WHAT? WHERE?

This stunning red-brick school, chapel and bell tower is set in a former 18th century nuns’ convent amid 200 acres of beautiful Warwickshire countryside. Perched on top of a hill with far reaching panoramic views across surrounding fields and woodlands, it’s just outside the small village of Princethorpe, in between Rugby and Leamington Spa.

Princethorpe College occupies the site of a former Benedictine priory, St Mary’s Priory, which was established by nuns who fled France during the 18th Century French Revolution.

The college itself was founded in 1966 by the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart as a senior school for their boys’ school, St Bede’s College in Leamington Spa. An all-boys day and boarding school for many years, girls were admitted to the Sixth Form in 1976, and it became fully co-ed in 1995. Boarding ceased in 2004, as demand for day places grew.

The college now has 893 pupils aged 11-18, including 238 in the Sixth Form. In the lower school there are small classes of around 22 pupils; while in Sixth Form groups tend to be between eight and 14. It is the senior school within the Princethorpe Foundation, which encompasses 4-11 prep schools, Crescent School in Bilton, Rugby, and Crackley Hall School in Kenilworth which has its own on-site nursery, Little Crackers.

There is a diverse intake from within a 25 mile radius. The vast majority come from Leamington, Warwick, Rugby and Coventry, but with some pupils travelling as far as Solihull, Lutterworth, Stratford-upon-Avon and Banbury, many on the College’s comprehensive bus services.

Princethorpe is widely renowned for putting pupils’ wellbeing and personal development at the core of its educational offering. It is characterised by a strong Catholic ethos and ‘spirit of family’ which underpins modern day values like kindness, community spirit and inclusivity. All faiths and backgrounds are welcome here – 25% are practising Catholics. Pupils have two school ‘rules’: to be kind and do their best. This year’s whole school theme is ‘Integrity’. Community initiatives and charity fundraising are key elements.

Deeply embedded in the big local farming community, Princethorpe makes the most of its rural surroundings. Every May it holds a National Schools and Riding Clubs equestrian event and there are new plans to open an educational farm on the estate.

Old Princethorpians include multi-award-winning journalist Felicity Hannah, a BBC Radio 4 presenter on Money Box, Wake Up to Money and You and Yours, distinguished former England cricketer Ian Bell MBE and Marc Marot, once the youngest MD of Island Records, who worked with artists including U2, PJ Harvey and The Cranberries.

FACILITIES

Princethorpe’s contemporary state-of-the-art Science Centre opened in 2023

With a cornflower blue sky and cows in the field adjacent to the school drive, I could not have arrived on a more perfect spring day to appreciate the bucolic setting. You enter a grand wooden front door into the historic main school building and reception hall. I was guided around the college by two Year 12 sixth formers who were excellent hosts.

Recent developments include a sympathetically designed glass fronted Sixth Form, and stunning new Science Centre with 10 state-of-the-art labs, breakout spaces, prep rooms and gallery which opened in 2023. With wide corridors and a glass roof it has more of a contemporary gallery architectural feel. Large lab windows overlooking the scenic natural surroundings outside, add to the overall calming effect.

The next major build is a new sports hall, in addition to the continuing revamp of existing sports facilities. However, the Head is mindful of cost implications for families.

This former priory is packed with lovely period features from carved stone arched windows in atmospheric cloistered corridors with original tiled floors and carved wooden beams.

Views look out onto the Quad, a lovely peaceful landscaped garden at the heart of the historic building for reflection or where visitors can take a moment to admire the striking architecture. This is one of the few areas not accessible for pupils on a regular basis. At the heart of the school is the ornate Chapel, used for morning prayers, mass and assemblies – and is also where many former pupils return to get married.

Another impressive room is the long Harry Potter-esque Library in the old chapel which has original stained glass windows at both ends. Here younger pupils can take part in pared reading groups or join a bookclub run by enthusiastic A level English students, who recently launched an Instagram social channel filming peer book reviews and Q&A’s with staff on their favourite reads. The library is also a place where pupils come after school for relaxed study sessions with Deadly 60 in the background on TV.

This part of the building also incorporates a Theatre, classrooms and well-equipped Design and Technology workshops, which offer robotics club, a recycled plastics club and have new 3D laser printers – a big hit with students.

Windows into a fully-equipped food tech room/kitchen reveal a hive of activity with pupils busily engrossed in baking something delicious. Talented Year 10 GCSE Food and Nutrition student Sophie Henry won first place in the Springboard Futurechef Warwickshire Final – the biggest school culinary competition in the UK championed by the likes of Tom Kerridge. She knocked up two-courses in 90-minutes on a budget of just £10 – watch out Masterchef! A Tuesday Roast and Fish and Chip Friday, are two of the most popular weekly menu choices at the main school Refectory.

Here, the College really does make the most of its fabulous outdoor space, which includes an apple orchard. Students can take part in orienteering, nature walks in the grounds, including the lovely Mile Walk, DoE activities, archery and a cross-country route. Princethorpe even has an outdoor classroom surrounded by woodland and a small lake.

In terms of tech, pupils must bring a suitable laptop or tablet device to lessons – families can rent or buy a Lenovo touchscreen through a school scheme. Microsoft Teams and Office 365 is its main learning platform.

SPORTS

The school has seven outdoor rugby and football pitches, a hockey Astro turf, two new netball courts and three new tennis courts – adding to the existing two netball and three tennis courts as part of an ongoing upgrade. There are also two cricket pitches with nets. All of these have a vista over the rolling Warwickshire countryside. Indoors there’s a sports hall, fitness suite and a fantastic climbing wall. No swimming pool.

Princethorpe is big on competitive sports and every Year 7 pupil has the opportunity to compete competitively, many for the first time, as there isn’t just an A and B team. During the past year students have competed nationally and regionally in netball, hockey, girls football, cross country, rugby and boys football. Recent successes include fourth in the Under18 Netball ISA National Tournament and first in the Under 12 Midlands Hockey Regional Tournament and Girls Football.

Despite no pool the college has a squad of 24 super-talented swimmers, who brought home a haul of 27 medals from the annual ISA Midlands Swimming Gala, with several swimmers qualifying for the national ISA event and helping the Midlands team come third.

For pupils who excel in sports there are sports scholarships and an Elite Sports programme but there’s a democratic approach. All pupils are encouraged to have a go and acquire new sporting skills with extra curricular activities ranging from sailing on nearby reservoir Draycote Water to dance, tennis, Elite Tennis, Elite Archery, Elite Fitness to athletics, climbing, strength and conditioning, golf netball, girls/boys football, rugby and girls/boys cricket.

CREATIVE ARTS

I arrived at the school to the sound of a pupil tinkling the ivories in one of the Roundhouse music practice rooms. For budding musicians the school has several practice rooms with great acoustics – including a circular domed space which looks like a miniature Albert Hall – and a recording studio, plus the school chapel for choral performances. One of the more unusual instruments taught here is the steel pan drums.

Arts are taken seriously here helping to support the talents of arts scholarship pupils and to ignite passions. The Drama department has a Theatre with tiered seating and industry standard sound and lighting. Annual school productions have increased to three, with an additional production introduced for lower school pupils. They are currently in rehearsal for the musical Newsies Jr about plucky NYC news boys battling for fair pay and a sustainable living during the 1890s. Previous productions have included Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

In the last year the Musical Theatre group performed Loserville while the Drama department staged an interpretation of A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness. Many pupils take Lamda drama classes. Year 11 pupil Orla Fleming saw off fierce competition from thousands of applicants to be selected for the 2025 intake into National Youth Theatre.

Art is taught in light, plant-filled, airy art rooms – GCSE and A level students also have their own loft art studios, and there’s a photography dark room too. You can feel the buzz of creativity all around with paint splattered white jackets hanging up in rows and pupil’s work on display in classrooms.

For prospective pupils with outstanding artistic flair there are both Art Scholarships and Performing Arts scholarships covering choral, dance, drama, music and musical theatre, plus organ at Sixth Form. The sixth formers I spoke to mentioned one of their peers was exceptional at photography and awarded a special Photography Scholarship – so some room for flexibility here.

Young artists from the school performed exceptionally well in the ISA Midlands and National Art Competition, securing multiple first and second places. High quality art work and photography produced by pupils hangs proudly on the walls everywhere you go – including the visitors’ loo!

SIXTH FORM

There are currently 238 sixth formers based in the Sixth Form building, a large, light-filled space with a Resource Centre, Lecture Theatre, Coffee Bar, Common Room and their own Dining Room where pupils recently enjoyed a Masquerade Ball. It also does great cookies and pretzels, I’m told.

A new dress code includes smart business-like suit with a jacket, knee-length skirt, dress or trouser suit. Pupils are very well supported with a Head of Sixth Form, and three Assistant Heads and a well thought out curriculum.

It includes the CoRE PSHE programme sessions which links into the school’s ethos through exploring issues from a moral and religious perspective, as well as informal discussions on life’s big questions.

Outside speakers come in to talk about issues ranging from driving safety to cyber-crime to animal welfare or the prison system, plus students receive practical advice and information on careers, applying to university, vocational courses, apprenticeships, work, gap year travel and personal finance.

Enrichment periods allow students to embark on new pursuits such as self-defence, yoga or mindfulness, basic sign language, wildlife watching, first aid or essential cooking skills.

The kids here seem happy, open, relaxed and settled, comfortable in themselves and appreciative of the support and opportunities they’ve received. Big pluses according to the Sixth Formers I spoke to are the size of the school, the sense of family, its community feel and the excellent pastoral support. They say their peer groups are very accepting here.

One student I chatted to had been awarded one of the UK’s highly coveted Arkwright Engineering Scholarships and is looking into degree apprenticeships; another came from a tiny primary school and went onto win a trophy for the special De Vinci gifted pupils programme trophy in Year 9. She is now hoping to study English at a collegiate university and maybe sit Oxbridge entrance exams.

As part of the school’s weekly enrichment programme every Friday two minibuses of sixth formers visit two local care homes. There’s also the Granger’s Club which involves visits from a local group of adults with learning difficulties who enjoy fun activities run by sixth formers including karaoke, quizzes and dinner. The Lower Sixth have a MAD – Make a Difference Day – every year.

ACADEMICS

Rated excellent by the latest ISI report for both academic achievement and personal development.

A level results for 2024 saw 37% of grades at A*- A (or equivalent) and 91% were awarded (A*- C). Of the 56 pupils who took an additional EPQ, 55% achieved A*-A and 91% A*-B. Impressively, 97% of 2024’s cohort went to their first choice of universities or degree apprenticeships.

For GCSE 44% of pupils gained 9-7 (A*- A) and 95% 9-4 (A*- C).

More unusual subjects for Years 7 – 9 include Latin and Outdoor Education. Dance is also a much-welcomed new Level 2 BTEC course taken alongside GCSEs – so far two pupils are studying it, rising to seven in the next academic year.

Pupils have a broad choice of A levels including Law and BTECs in Applied Science, Business, Sport Education and Music Performance. Most take three A levels and an EPQ or alternative, options include an AS in Latin, Core Maths, Sports Leadership Award or MFL for Business.

The majority of Upper Sixth students go on to university, including King’s College, London, the University of Birmingham, Durham University, University of Bristol, Imperial College London and many other Russell Group ones, to name a few. Pupils have been successful in getting into top conservatoire’s too at Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester, as well as other creative courses such as Guilford School of Acting.

Last year saw pupils choosing to study subjects ranging from medicine and mechatronics to marine biology, musical theatre and Equine Sports Coaching. An increasing number were accepted onto prestigious selective Degree Apprenticeship programmes, ranging from paramedic training to police training, equine sports coaching to football academies.

The calibre of pupils is evident. Three of this year’s Upper Sixth students have already beaten off tough competition to be awarded top degree apprenticeships – one on Grant Thorton’s Public Sector Audit Apprenticeship, another on Barclays’ Risk Analyst Apprenticeship programme and a third securing a one in 2,000 place on Jaguar Land Rover’s Supply Chain Degree Apprenticeship scheme.

When it comes to where these will take you Head of Careers Jacqui Quinney and her team have three scheduled career interviews with pupils but they’re encouraged to drop in anytime to discuss their future plans. The school goes out of its way to bring in speakers to come and talk on any career subject.

As an example of this more than 800 pupils and parents attended a biennial Career Insights in March 2025 with talks by 52 alumni which they could book onto. Keynote speaker Tunde Olanrewaju (Class of 1998), Senior Partner with leading global consulting firm McKinsey & Co in London, was joined by ex-pupils now working in every career you can think of. Past pupils, or Old Princethorpians, take part in other careers-related talks through the year.

ADMISSIONS

This is a selective school with tests where Year 6 pupils have to prove themselves not just academically, but also in terms of how they fit into the school’s ethos and values. Places are competitive with more than 250 applications for 130 places in Year 7.

Year 6 pupils sit an entrance exam in the November of the year before they are due to start. The College seeks pupils who are academically capable but also demonstrate a willingness to engage in the school’s vibrant community. For more on Admissions visit here.

There is also an entrance exam in November for other year groups, if spaces allow. It has several scholarships – for academic, sporty and arty children, as well as bursaries.

Prospective families are encouraged to attend open mornings, evenings, and taster days to get a feel for the school before registering for entrance exams. A reference from a child’s current school is also requested.

PASTORAL

Pastoral care has always been one of Princethorpe’s strengths, with personal development rated ‘excellent’ in the 2022 ISI report.

There is the appropriately named ‘pastoral corridor’. This is where the proactive pastoral care team hang out. Led by the Deputy Head – Pastoral it includes House Form Tutors, Co-Tutors, Heads of House, a full-time Matron, two qualified counsellors, the Chaplaincy Team, and a Student Support Officer.

Students I spoke to championed how staff had supported them to deal with personal challenges. One student arrived in Year 7 with a fear of heights which his house tutor helped overcome by introducing him to the school climbing wall. He now climbs three times a week and volunteers with lower school pupils on one of them.

Another Year 12 student spoke eloquently about suffering from anxiety, particularly during exams, and how she had been supported. Mental health and wellbeing is a key area of interest for her and she now works with the pastoral care on the student side to offer advice and support to lower school pupils.

Each student is assigned to one of four houses: Austin, Benet, Fisher, and More – named after Catholic saints to foster that sense of community and belonging. In Years 7 to 11 Princethorpe operates vertical tutoring. Each day pupils have a 25 minute in their tutor groups. There’s a PSHE Pastoral Care Programme, often featuring external speakers in assemblies. Outdoor education experiences such as the Duke of Edinburgh Scheme, World Challenge and Camps International have been found to greatly benefit pupil’s individual personal growth beyond the classroom.

SEND

Princethorpe has a dedicated Learning Support team with four SENCO’s who work closely with parents and families to plan and share information and progress. There are currently 25% of pupils on the SEND register for a range of needs, though only 46 pupils receive learning support. Pupils with SEND follow the same curriculum as other pupils, with appropriate flexibility to meet their needs whether it’s dyslexia, dyspraxia or ADHD. Applications are welcomed.

THE HEAD

Two-and-a-half years into his new tenure as head South African born Grove du Toit, is loving school life at Princethorpe and the Midlands with wife Marike and two daughters, after 17 years in London. Du Toit came from Forest School, London, a co-ed independent day school for 4-18s, where he was deputy warden (senior deputy head) for five years before taking over from Ed Hester in January 2023.

Hester is now the Principal of Princethorpe Foundation after 14 years as Headmaster. ‘Evolution not revolution’ has been du Toit’s primary aim since arriving and building on the pastorally-driven USP – the best he has ever worked with. But his biggest bugbear was the misplaced perception that Princethorpe was not academic. He wanted to readdress this balance by shining a light on excellent work that goes on in the ‘Thinking Classrooms’ and the dedication of staff (there’s a very high retention rate with only four staff moving onto pastures new at the end of the academic year). In a recent parent questionnaire teaching and learning came top in what they rated most highly about the school – a clear sign of progress in this area.

Next on his agenda is a new sports hall and an educational smallholding to support lessons and kids from a farming background. A towering – he’s 6ft 6 inches tall! – jovial presence with a real joie de vivre and energy. By all accounts he’s a genuinely lovely person who turns up at matches every Saturday and is passionate about pupils having a broad school experience from learning to use a sewing machine, hammer and saw to standing on a stage – singing, dancing or acting.

Du Toit also teaches Religious Studies. He clearly knows his stuff – two degrees from the University of Pretoria, a BA (Ed) in Educational Guidance and Counselling and BA (Hons) in Biblical and Religious Studies. He also holds teaching qualifications plus an MA in Educational Management from King’s College London and an MBA from Salford Business School.

Du Toit’s own two daughters are pupils at the school. A large proportion of staff also have children at the school further adding to the sense of family and community.

QUIRKS

Princethorpe College is a film location for two BBC drama’s – Father Brown and its spin-off The Sister Boniface Mysteries. It features parts of the original nuns’ convent and nuns’ cells on-site where they prayed and slept.

The scenic estate certainly has a beautiful cinematic quality with an area of the grounds known as ‘Switzerland’ – christened by the French nuns who first lived there who said it reminded them of the Swiss landscape. The Lime Walk is named after the Lime trees, which are less common now, planted by the first nuns who helped to establish the community in the 18th century.

There’s also the old church bell tower, which pupils get to climb in Year 7 – with amazing views from the top.

Bee keeping is definitely one of the more unusual extra curricular clubs we have come across at Muddy!

MOBILE PHONE POLICY

For lower school pupils’ mobile phones are allowed to and from school but Years 7 – 9 must keep them in their locker during the school day; while Year’s 10 and 11 may keep their phone in their school bag. Sixth Formers can use phones in the Sixth Form Centre only.

WRAP AROUND CARE

The school opens at 7.30am with breakfast available for pupils and staff in the Bourse. After school there’s Princethorpe Prep, a free-of-charge supervised homework session every day until 6pm, plus sports.

Incredibly there are 41 varied extra curricular clubs at lunchtime or after school ranging from chess to Planet Princethorpe, an eco-action group led by sixth formers and a Piano Duet Club. So popular are these that on some evenings up to 500 pupils are still on-site at 5pm – as a result parent’s have asked for a new late bus service.

TRANSPORT

Around 60% of pupils regularly use the College’s private bus service which picks up within a wide geographic area, including Nuneaton, Coventry, Lutterworth, Daventry, Stratford-upon-Avon, Banbury, and Solihull. From September 2025 Princethorpe is introducing a new late bus service at 5.45pm. It will stop at a small number of bus stops in major hubs.

REPORTS

You can read the ISI’s 2022 Inspection Report.

FEES

Fees are competitive. For 2024-25 fees are £5,904 per term including VAT, and for 2025–2026 – £6,199.20. The Foundation introduced a new strategy last summer mindful of the financial challenges facing parents. It reduced fees in January 2025 so that the increase passed onto parents was 5%, substantially less than the 20% VAT rate.

In addition to a variety of scholarships on offer there are means-tested bursaries for families in need of financial assistance including two specific bursaries for pupils who are practising Catholics – the Thomas More Scholarship for lower school and the Jules Chevalier bursary for Sixth Form.

WORD ON THE GROUND

A very family-oriented school. Parents (and pupils) love the homely feel and pastoral care. In the ISI report parents praised the strong support provided by the school for their children’s development as individuals. Parents I spoke to said it’s a fantastic school offering something for everyone with a wide variety of lunchtime and after school clubs, as well as sports. One parent said their child had received amazing help with 1-2-1 sessions by the SEN team. Another parent-teacher revealed that she and her husband chose this school because they knew, if the worst ever happened, their kids would be wrapped up in care by the community. The only real major gripe was the parking at pick-up time.

THE MUDDY VERDICT

GOOD FOR: Arty, sporty, academic, all-rounder – all will thrive here, particularly those willing to get ‘stuck in’ and be part of in the school’s vibrant community. Anyone looking for a safe and nurturing environment for kids to grow, be creative, pushed and challenged with a strong sense of community and moral value.

NOT FOR: Sixth formers looking to wear more casual dress may not be keen on the smart business-like dress code. It’s in a very central location just 7 miles from Coventry, Leamington, Rugby and Southam, but those who like the buzz of a town or city centre may find the location quite remote as there are no shops within immediate walking distance.

DARE TO DISAGREE: Come to the Summer Open Evening on Wednesday 4 June, 6.30pm to 8.30pm for pupils interested in joining Year 7 – 10 and Lower Sixth in September 2026 and beyond. Book your place here.

Princethorpe College, Princethorpe, Rugby, CV23 9PX. Tel: 01926 634200. Email: post@princethorpe.co.uk

Princethorpe College, Rugby

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