Cheltenham Ladies' College
Cœlesti Luce Crescat
Founded in 1853 and shaped substantially by Dorothea Beale, Principal from 1858 to 1906, Cheltenham Ladies' College was among the first schools in England to take girls' academic education as seriously as that of boys, at a time when this was far from assumed. That founding seriousness of purpose still runs through the College, which sits at the heart of Cheltenham.
Key Facts
Location : Cheltenham, Gloucestershire
Type : All-girls, boarding and day
Age Range : 11 to 18
Pupil Numbers : Approx. 850 girls
Founded : 1853
Motto : Cœlesti Luce Crescat ("May She Grow in Heavenly Light")
Academic Profile
Girls at Cheltenham take their GCSEs in Upper College, where many also undertake a Higher Project Qualification, within a notably strong languages tradition. In the Sixth Form they choose between A Levels and the International Baccalaureate, and go on to Oxford and Cambridge, alongside Imperial College London, UCL, and the Ivy League.
Co-Curricular Life
Music and drama both flourish, anchored by the Parabola Arts Centre and its RIBA award-winning theatre, alongside a black box studio, a recording studio, and a full range of choirs, orchestras, and ensembles. The visual arts are served by dedicated studios for fine art, printmaking, textiles, and photography, and sport is played on a broad and competitive scale, with lacrosse, hockey, netball, and rowing among the strengths, supported by a modern health and fitness centre with a swimming pool and climbing wall. At the College, achievement is never only academic, and what a girl brings to its wider life counts for just as much.
Admissions Essentials
Girls join Cheltenham Ladies' College at 11, 13, or 16, with the majority entering at 11. For 11+ entry into Year 7, registration is recommended by the beginning of July of Year 5. Candidates attend an Assessment Day at the College in the autumn term of Year 6, comprising group discussions and activities alongside written and adaptive online tests in Maths, English, and Verbal Reasoning, with a place offered on the strength of the assessment day, the entrance tests, and a reference from the current school. Offers follow in November of Year 6. For 13+ entry, candidates attend an Assessment Day at the College in the autumn term of Year 7, comprising group discussions and activities alongside written and adaptive online tests in Maths, English, and Verbal Reasoning, with a place offered on the strength of the assessment day, the entrance tests, and a school reference. At both 11+ and 13+ entry, scholarships are available in academic, music, art, and sport categories, with assessments in the spring term.
In Essence
For a girl whose curiosity runs in several directions at once, drawn equally to a debate, a concert, and a hard mathematics problem, Cheltenham rises to all of it, matching a genuinely curious mind with the ambition to stretch it.