Sevenoaks school summer programmes

The school aims to continue its outstanding record of academic achievement, pastoral care and co-curricular opportunity. Academic excellence is achieved by bright, motivated students, inspired by highly qualified and dedicated teachers in well-resourced classrooms. A professional team of specialist tutors, boarding house staff and year heads ensures that our pupils are happy and receive expert care and support, while the mutual respect shared by students and staff helps to generate an atmosphere of tremendous friendliness. State-of-the-art facilities, together with high level instruction, provide rich opportunities for pupils to participate in a wide variety of sports, the performing arts and many other activities.

Our educational vision

At Sevenoaks School we approach learning, teaching and living in the spirit of the International Baccalaureate, whilst appreciating that academic learning is important but not the only measure of success. As part of our strategic focus on the future, we aim to maintain and strengthen our position as a world-class position IB school, but more than that, as a leader in education and innovation.

There are two elements to this. First comes our vision for the curriculum, strongly influenced by the IB. Our unique curriculum is designed to provide coherence, balance and breadth, generating an appetite for learning and discovery in our students, and encouraging them to develop strong cultural awareness, a determination to be an influence for good, and a capacity for work, leadership and collaboration.

Sevenoaks School Foundation

Sevenoaks School Foundation is a separate charity that has fostered a school-wide culture of philanthropy since 2004. Every donation supports the school’s aim to provide a distinctive education that is broad, integrated, outward-facing and imbued with social purpose. The Trustees work in close partnership with the School Governors and senior staff to determine strategic priorities. 

Sevenoaks would not be Sevenoaks without the encouragement, commitment and generosity of parents, staff and alumni. With their support, the Foundation has been able to invest more than £75 million in the world-class teaching, learning and living environments enjoyed by students, staff and the local community today: The Sennocke Centre(2005), The Space (2010), The Science & Technology Centre and Global Study Centre (2018) and  Aisher House(2019).

Together, the Foundation and the school also provide 60 students with a full or partial bursary so that they can have the opportunity of a Sevenoaks education.

Sevenoaks School Foundation also administers the  Old Sennockians programme for alumni of Sevenoaks School.

With some 1200 pupils, including international students of around 70 nationalities from countries around the world, the student body is lively, cosmopolitan and open-minded. Boarding is an important element in the school's daily life and ethos, while our 600-year history, location and day student body ensure that the school remains firmly grounded in the local community. Around one third of the students are boarders, and two-thirds day pupils. The school admits students at 11, 13 and 16. Sevenoaks has a reputation for exploring new ideas and is known for a global outlook which permeates the entire education experience.Sevenoaks was the Sunday Times Independent Secondary School of the Year 2018 and 2008. It was the second highest achieving large-cohort IB school in the world in 2018 and 2019. It was rated the top independent IB boarding school 2018 and also the top fully co-educational IB school in the UK by Best Schools (Education Advisers Ltd).

Sevenoaks voted the highest-placed coeducational school both nationally and regionally in the 2018 Sunday Times Parent Power rankings. In 2014 it was the highest performing co-educational independent school at I/GCSE, and topped the Department for Education's KS4 performance tables in 2012, with the highest percentage of pupils achieving all subjects of the English Baccalaureate. It was listed as the top independent school at A-level or equivalent in the Independent in 2012 and as the top co-educational independent secondary school (IB) in the Sunday Times Schools Guide 2011. In 2013 the Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI) awarded Sevenoaks the rare accolade of 'Exceptional' for its students' achievement.

All our students take GCSEs and IGCSEs in the Middle School and the International Baccalaureate in the Sixth Form. Academically Sevenoaks is fast-paced, and both our exam results and university entry statistics are impressive, although we are emphatically not a hot house. Students leave us as broadly educated critical thinkers and creative problem solvers. The educational focus here is on developing roundedness, and we are most proud that our students are kind, empathetic, collaborative and grounded people who can get along with anyone.  

Criteria for entry

Sevenoaks is a strongly academic school, and we select students we believe will flourish in our fast-paced environment. All candidates are assessed through entrance tests, references from the candidate's current school, interviews and reports. The success of our students is partly due to a culture of mutual respect, admiration of success in any field whether academic or co-curricular, and a collaborative and supportive outlook within our student body. The character of our students is therefore very important to us, and this is assessed at interview. 

We are also keen to identify students who will benefit from our balanced and well-rounded education, and who will make a positive contribution to the life of the school. This information is gathered either in a personal statement (for Sixth Form applicants) or through a form which parents fill in for Year 7 and Year 9 applicants.

Boarding 

We offer boarding to girls and boys aged 13 to 18. The school has recently increased its provision of boarding for boys at 13+ with the opening of Aisher House. A further girls' 13+ house will open within the next few years. 

We do not offer boarding in Years 7 and 8. Please note that this will not affect the Continuity of Education Allowance for FCO personnel.

Scholarships

Sevenoaks offers scholarships to students joining at 11+, 13+ and 16+. These scholarships honour and celebrate exceptional talent in academia, music, sports, drama and art.

Academic Scholarships

These are available at all entry points to the school, and are by invitation following the entrance exams, with the exception of Year 9 (13+) candidates applying to join us from a UK prep school, who are put forward for our Academic scholarship exam by their current school.

Co-curricular Scholarships

We offer Co-curricular scholarships in Art, Drama, Music and Sport. Candidates can hold a maximum of one Co-curricular scholarship. Music scholarships are available to external candidates at all entry points. Art, Drama and Sport scholarships are available to both internal and external candidates at 13+ entry, and to external candidates at 16+ entry.