Start Your Adventure
King Edward’s School, Bath (KES Bath), is a dynamic, vibrant, ambitious, caring and forward-looking school with a well-deserved reputation as one of the leading co-educational day schools in the country.
Whilst we are extremely proud of the School’s academic success, this is only one of many strengths amongst the broad range of opportunities — in sport, music, art, drama and much more — which the School provides for boys and girls aged 3-l8 years. In addition, at the heart of the School’s success is our welcoming ethos of pastoral support, inclusion and engagement. KES is unique in being the only independent co-educational day school in Bath.
Image (L-R): Mr Sean Price (Head of the Junior School), Mr Martin Boden (Headmaster) and Ms Jayne Gilbert (Head of the Pre-Prep and Nursery)
“We remain proud of our grammar school roots and the confident yet unpretentious nature of the education we offer our pupils from a variety of socio-economic backgrounds.”
OUR VALUES
BE THE BEST VERSION OF YOURSELF
We believe that everybody at King Edward’s is unique, one of a kind. We see, hear and get to know them and value them as individuals. Through a rich tapestry of opportunities, we help our pupils to become self-aware, to unearth and develop their passions, talents and creativity and to fulfil their potential.
BE THE BEST VERSION OF YOURSELF
LEARN TOGETHER, GROW TOGETHER
Togetherness is at our core. We all belong and we all contribute in different ways to an inclusive and supportive community. We forge our own pathways, but we are also part of the team. Looking forwards and outwards, we believe that together we are greater than the sum of our parts and can make our world a better place.
LEARN TOGETHER, GROW TOGETHER
ALWAYS EXPLORING
Every experience in and out of the classroom has the power to enrich us. We believe that there is always more to explore and joy to be found on that journey. We want all our pupils to have a passion for discovery, to value knowledge, think critically, ask questions and challenge mindsets and to develop a lifelong love of learning and enquiry.
ALWAYS EXPLORING
AIM HIGH, BUT STAY HUMBLE
We have high expectations and take pride in our achievements. Through aspiration, reflection, hard work and determination come progress and success. We know that we can’t always be the best, but we can always do our best. Whilst our ambitions may be lofty, our feet are firmly grounded. Our community should be rich in opportunities and pathways but never in arrogance or entitlement. We aim high for ourselves, but we always remember to look out for and support others. We recognise our responsibility both at school and in the wider community of Bath and beyond and we embrace this with generosity and respect.
AIM HIGH, BUT STAY HUMBLE
OUR EXPERIENCED AND DEDICATED STAFF
The staff across King Edward’s School are caring and compassionate, and their expertise speaks for itself. They are well qualified and committed and will guide, challenge and support your child with empathy and skill. Each part of our School has its own character, but one of the threads that links us is our sense of purpose: teachers in classrooms and beyond, together with everyone who works to support them, wants the best for each child and will use their skills and knowledge to ensure children thrive as they progress through King Edward’s on their education adventure.
Ms Claire Losse, Senior Deputy Head.
hear from our COMMUNITY
Togetherness is at our core. We all belong and we all contribute in different ways to an inclusive and supportive community.
Mrs Wells
Reception Teacher, Pre-Prep & Nursery
Mr Willison
Art Teacher (Whole School), Senior School
Miss Chapman
Year 4 Teacher and PSHE/RSE Lead, Junior School
Mr Brockwell
Estates & Facilities Manager
Mr Boydell
Year 2 Teacher, Pre-Prep & Nursery
Mrs Walker
Music Administrator, Senior School
Mr Roberts-Wray
Head of Junior Art & DT, Junior School
Mrs Gwilliam
Acting Director of Sport, Senior School
Miss Atkinson
Year 3 Teacher, Junior School
Mr Quayle
Deputy Head (Pastoral) and Mathematics Teacher, Senior School
Mrs Trump
Head of Year 7 and PE and Games Teacher, Senior School
 | Mrs WellsReception Teacher, Pre-Prep & Nursery
I’m Forest School trained and really enjoy getting children fully immersed in nature and encouraging them to explore their creativity with their hands. I am a strong believer that this creativity promotes self-esteem, confidence and independence and is also a lot of fun! |
 | Mr WillisonArt Teacher (Whole School), Senior School
KES is at the heart of the city and has a beat like no other! I have been teaching here for 24 years and the joy of the School is the pupils who make it a school and the teachers who nurture to help the seeds to grow. We are a community, and dare I say it a family, even when the children leave us to explore their individual adventures they still continue to share their lives and stories with us. |
 | Miss ChapmanYear 4 Teacher and PSHE/RSE Lead, Junior School
I believe the Junior School is totally unique in its ability to find what makes each child tick and to nurture and celebrate these alongside developing their confidence, self-esteem and curiosity as learners. Alongside an excellent and well-balanced curriculum, KES offers a wide range of activities and interests enabling children to flourish and develop the skills, attitudes and attributes to grow into well-balanced young people. |
 | Mr BrockwellEstates & Facilities Manager
KES’s strong and longstanding reputation is what attracted me to come and work here as well as the nature of the role and attractive package being advertised. The welcome I received was overwhelmingly friendly with a thorough induction process. In addition, my line manager is very supportive and has an excellent understanding of my role. Knowing this allows me the freedom to perform at the best of my abilities. |
 | Mr BoydellYear 2 Teacher, Pre-Prep & Nursery
"The Pre-Prep has nurtured a wonderful sense of school as being a home where learning happens. Being able to share the children's energy, enthusiasm and passion for learning within the Pre-Prep makes every day a joy to experience." |
 | Mrs WalkerMusic Administrator
I am a facilitator of all things music(al)! I manage a full Musical Calendar which offers a wide and varied range of co-curricular activities for pupils and staff, including trips to the Royal Opera House and the Royal Albert Hall. In addition, staff also have the opportunity to be part of our Senior Singers Choir. With so much on offer, there really is something for everyone. |
 | Mr Roberts-WrayHead of Junior Art & DT, Junior School
The school encourages innovation and experimentation; there is room for the individual, whether that person is a pupil or a member of staff. |
 | Mrs GwilliamActing Director of Sport, Senior School
What I most enjoy about my job is the energy and enthusiasm from the pupils, and the friendly and supportive staff. At KES you are only ever a few steps away from a smile. |
 | Miss AtkinsonYear 3 Teacher, Junior School
One important element that is core to KES is the pastoral care. In the Junior School, the children are at the centre of everything and the staff work as a strong team to support every child's wellbeing and happiness. KES is a supportive second family to all involved. |
 | Mr QuayleDeputy Head (Pastoral) and Mathematics Teacher, Senior School
KES is a happy and successful school, with the social and emotional wellbeing of pupils central to all that we do. We get to know our pupils well and build open and trusting relationships so that our pupils flourish in all areas of school life and develop into confident, thoughtful and engaging young adults. |
 | Mrs TrumpHead of Year 7 and PE and Games Teacher, Senior School
I really like the variety of my roles at KES, which embrace both pastoral and academic. It’s very rewarding and allows me to really get to know our pupils. |
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AN INSPIRING EDUCATIONAL SETTING
Ongoing and significant investment in our facilities provides KES pupils with an inspiring educational setting within which to learn and develop.
Our Pre-Prep enjoys its own site at Weston Lane in a renovated Victorian mansion and has beautiful, secure and tranquil grounds. The School provides younger pupils with an excellent specialist learning environment tailored to their needs. Teddy’s Garden (which includes a dipping pond, vegetable plots and a greenhouse), an adventure playground and a new all-weather pitch provide invaluable outdoor opportunities to support the educational development of our youngest pupils.
At the Junior School, an award-winning building is centred around its engaging library, leading from which there are dedicated teaching rooms for Science, ICT, Art and Music, as well as the specialist Brenda Medlock Technology Centre. The surrounding environment with a new all-weather pitch, outdoor play equipment, wildflower meadow, dipping pond and greenhouse provides an ideal setting for outdoor learning and play.
The Senior School offers a wide range of excellent facilities and new builds, the most iconic of which is the three-storey Wessex Building opened in 2015. This facility houses a fully stocked ground floor library, a large first floor servery, deli and dining room with outdoor terrace, and a multi-purpose second floor for hosting concerts, lectures, social events and enrichment activities, all with wonderful views over Bath and to the countryside beyond. In recent times the School has also opened a purpose-built Drama Studio, ‘The Rose’; a new Modern Foreign Languages Centre; created a new contemporary Sixth Form hub, designed to accommodate a range of workstyles and study needs; opened a state-of-the-art Media Suite; invested £1m in new STEM facilities to extend its provision to 12 Science labs and installed a new all-weather astro pitch and gym facility, the latter boasting an array of weights and exercise equipment, selected to help support the School’s Strength and Conditioning programme.
AN INSPIRING EDUCATIONAL SETTING
KES IS ‘TOP OF THE ACADEMIC POPS’
KES is one of the one of the top performing co-educational independent schools in the South West and is consistently ranked amongst the very best school in the region in the Sunday Times Parent Power Guide. The School is rated excellent’ in every category in its ISI Inspection Report, whilst the Good Schools Guide notes that King Edwards is ‘Top of the academic pops in Bath and beyond.’
Whilst the academic achievement of our pupils rightly remains an important aim of the School, the outstanding results which are regularly achieved by pupils are not at the expense of their cultural, physical or social development, which are of vital importance to a pupil’s rounded development and future life chances. Academic endeavour is balanced with a full and vibrant co-curricular programme and a culture of mutual support.
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KES IS ‘TOP OF THE ACADEMIC POPS’
BATH’S OLDEST SCHOOL
The dissolution of Bath Priory by Henry VIII in 1539 cost the city its original grammar school, which had been run by the monks. Due to the lack of education available for their sons, the Mayor and citizens of Bath petitioned the young king, King Edward VI, to provide funds to establish a new grammar school. As a result, the King granted a Charter in July 1552, establishing ‘a school for the instruction of boys and young men in grammar to continue for ever’.
Today, King Edward’s School is an Independent Co-Educational Day School comprising Pre-Prep (3-7yrs), Junior (7-11yrs) and Senior (11-18yrsThe Pre-Prep School occupies a magnificent Victorian building in a delightful, leafy setting on Weston Lane, to the west of the city. The Senior School moved to its current location, a beautiful 14 acre site on North Road on the south-eastern edge of the city, in 1961. The Junior School, which occupies discrete, purpose-built accommodation on the same site as the Senior School, relocated to North Road in 1990. KES’ impressive playing fields are situated around a mile away in Bathampton.
In keeping with tradition, the School continues to celebrate its Founding by King Edward VI, with a Founder’s Day Service in Bath Abbey every July. At the service, the Charter is presented and read by our Head Prefects to a congregation of KES staff, pupils, parents, governors and invited guests including the Lord Mayor of Bath.
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BATH’S OLDEST SCHOOL
KES SUSTAINABILITY
With big ambitions and an all-encompassing plan for the future, the KES Sustainability Strategy is at the heart of everything we do at school, from the food we eat and the new facilities we build, to the energy we consume, and the career advice offered to our sixth formers.
Our pupils take a leading role in setting our strategy, working closely with members of the Senior Management and Estates and Facilities teams alongside staff as part of the Sustainability Committee.
Our Sustainability Strategy embraces six key areas of school life:
- The ENERGY we consume
- The FOOD we eat
- Our WASTE MANAGEMENT policies
- How we tend and preserve our BIODIVERSITY/GROUNDS
- Our approach to TRANSPORT to and at school
- The embedding of sustainability in our CURRICULUM
Click the link below to find out more about our Sustainable approach to education.
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KES SUSTAINABILITY
MEET OUR PUPILS
DAN - Year 7
Laura -Year 7
Penny -Year 7
Minnie - Year 13
Jacob - Year 12
Josh – Year 12
 | Dan -Year 7What advice would you give someone when they first join Year 7?
I would join a club. This will help with making friends, boosting confidence and getting to know your teachers better. If you're into drawing, join the Art Club. If you're into sport, join the Tennis Club. There are so many different clubs to suit your likes that you are bound to find one you'll enjoy. |
 | Laura -Year 7What clubs and other activities do you enjoy taking part in?
I do lots of music clubs in school, Orchestra, Brass Ensemble, Choir and Steel Pans, but also Spanish Club and Creative Writing. I love Creative Writing especially because we get lots of great ideas for stories and a place to share our writing and help each other. |
 | Penny -Year 7How did you find joining KES from another school? How did your teachers and tutor help you settle in?
King Edward’s School is the best school I have ever gone to. They somehow have managed to make me feel safe, and like I'm having fun, while teaching me things I will carry with me forever. My teachers are extremely kind, and I know that they are there for me. I have developed amazing friendships and cannot wait for my journey at KES to continue! |
 | Minnie - Year 13Why did you choose KES Sixth Form?
I chose to go to KES Sixth Form as I knew that: Firstly, I would have a fantastic sixth form experience in the brand new Holbeche Centre and secondly, the teachers are all extremely good and the class sizes are all relatively small, which I find really helpful for learning. Everyone here is so friendly so, if you’re new, there will be no problem making friends. I also chose KES as the Art and Drama departments are amazing, both with fabulous facilities including a new Drama studio (aka ‘The Rose’). Also, realistically, I knew I would be in safe hands academically and would have all the support and guidance needed to do the best I can in my A Levels and leave school with such a positive experience and amazing friends and memories that I can cherish forever. |
 | Jacob - Year 12How is the KES Sixth Form lesson experience?
I cannot even begin to emphasise how much Sixth Form - how much KES Sixth Form - improves school life. The academic community at KES makes each lesson feel less like a teacher talking at students for an hour, and more like a conversation, where each of you is talking about a subject you (hopefully) at least vaguely enjoy. English Literature has been a particular highlight for me personally - it being a small class of only eight, we spend plenty of lessons just discussing the novel, play, or poem we are studying at that time, and adjacent works. Everyone in the room is equally engaged in the subject they’ve chosen, making each lesson far more enjoyable. |
 | Josh – Year 12Outside of academic life, what extra-curricular activities are open to me in KES Sixth Form?
KES offers a huge range of activities outside the classroom to fit almost any interest you could possibly have. Personally, I was a little worried that the step-up in academic intensity would mean that it would be harder for me to keep going with the things I enjoyed, however, this year I’ve done more activities than ever before. KES sport is almost as big a part of school life as A Levels themselves, but it’s not just limited to the 1st team of the main four sports – whatever your skill or interest level, you’ll find something. There are too many clubs and societies for me to list here, but I can say that, from my own experience, you’ll definitely find your extra-curricular niche at KES, and if you think there’s a gap in what’s available you are given every encouragement to start your own club. |
Explore & Imagine
You can look around our Senior School Sixth Form Centre, see inside our Modern Foreign Languages classrooms, view our professionally equipped Drama Studio or explore our Junior and Pre-Prep Schools. Simply click on the link below to start your 360 tour.
NEVER A DULL MOMENT
We create an inspiring environment for diverse, talented children, fostering a lifelong passion for excellence, knowledge, and adventure.
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Mon, 17 Jul 2023
King Edward’s pupils celebrate impressive A-Level results
Year 13 pupils at King Edward’s have today been celebrating some wonderful and well-deserved A-Level results. The well-documented return to pre-pandemic grading levels saw similar numbers of top grades awarded nationally to 2019, making KES pupils’ successes even more impressive.
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Mon, 24 Jul 2023
Year 11 Celebrate Superb GCSE Results Across The Year Group
Year 11 pupils have today been celebrating some superb GCSE results, with almost 40% at the top 9 grade and nearly two thirds at grade 9 or 8. 84% of grades were at 9-7, well above KES’ already historically high pre-Covid average.
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Tue, 19 Sep 2023
A £115,000 investment in the catering facility at the Senior School sees a new deli bar open this term, alongside a new lunchtime menu and an enhanced sustainable food procurement and waste policy at KES.
INTERESTED IN JOINING KES?
Visit our Admissions page
ADMISSIONS
