Description
New College School is Independent Secondary school in Not applicable for kids aged 4 to 13 (Gender - 4 to 13 )
They have been going for over six hundred years, but they are equally proud of our reputation for forward-looking excellence and innovation in education. The culture of mutual respect and cheerful collaboration suffuses NCS life, inside the classroom and out, and the strong sense of community is reflected in the valuing and celebrating the boys’ talents and achievements wherever they reside – in academic scholarship, music, sport, drama, art, or any other area they may find their passions. They are very fortunate to enjoy a close relationship with New College, Oxford – the school has been an integral part of William of Wykeham’s foundation since 1379 – and they benefit from inspirational surroundings and access to state-of-the-art facilities that enable them to pursue the highest standards. But, as beautiful as the environment may be, NCS is about people. They understand that high standards are most effectively and happily met when they all pull together and support one another in the creative endeavours.
Facilities
Curriculum
At New College School they do not make a distinction between academic rigour and creativity. The curriculum is balanced to ensure that boys can enjoy music, art and DT alongside more traditional academic subjects. Within those subjects, boys are encouraged to think creatively, to play with ideas, and to come up with inventive solutions to tricky problems. We strike a balance between being a small community school and having first-class teaching and learning facilities. The award-winning sports hall – also housing a DT workshop, ICT suite and art room – was opened by Lord Patten, the Chancellor of the University of Oxford. We have a state-of-the-art junior and senior Science laboratory, comfortable library and media room, hall for music and drama, music rooms, beautiful sports fields, and they share access to the spectacular fourteenth century New College Chapel, as well as using the College gardens, cloisters, library and archives to support boys' learning.
Pre-Prep Life
The New College School Pre-Prep accepts boys from the age of four. Classes are small and boys are expected to proceed to the Prep School at the end of Year 2, at the age of seven. Under the direction of the Head of Pre-Prep, the department provides a nurturing environment which enables the boys to develop socially and academically. Individual attention is important to them in ensuring that boys enjoy learning, are at ease with each other and school life, and that basic skills are soundly absorbed and developed in a friendly and collaborative atmosphere.
Prep School Life
The Prep School takes boys from age seven until they are ready to leave for senior school at thirteen. In contrast to the Pre-Prep department, where most teaching occurs in the same classroom, boys in the Prep School have more timetabled lessons in a variety of specialist classrooms. As the boys grow older, the intensity of the academic work gradually increases. The boys are also involved in a wide range of musical, sporting, and other extra-curricular activities through the lunchtime and after-school activities programme. Staff also give generously of their time to the extension of the curriculum beyond the classroom, utilising the rich resources of collegiate Oxford and beyond.
Features
Things to note
Sport & Physical Wellbeing
Boys at New College School enjoy a range of options in sport. They have plenty of opportunities to represent the School in a team, develop their sporting skills, and take up a new interest in the lively programme of lunchtime and after-school activities.As an integral part of the curriculum, there is a balanced scheme of Physical Education that teaches skills, develops overall fitness, and complements the Games programme. They aim to help boys to understand the benefits and enjoyment of regular exercise and feel confident in team and individual sport. The School's sporting life is supported by first-class playing fields nearby, which they share with New College. The playing fields or nearby astroturf facilities are used for winter sports focusing on football and hockey, and summer sports focusing on cricket, tennis and athletics.
Music
Drawing upon its choral foundation, the musical life of the School is very strong. Music has been at the heart of New College School since it was founded in 1379 as a school to educate the choristers of New College. Today, of course, it is not just choristers that we educate, but nonetheless we aim to give every boy who passes through NCS the best start in music that they possibly can. From Reception to Year 8 all boys have timetabled class music each week, and, using singing as a starting point, they discover their own musical potential, as well as learning about the whole world of music around them.
Drama
Every NCS boy takes part in at least one dramatic production per year, with roles tailored to meet the talents and interests of each pupil. A drama specialist prepares pupils for LAMDA awards as part of the after school activities programme. There are productions of plays or musicals for every year group, including a Pre-Prep nativity play and summer entertainment, a Gilbert and Sullivan operetta for Years 3 and 4, an annual French play, Shakespeare in New College Chapel, and a playreading in New College garden. Pre-Prep plays are written by the Pre-Prep staff and the music is composed by one of the music staff.
Activities
At NCS they run both lunchtime and after-school activities sessions. Lunchtime activities are run every day apart from Wednesday and the after school programme operates on Monday - Friday evenings. For more information about the activities on offer each term, please contact the Director of Activities
Extra Curricular
Please check the school website link for details.
0.87 miles
