Cheltenham College
Labor Omnia Vincit
Founded in 1841, Cheltenham College is a co-educational boarding and day school set in the heart of Regency Cheltenham, on the edge of the Cotswolds. Traditional in character yet innovative in outlook, it is guided by its five values of curiosity, character, community, creativity, and continuous excellence. The College sets out to develop the whole person, supporting each pupil to explore their passions and interests and to pursue them to the highest level.
Key Facts
Location : Cheltenham, Gloucestershire
Type : Co-educational, boarding and day
Age Range : 13 to 18
Pupil Numbers : Approx. 690 pupils
Founded : 1841
Motto : Labor Omnia Vincit ("Work Conquers All")
Academic Profile
In the Third Form, pupils at Cheltenham complete a Foundation Project Qualification and follow modules in leadership and public speaking, before taking their GCSEs. In the Sixth Form they study A Levels, with a dedicated Oxbridge programme, and Old Cheltonians proceed to Oxford and Cambridge, alongside leading Russell Group universities.
Co-Curricular Life
Sport has an exceptional presence at Cheltenham, played to a high level across hockey, cricket, rugby, netball, and many other games, and including rackets, in which the College has a distinguished record and its own court. The College Cricket Ground has hosted the Cheltenham Cricket Festival since 1872, the longest-running cricket festival of its kind in the world. The performing arts are just as strong, with drama staged across seven or so productions a year in the College's own theatre, Big Classical, and music based in Lake House, and pupils draw throughout on the literature, music, science, and jazz festivals that fill the town around them.
Admissions Essentials
Pupils join Cheltenham College at three points, at 13+, into Year 9, at 14+, into Year 10, and at 16+, into the Sixth Form. Entry at 13+ is via the ISEB Common Entrance examinations or the College's own Entrance or Scholarship papers, with candidates attending an Entrance Day of tests in English and Mathematics alongside structured discussions and activities, considered together with a report from the pupil's current school. Sixth Form places are offered on the basis of an interview, a school reference, and GCSE results. At both 13+ and 16+, scholarships and awards are available across academic, music, art, drama, and sport.
In Essence
For a pupil ready to give their all to work, sport, and the arts alike, Cheltenham offers a first-class all-round education shaped by curiosity, character, and community, and prepares each one to make a real difference beyond school.