term’s notice, in writing to the Director of Music, is required to cancel Music Theory lessons. /lessons may be terminated immediately, but a full term’s fees will be charged in lieu of notice. The deadline for giving notice is the first day of each term.
The cost of examinations and miscellaneous items ordered by a pupil (e.g. sheet music, strings etc) will be added to following term’s school fee invoice.
The charge for instrument hire will be £42.00 (including VAT) per term for 2025-26.
SPEECH AND DRAMA LESSONS
Speech and Drama lessons are available throughout the academic year. All students taking Acting, Musical Theatre, Communication Skills and Acting for Screen lessons will be entered for performance examinations unless exemption is requested by a parent in writing to the Head of Extra-Curricular Performing Arts.
The cost of Trinity Guildhall and/or LAMDA examinations will be added to the fees invoice when a pupil is entered. All exam fees can be found in the Performing Arts Information booklet.
Lessons are normally conducted in groups (Remove to Upper Fourth), and pairs or solos (Lower Fifth to Upper Sixth). Whilst we will endeavour to meet requests for particular class sizes, this cannot be guaranteed due to timetable constraints and staff availability.
Enrolment for Speech and Drama lessons after a term has commenced is possible, but this is subject to staff and timetable availability.
In order to terminate lessons, six weeks’ notice in writing must be given by emailing performingartsnotice@downehouse.net. If your daughter wishs to stop taking lessons with immediate effect, six weeks’ fees will be charged in lieu of notice.
Where lessons are missed due to the absence of the teacher or unavoidable school commitments, no charge will be made. However, please note:
1. If the pupil is unable to attend as a result of long-term illness (i.e. 10 days or more) and an alternative date for the lesson cannot be arranged, no charge will be made.
2. If the pupil is unable to attend because of examinations or other legitimate School business and an alternative date for the lesson cannot be arranged, no charge will be made providing the pupil has given the teacher at least 24 hours’ notice.
Girls who are selected for the more challenging LAMDA syllabus, will sit two Speech and Drama exams within the same academic year: a LAMDA exam and a Trinity Guildhall exam.
For any questions about Speech and Drama lessons please contact the Head of ExtraCurricular Performing Arts, Mrs Olivia Cadle
DANCE LESSONS
Extra-Curricular Dance lessons are available to all year groups throughout the academic year and refer to any Dance lesson that takes place outside of an academic setting. This does not refer to Dance lessons that take place as part of the PE curriculum.
Lessons are normally conducted in groups. Whilst every effort will be made to grant requests for particular class sizes, this cannot be guaranteed due to timetable constraints and availability of staff. Private lessons are subject to availability and must be approved by the Head of Extra-Curricular Performing Arts.
Girls can take examinations in Ballet and Contemporary. These exams tend to take place at the end of the academic year and the cost of these exams will be added to the fees invoice when a pupil is entered. All exam fees can be found in the Performing Arts Information booklet.
If your daughter is going to be absent from a class, written notice must be given by a parent or guardian at least 24 hours in advance. If notice is not received, or is received less than 24 hours before the class takes place, the session will be charged in full.
For any questions about Dance lessons please contact the Head of Extra-Curricular Performing Arts, Mrs Olivia Cadle.
TENNIS COACHING AND SQUASH COACHING
Parents may wish their daughter to have additional tennis or squash coaching for a term or the year: this can be arranged providing a suitable time can be found in a girl’s timetable, and there are sufficient coaches and courts available. Lessons will be for 35 minutes each. Squash lessons in a three or foursome may be possible, with agreement of the squash coach.
EXTRA TUITION
Parents may wish their daughter to have additional lessons or coaching during a term or for the year e.g. Languages, Learning Skills, Mathematics etc. Such lessons can be arranged providing a suitable time can be found in the pupil’s timetable and a teacher is available at that time. The School will add the cost of these lessons to the school fee invoice.
CO-CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES
Various co-curricular clubs and activities are also offered at Downe House, some of which do not carry any extra cost (for example, sports clubs and debating society). Others do attract an additional fee, and these include horse-riding, tennis coaching and dance lessons. Should you be interested in your daughter taking part in any activity which incurs a cost, you will receive full details, including prices for the tuition and any transport costs.
SCHEDULE OF FEES & CHARGES Academic Year 2025/26
Downe House is required to charge and account for VAT on school fees from 1 January 2025. VAT treatment is based on current legislation, latest HMRC guidance and specialist tax advice.
The School’s VAT registration number is 480 6504 90, and this will be shown on all future invoices.
Changes in boarding rates reflect Downe House’s new fee model from 2025-26. All fees are effective from 1st September 2025.
Extras are charged in arrears, except for the Downe House Society.
REGISTRATION FEES (non-refundable)
Boarding (Full & Flexi) Registration fee Standard (20%) £395 Upon registration
Day Registration fee
ACCEPTANCE DEPOSITS (refundable)
Day pupils whose parents reside within the UK
(20%) £240 Upon registration
Full & Flexi Boarding pupils whose parents reside within the UK Exempt
All other pupils
£2,000 On acceptance of offer
£3,000 On acceptance of offer
On acceptance of offer
NOTE: If a pupil requires a visa of any kind to study at Downe House, regardless of whether they have a UK address, then an overseas deposit will be payable in order to secure their place.
SCHOOL FEES
Full Boarding Fee
Flexi Boarding Fee (up to 4 nights)
Day Boarding Fee (access to occasional boarding) NOTE: not available to pupils joining from September 2025
(20%) £20,304 Per term
Per term
INSURANCE
Pupil Absence Refund Scheme – Charged at 0.73% of the termly fee
AXA Private Medical Insurance Scheme Exempt
Pupil’s Personal Effects Scheme Exempt
ALUMNAE SOCIETY
Downe House Society
MUSIC
Music lessons - Individual
Music Theory Lessons
Instrument Hire
SPEECH & DRAMA LESSONS Individual
Per term
Per term
Per term
(20%) £96 For 15 terms
(20%)
(20%)
(20%)
(20%)
Per lesson
Per term
Per Instrument per term
per lesson
per pupil per lesson
per pupil per lesson
DANCE LESSONS
Group, 60 Minutes
Pair, 40 minutes
per pupil per lesson
per pupil per lesson Individual, 40 minutes
per lesson
60 minutes
per lesson Mixed & Lower School Dance
EXPLORING EUROPE (Lower School) Flight and Travel contribution
Per pupil per trip
TENNIS LESSONS
Individual Standard (20%)
Pair Standard (20%)
Threesome Standard (20%)
Foursome Standard (20%)
SQUASH LESSONS
Individual Standard (20%)
Pair
EXTRA TUITION – Learning skills and Maths etc.
Individual
Pair
Group
EXAMINATIONS
(20%)
(20%)
(20%)
EXTRA LANGUAGE LESSONS (Chinese, Japanese & Russian) - travel costs extra
Individual
Group
LEITHS BASIC CERTIFICATE IN FOOD & WINE
2 Year course for Sixth Formers
MINI MBA Course for Sixth Formers
per lesson
per pupil lesson
per pupil lesson
per pupil lesson
per lesson
per pupil lesson
per lesson
per pupil lesson
per pupil lesson
(20%)
(20%)
per lesson
per pupil lesson
per term over 5 terms
per term
