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WELCOME FROM THE DIRECTOR OF ADMISSIONS

ANNE MEGDICHE DIRECTOR OF ADMISSIONS

FOR BOYS: Welcome to Sherborne Boys and to our thriving, happy community. Boys join us from many different schools; traditional prep schools, middle schools, secondary schools and international schools, and it is this variety and diversity that makes being a pupil at Sherborne so enjoyable. No matter where you are at school, you will find a very warm welcome and a home-from-home at Sherborne.

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Sherborne Boys

Abbey Road

Sherborne Dorset DT9 3LF, United Kingdom

+44 (0)1935 810403

admissions@sherborne.org

sherborne.org

FOR PARENTS: We appreciate that choosing a senior school for your son is a major decision, but choosing Sherborne is one which will provide him with a superb foundation on which to build future success. Sherborne exists to support our boys in making a positive difference, whether locally, nationally or internationally. We help them to develop the necessary skills, resilience, and flexibility they will need to make their way in an increasingly competitive and globalised world. We encourage them to have a clear set of values that enable them not just to enjoy their own success, but to also contribute to the happiness and wellbeing of others.

FOR ALL: Although we are a single-sex school for boys, we enjoy many wonderful coeducational moments with Sherborne Girls. This is an important and unique part of our two schools; the boys and girls join together for many sports, clubs and academic societies including CCF, Duke of Edinburgh, tennis, and sailing, as well as every Saturday night for house and/or year-group socials – it really is the best of both worlds.

Many Sherborne families have boys with us and their sisters at Sherborne Girls. Our proximity to each other ensures that they have plenty of opportunity to meet up as siblings, whilst allowing each to have their own, unique education.

My team and I are here to support you at every step of the way, and we look forward to welcoming you to Sherborne Boys.

here to follow our footsteps

ACADEMIC STUDIES

At Sherborne, our single-sex status puts the boys at an academic advantage from the outset. Evidence highlights that boys achieve better results in such an environment, but this needs to be balanced, and our relationship with Sherborne Girls ensures that it is. Boys are not only taught how to obtain excellent exam results, but also how to handle the process with confidence. To enable each boy to be treated individually, our timetable is designed to be flexible. With a wide range of GCSE, iGCSE, A Level and BTEC options, together with a programme of academic enrichment, our boys are offered a wellrounded education fit for an ever-evolving world.

Academic outcomes are excellent, as one would expect from a top UK boarding school, but the valueadded routinely places Sherborne in the top 10% of schools in the country. We are a selective school, but not highly so, and therefore the results that boys can and do achieve are outstanding, and proof were it needed that our teaching and our approach to academic studies is first rate.

Following excellent pathway provision from our Sixth Form support team, at the end of their studies the majority of our boys leave to take up places at top universities in the UK, including Oxford, Cambridge, Durham, Bristol, Imperial College and the London School of Economics. Whilst three quarters of our boys head off to Russell Group universities, global universities (and especially those in USA, Canada and Europe) are becoming attractive options. Vocational courses at The Courtauld, Royal Academy of Music

and Royal College of Music, and Degree Apprenticeships are also popular choices, but whatever path they choose, it is the result of expert guidance from Higher Education specialists, a broad curriculum and outstanding opportunities both in-and-out of the classroom.

Our academic enrichment programme is wide ranging, and is designed to help boys grow into independent learners – curious thinkers who want to know more, and have the skills to explore. The programme welcomes Olympians, politicians, mountaineers, entrepreneurs, educationalists and authors as visiting speakers, and to further enhance boys’ habits of learning, we offer various subjects as enrichment options at AS Level. Allied to the Extended Project Qualification that boys can complete in the Sixth Form, we believe our overall culture at Sherborne is more akin to that of a university environment than of a school – making it the ideal preparation for a boy’s next steps.

“Pupils have excellent study skills. They are analytical thinkers, well organised and will readily hypothesise.” ISI INSPECTORATE 2023

“Sherborne allows me the freedom to grow and pursue the things I most care about alongside my academic studies and other commitments.”

WILLIAM

MUSIC

Music runs right through the heart of Sherborne and is considered by many to be the top nonspecialist school for music in the country. Fantastically equipped with state-of-the-art technology, the Music School boasts spacious practice rooms with pianos, performance studios that have tie-lines to the Recording Studio, and two music classrooms that contain thirty composing workstations between them.

From the 109-strong Choir that sings in the Abbey, the Chamber Choir and Close Harmony group –singing is “cool” at Sherborne – to the smallest instrumental duo, there is quite literally something for everyone. The Wind Band is enormous but there are smaller groups that cater for all standards of musician. The auditioned Swing Band is one of the finest big bands in the South of England and the two orchestras are joint with Sherborne Girls and The Gryphon (a local secondary school). Chamber Music proliferates with several ensembles entering national competitions each year with great

success. Rock and Pop groups are pupil led and focus upon the annual CourtsFest (a large screen open-air performance each summer), whilst there is a further performance opportunity each term and at least two “Unplugged” events per year.

For advanced instrumentalists there are performance opportunities every Friday lunchtime in public concerts held in a nearby church, and informal concerts and masterclasses, competitions, and internal workshops are open to all. As the School that Chris Martin of Coldplay attended, Sherborne provides musical opportunities at every level and genre.

Scan here to find out more about music at Sherborne

DRAMA ART & DESIGN

Unsurprisingly in a School that has produced so many fine actors, boys have the chance to participate in annual House plays, as well as School plays and joint productions with Sherborne Girls. With the purpose-built Powell Theatre, boys gain valuable experience of performing on the big stage and if they prefer not to be in the limelight, there’s ample opportunity for them to develop skills behind the scenes too. LAMDA lessons are hugely popular at Sherborne, and boys enjoy great success, with over 75% gaining a Distinction in their exams at Grade 8.

At Sherborne, you’ll discover creativity around every corner, and we understand that flourishing for our boys involves more than academic success. By providing the space for boys to pursue the creative arts, and the high value we attach to them, we demonstrate how vital they are to Sherborne’s culture and to a boy’s future. Drama School alumni include Hugh Bonneville, Jeremy Irons and James Purefoy.

Sherborne has a culture in which all creative endeavour is prized. With an art gallery on site exhibiting work by artists of international renown, and with teachers who are professional artists themselves, there is much to inspire the boys to pursue their own enthusiasms, and many demonstrate real flair for drawing, print making, photography or digital design.

In both Art and Design, boys work on real-world projects, focussing on relevant, effective and structured problem solving. We believe that boys who learn how to be imaginative and creative are better prepared for the future; they can think on their feet and have confidence in their ability to formulate ideas and influence people.

“No-one is pigeon-holed at Sherborne. We’re given so many opportunities to develop our passions both in and beyond the classroom. Everyone’s talents are appreciated, and whether artistic, academic, musical, great at sport or brilliant at debating, you’ll find your niche in this community.”

PETER

Scan to hear about Oliver’s love for Drama

Sherborne Boys has been given the accolade of ‘Great for Co-curricular’, by The Week Magazine in their Best of the Best awards.

CO-CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES

There is never a dull moment at Sherborne! Boys are encouraged to take part in a wide range of co-curricular activities, from debating to archive club, from campanology to radio broadcasting, as well as opportunities to support others through charity work and volunteering. A limited example of options include:

Allotment Club

Barbell Club

Basics of Jewellery Making

Beginner’s Arabic

Bellringing

Board Games

Chess

Classics Society

Coding Club

Cooking Club

Creative Writing

DJ Practice Club

Environmental Action Group

Geography Society

Grade 5 Music Theory

Medicine in the News

Model United Nations Club

Poker Club

Psychology Club

Radio Sherborne

Snooker Club

The Thinking Society

Theory and Practice of Meditation

Turing Virtual Reality Club

Water Polo

Scan to hear what Will likes about the Co-curricular at Sherborne

TOGETHER WE GO OFF THE BEATEN TRACK

CO-EDUCATION BUT NOT AS YOU KNOW IT

“Each time I go into the house I can sense the happiness and spirit across all year groups.”

CURRENT PARENT, 2024

BOARDING LIFE

Sherborne is a full-boarding School, and our boys live within a close, supportive community. Everyone knows that they play a role in helping the whole community to thrive, and acquire habits of kindness, compassion and thoughtfulness that set them up for life.

Sherborne believes that every boy has the right to feel safe, happy, and valued as an individual. Pastoral care has the highest priority in the incredibly supportive House system. Resident House staff and a team of tutors provide guidance, support, and encouragement in all areas of school life.

Pupils form strong bonds across the year groups, underpinned by mentoring between the junior and senior boys. With the boarding house at the heart of their experience, it quickly becomes a place to call home – somewhere boys are encouraged to be themselves, to unwind and grow in a safe and trusting environment, and to relish the fellowship of their friends. By living alongside our boys and watching them grow together, we can provide unrivalled pastoral care and work closely with parents to give every boy the very best possible chance to thrive.

Boarding houses are busy places! Unlike many other boarding schools, we do not offer weekly or flexiboarding, meaning that each House is as full at weekends as it is during the week. A typical weekend will start with Saturday morning lessons, usually followed by a whole School lecture. Saturday afternoons are given over to the School’s extensive sports programme, in which every boy has a chance to participate, before they gather in Houses for

Assembly in the evening. Supper is followed by a programme of social activities, together with Sherborne Girls. On Sunday mornings, breakfast/brunch is followed by quiet time in Houses, during which boys catch up with work, prepare for the week ahead or simply relax. Various trips take place on Sundays, including outdoor activities like paintballing, go-karting, zorbing, or visits to watch professional sports matches or perhaps the cinema. Inter-house competitions are regularly scheduled for Sunday afternoons as well as during the week, and in activities as diverse as debating, football, and water polo. Most weeks, the whole School comes together on Sunday evening for a service in the Abbey.

The food at Sherborne is of exceptional quality and mealtimes are eagerly looked forward to. Meals are taken in the Dining Room, with boys enjoying homemade morning and afternoon snacks in their House. With food locally sourced wherever possible and a strong emphasis on freshness, there is a choice of several delicious hot options every day, as well as homemade soup and bread, a pasta and baked potato bar, a huge salad bar, and a range of hot and cold desserts. Fresh fruit is available at every meal and in House. Vegetarians, vegans, halal, and specific dietary requirements are all catered for, and we celebrate special cultural events from around the world.

As a result of the encompassing nature of boarding life, above all, Shirburnians know that they are cared for, that the whole community is looking out for them, celebrating the highs and supporting them during the challenges of teenage years.

“The welfare of the boys in this busy environment is placed centre stage.”

GOOD SCHOOLS GUIDE 2022

scan to hear from Veljko about joining Sherborne in the Sixth Form

TRAVEL AND TRANSPORT

Sherborne is very well placed and benefits from a mainline train station just four minutes’ walk from the centre of School, with trains running to London Waterloo every hour. The station is a hive of activity at exeats and the end of term as Sherborne Boys and Sherborne Girls’ pupils gather for the supervised train ride home or ‘Hogwarts Express’, as it is affectionately known.

Onward transport arrangements can be made for those travelling to/from Bournemouth, Bristol, Exeter, Gatwick, Heathrow, London City and

Southampton airports, as well as to central London and other areas on request. These services are usually run by Hounslow’s Sherborne Taxis with DBS checked drivers.

With a dedicated school-based Travel and Transport Officer, our international families can take comfort knowing that their son can be supported with his travel to and from School, if required and the School provide supervised coach services to/from London Heathrow at the beginning and end of each term and half term.

SHERBORNE BOYS

HOW TO JOIN US

ENTRY TIMELINE FOR 13+

September Year 6 or Year 7

October – December Year 6 or Year 7

January Year 6 or Year 7

September Year 7

June Year 7

October Year 8

November Year 8

January/February Year 8

February Year 8

Easter Year 8

June Year 8

Sherborne at Work

Boys to take ISEB Pre-Tests at current school*

Assessment day/interviews*

Activity Day

Super Sunday

Boarding Open House

Scholarship application and/or bursary deadline

Co-curricular Scholarships

Academic Scholarships

House allocations

Common Entrance

New Boys’ Day

ENTRY TIMELINE FOR 16+ 2025 ENTRY

25 September 2024

21 October 2024

19 & 21 November 2024

1 December 2024

9 December 2024

Spring Term 2025

April 2025

Summer Term 2025

August 2025

September 2025

Sixth Form Tour Afternoon

Registration deadline

Sixth Form Assessments and Scholarships

Place decisions

Acceptance deadline

Subject choice confirmation

House allocations confirmed

New Boys’ webinar/gathering

GCSE results (forward to Sherborne for verification)

Welcome to Sherborne!

FEES AND CHARGES

SEPTEMBER 2024 – SEPTEMBER 2025

Registration Fee

Acceptance Deposit

Termly fees*

Boarding

Day

Individual Music Tuition

First instrument

Second instrument

Hire of instrument

Learning Support

Individual

Group of two

Group of three

£250

£2,000 (refundable against final account)

Current ex. VAT inc. VAT

£16,250

£12,850

£15,385

£12,170

£38.50 per 35-minute lesson

£26.00 per 35-minute lesson

£56.15 per term

£49.00 per 45-minute lesson

£25.00 per 45-minute lesson, each

£18,462

£14,604

£18.50 per 45-minute lesson, each Group of four

Extra support group

Language lessons 1-1

£13.00 per 45-minute lesson, each

£8.00 per 45-minute lesson, each

£45.00 per 45-minute lesson

*To help mitigate the impact of VAT, the Governors have decided to reduce the headline fees for the next two terms (Lent and Trinity 2025) by 5.3% based on the assumption that VAT at 20% will be imposed from 1 January 2025. Should the rate at which VAT is levied, the timing of its implementation, or any other material details deviate from our current assumptions, we will update our website of any consequent changes to our planned fee adjustments.

“We want our children to be humble and polite and we feel that Sherborne shares these values.”

CURRENT PARENT, 2024