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Our View
The oldest cathedral choir school in the world is no small boast, but King’s School Rochester is so much more than its awe-inspiring history, which stretches back to AD604, and its stunning campus with its views of Rochester’s castle and cathedral. This is a holistic, forward-looking place that nurtures not just musical excellence, academics and sport, but also kindness and a sense of community. It’s tantalisingly close to London on the high-speed train (just 30 minutes). We’re not surprised there are lots of ‘lifers’ here – children who join at three and stay all the way through to 18.
Where?
Sprawling across part of old Rochester that includes a few quiet roads, the school has the feel of a university campus with different departments clustered in the School Yard, Davies Court and The Paddock. Many back onto the green, which is called The Vines. A mix of historic and more modern buildings, this Kent school feels relaxed and spacious, and the nearness of the castle and cathedral is somehow grounding. As well as being easily commutable by train (the station is a five-minute walk), it’s also close to the M2. Five school routes bus pupils to and from Gravesend, King’s Hill, Maidstone, Rainham and Sevenoaks.
Head
Ben Charles couldn’t be a more perfect fit for this historic choir school. He studied music at university, was a music teacher at King’s School Peterborough, director of music at both Chigwell and Millfield, and deputy head at Portsmouth Grammar before arriving here in 2018. He tells us the school has ‘a real warmth about it’ and that pupils are ‘the nicest, kindest, most courteous’ he has ever worked with. Mr Charles encourages them to have a say in what the school is and has lunch with prefects every fortnight. ‘I want pupils to work hard, play hard and look after each other,’ he says.
Admissions
Prospective pupils are offered a place following an entrance assessment, interview and on the basis of their school report. For sixth form, they need five GCSEs at grades 9 to 4, with at least a grade 6 in the A-level subjects they propose to study.
Academics and destinations
As well as the compulsory GCSEs of maths, English, religious studies and double or triple science, pupils can choose three more subjects. Science facilities are great, with six labs all with traditional wooden benches. Results are ‘excellent’ says Mr Charles, and the majority of pupils stay on for sixth form, enjoying their own common room with sofas and a kitchen. Class sizes are small – our sixth-form guides were in classes ranging from just two to eight. Every pupil has a tutor to help them navigate next steps, giving guidance on personal statements and careers advice. Leavers head off to lots of different places, including Russell Group universities, apprenticeships, art colleges and music conservatoires.
SEND provision is good with one-to-one and group lessons, including help with essay writing and managing anxiety.
Co-curricular
There’s an all-through approach to sport with the director of sport Michael Hebden overseeing pupils from reception upwards. ‘We want them to develop a lifelong love of sport and physical ability,’ he tells us. There’s lots on offer: the usual games of rugby, netball, football and cricket, as well as rowing on the Medway, swimming, yoga, bouldering and a version of park run. From Year 7, the sports scholar programme gives talented pupils additional support in the form of strength and conditioning and extra academic mentoring to make up for missed classroom time due to sports commitments. Top sports scholars have their own bespoke timetable. Rowing is an option for everyone; the school has its own boathouse and there’s a rowing academy on Saturday mornings.
Cathedral choristers are educated here, and there are several musicians in the National Youth Orchestra. Each part of the school has a choir with ensembles for every musical instrument, and the candlelit carol service in the cathedral is an annual highlight. Drama is big too, with lots of productions from plays to musicals staged in the school hall or drama studio. Pupils can also take LAMDA lessons.
D&T is a hive of activity in a massive mezzanine room where pupils create everything from bird houses to picture frames. GCSE and A-level D&T and art are options. We saw the Year 4s busy with Matisse-style collages and the Year 6s with lino printing. Pupils can also do graphic design, sculpture, ceramics and painting.
CCF is very popular – this is one of the oldest schools in the country to offer it and it is compulsory for Years 9 and 10, but half of pupils carry on with it. Nearly all pupils take DofE bronze, with around 60 per cent going on to do their silver award and 10 per cent gold. Mr Charles wants pupils to ‘learn as much outside as inside the classroom’. They can join clubs that include bell ringing in the cathedral, robotics, yoga and karate, and there are lots of off-site opportunities, from choir trips to Barcelona and cricket tours to Sri Lanka to a maths and physics trip to NASA.
Boarding
Most of the 35 boarders are international pupils, who are often here for just a year or even a single term. There are two single-sex boarding houses, with sixth-form common rooms and a house dog. Flexi boarders are usually sport or music scholars, and weekly boarding is also an option. Weekends are filled with activities and trips. With London so near, ice-skating at Somerset House, shows at West End theatres or shopping on Oxford Street are all possibilities. With pupils from around the world, the school tries to show them some of the UK while they’re here.
School community
There’s great inter-year mixing, with buddying and friendships formed through co-curricular activities like drama productions and sport. The lower sixth help out in the pre-prep and prep, and the whole-school council has representatives from reception up to the upper sixth. The upper sixth runs inter-house music competitions, a supremely competitive affair when pupils go all out. There are also inter-house cross-country, hockey, swimming, rugby, general knowledge and chess competitions.
And finally....
The beautiful setting, tight-knit family feel and strong values really set King’s School Rochester apart. Pupils truly have a voice, as well as agency in what happens at their school. Many told us how much they love it here – and we can certainly see why.