Winchester House School - Boarding & Day School

Winchester House School is a fully co-educational day and boarding Preparatory School enjoying a fine reputation for academic, sporting, musical and artistic success. The Upper School includes Year 3 - Year 8.

Founded in 1875, it moved to its present site in the market town of Brackley, Northamptonshire in 1922 and became co-educational in 1976. It is close to the borders of Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire and lies mid-way between Oxford & Milton Keynes being just 10 minutes from the M40 and within easy reach of Heathrow and Birmingham airports. The site covers a total of 18 acres including a wide range of sports pitches and gardens.

The school is a Church of England Foundation, but children of other denominations and faiths are welcomed. There is a chapel service every Wednesday morning and all school assemblies have a religious theme. Full boarders attend a formal morning service on Sundays and the choral tradition is maintained through a strong chapel choir.

With a pupil ratio of 8:1, children are taught in sets for all academic subjects up to the end of Year 6. On entry into Year 7, at age 11, they are streamed into Scholarship or Common Entrance groups.

The following subjects are taught: English, Maths, Science, French, History, Geography, Latin, Ancient Greek, Scripture, Music, Art, Design Technology, IT & PE.

Stage	Age	School Day	Earliest arrival and latest departure for Day Children	Day or Boarding	Saturday morning school
Year 3	7/8	8.30 – 5.00	8.15 – 6.50	Day/Boarding	No
Year 4	8/9	8.30 – 6.40	8.15 – 6.50	Day/Boarding	Yes
Year 5	9/10	8.30 – 6.50	8.15 – 6.50	Day/Boarding	Yes
Year 6	10/11	8.30 – 6.50	8.15 – 6.50	Boarding/Day	Yes
Year 7	11/12	8.30 – 6.50	8.15 – 6.50	Boarding/Day	Yes
Year 8	12/13	8.30 – 6.50	8.15 – 6.50	Boarding/Day	Yes

In Year 3 and above all day children go home at 5.00pm on a Wednesday.
For Year 4 and above there is Saturday morning school until 12.50pm – a later finish is necessary for those involved in matches.

Pre-Prep

In the Pre-Prep there is a system of after school care (‘Tailenders’) which runs from 3.30 – 4.45pm.

A similar after school care system runs from 5.00 – 6.50pm on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays. A meal and supervised recreation are included. This scheme is primarily designed for parents of day children in Year 3 who have an older sibling also as a day pupil in the school in Years 4-8.

Occasional boarding is a popular option for all day children, dependent on availability of beds (must be regular nights per week). Find out more in the 'Boarding and Day School' section.
Children may commit at any stage to weekly or full boarding.

There are four Houses - Bryant(blue), Gascoigne(green), Leachman(yellow) and Priestland(red). From Year 3 each child is assigned to one of these Houses and House Competitions are held throughout the year.

Each child in the Upper School has a Tutor who is responsible for academic and pastoral welfare. Each Tutor will have an average of 10 tutees in his or her care for that particular year. The Tutor is the first point of contact for children and their parents. Tutors keep the Headmaster and the staff informed about their tutees. They help each child maximise his or her potential and enjoy school life to the full.

A qualified Sister, helped by matrons, is responsible for the health of the children. When children are ill or 'off-colour' they are admitted to the San where they are looked after by the resident staff on duty.

Mobile phones are not permitted except for full boarders whose parents live abroad. Children can telephone from the privacy of telephone boxes in free time, and every child has an email address.