Culford School

Culford School is a coeducational independent day and boarding school for pupils age 1-18 in the village of Culford, 4 miles north of Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk, England. The headmaster is a member of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference and the Prep School is a member of the IAPS.

The school was founded as the East Anglian School for Boys, incorporating an institution founded in 1873 by Congregationalist minister, Dr John H. L. Christien. It was one of a group of Methodist schools established in response to the growth of the middle class, the launching of the Woodard Schools and the 1867 Taunton Commission, which fuelled an expansion of secondary education in general and of non-conformist boarding schools in particular. The original school was in Northgate Street in Bury St Edmunds, but in 1886 it moved to Thingoe Hill in the town (a site later occupied by the East Anglian School for Girls).

The most recent inspection report of the Prep and Senior schools (February 2020) by the Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI) concludes that the schools are “Excellent” in all areas assessed.

The school today

• The Nursery and Pre-Prep is for pupils aged from 1–7 years old. The Nursery, launched in September 2017, is housed in a newly converted building for 1–2 year olds and the Pre-Prep (for 3 to 7 year old) is based in Fieldgate House, at the east of the Park.
• The Preparatory School is a boarding and day school for 7–13 year olds. It occupies the north of the Park, surrounded by its own pitches, but also uses Senior facilities.
• The Senior School is a mixed boarding and day school for 13–18 year olds. The boarding houses overlook parkland and pitches, with academic pursuits taking place in various buildings in the center of the Park. Pupils join from UK and overseas prep and maintained schools, with scholarships, exhibitions, bursaries, Forces allowances and Methodist Schools assistance being offered.
• The Culford Foundation exists to raise funds for special projects that will benefit the pupils of the school and has raised funds for the Pre-Prep nursery and dining hall; an astro-turf sports field; the William Miller Science Centre; the restoration of Culford Hall, the new library and the Art and Design Centre.
• The Sixth Form offers a full range of learning activities and expects pupils aged 16-18 to play a far more active role in lessons, which can sometimes lead them in fascinating and unexpected directions. Their approach fuels pupils’ passion for their subjects and those with particular interests can become subject ambassadors, advising younger pupils and helping us to improve courses still further. Pupils entering the Sixth Form should achieve at least seven GCSE passes at grade 4 or above, with grade 6 or above in English and maths and in the three subjects they will study at A Level. Additional criteria for specific subjects are in place to ensure success at A Level.

Sport and activities

Culford offers high performance academies in Tennis and Golf alongside the major competitive sports of rugby, cricket, hockey, netball, athletics, cross-country and swimming. Regional honours are achieved whilst European and England players and champions in hockey, tennis, horse riding, karate, polo and rugby are on the school roll. Pupils compete in events such as the National Schools Rugby Sevens, and the Inter-Schools Hunter Trials.

In addition to the major sports, Culford offers a wide range of other sports and activities utilizing its 480 acres (1.9 km2) of parkland and extensive facilities.