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‘I want everyone to find something they love and really want to do it,’ says the new principal of this super south London girls’ school Matthew Shoults. ‘The school is large so economies of scale mean we can provide a wealth of opportunities for everyone to grab hold of their own thing. The girls really get stuck in.’ Spread across five buildings in Surbiton, it’s certainly big – there’s also a 39-acre sports facility a few miles away and a boathouse on the Thames – and with its ‘Nourish to Flourish’ charter for wellbeing it’s the perfect environment for girls to find their passion and grow in confidence. One pupil describes it as ‘like a safety blanket’ where ‘everyone can excel in their own way’. There’s no stigma to SEND, no glass ceiling on achievement – the girls row and play football at national level and nearly all of them head off to Russell Group universities or other specialist destinations – and the pastoral support and practical life-skills lessons mean they leave with all the tools they need for adult life.
Where is Surbiton High?
Set in leafy Kingston upon Thames, this school is a distinct entity while also forming part of a cohesive community with its two preparatory schools –
Surbiton High Boys' Prep School and
Surbiton High Girls' Prep School. This allows pupils to reap the benefits from the rich resources and superb facilities of a multi-property campus and whilst home to a sizeable number of pupils, the school doesn’t feel overwhelmingly large. Surbiton station is only an eight-minute walk away, and trains whisk pupils back to Wimbledon, Southfields, Barnes and Victoria station. In addition, the school operates 10 coach routes, all linked to a tracker so that parents can plan their drop-offs and pick-ups to perfection despite the unpredictability of urban traffic.
Headteacher at Surbiton High
‘I am brand new but feel steeped in the Surbiton culture already,’ says new head Matthew Shoults, who took up the post in January 2025. Previously head of Notting Hill and Ealing High School, he has worked in schools for over 25 years – first teaching classics at King’s College School Wimbledon, before becoming head of classics and then senior deputy head at North London Collegiate School. His warmth and no-nonsense energy match the school’s; we love how he’s ‘stealing’ a PSHE lesson a week and using them for topics such as how to network a room and how to make a cold call. He tells us he wants to give the girls all the skills they need for the future. Years 7 to 9 take part in house public speaking competitions, eventually learning to speak without notes and he’s encouraging more out-of-school performances – a recent production of The Magic Flute at the Royal Festival Hall saw Surbiton girls making up half the cello section – and volunteering. He’s also planning a joint academic symposium with nearby Wilson Boys' Grammar School, which will see both schools working on research projects together.
Admissions for Surbiton Senior School & Sixth Form
Girls sit an entrance exam in English and maths in the autumn term before admission, with shortlisted candidates interviewed by senior staff early in the spring term. It’s intended to be a calm and friendly process that gets the best out of each candidate. Unsurprisingly, this is a popular school, with at least five applicants for each place at 11+ and at least two per sixth-form place and waiting lists for every cohort. Girls from the prep do get an automatic spot here and the vast majority take it, so those coming from elsewhere are advised to plump for Year 7 entry as there are few places higher up the school.
Siblings don’t gain automatic entrance, but the school will endeavour to admit pupils from the same family if they meet the criteria. For sixth-form, girls need a minimum of six grade 6s at GCSE.
Academics and destinations
Girls are set for maths from the get-go – and as a thoughtful extra, forms are arranged by postcode so that new girls can get to know locals in their year group. All pupils are screened for dyslexia at the start of every academic year (an excellent initiative), and a specialised learning support team is available to assist students with everything from mastering English as an Additional Language and exam technique to specific needs such as dyslexia, dyscalculia and ADHD. The library is at the heart of the school, both physically and metaphorically – and although everyone has access to their own iPad, written work remains the priority.
Languages are front and centre with all Year 7’s learning French, German, Spanish and Latin before selecting two to take forward to Year 8. Mr Shoults has moved computer science teaching down into key stage 3 to build confidence in the subject earlier. There’s no option blocking at GCSE so pupils can study whichever subjects they like, and the same is true for A-Levels (where there’s a whopping 32 subjects on offer).
The sixth form is the jewel in the crown here; lucky Year 12 and 13 pupils have their own dedicated building complete with a gym, common room, private study rooms, classrooms for non-space specific subjects and a cafe, popping over to the main school buildings for the likes of drama, science, art and music. It's the perfect stepping stone between school and university, with pupils learning in a very grown-up environment and given the freedom to pop out and wander along the river during their lunch break.
Results here are excellent, with an average value added of +1 at GCSE and +0.6 at A-Level, but this isn’t a hothouse. There’s a tangible focus on a bespoke education that produces confident, bright, and rounded individuals – almost all of whom go on to Russell Group universities. Those that don't tend to head to the most prestigious colleges and universities for performing arts subjects. But, as the head of exams and Year 12 (who has supported students here for over two decades) told us, it’s all about ‘whatever is right for the child’ – and she offers excellent guidance to ensure that pupils have the best possible chance of securing the right place for them. This year saw leavers heading off to 90 different degree courses including scholarships to overseas universities, as well as degree apprenticeships at Dyson and IBM.
Co-curricular at Surbiton Senior School & Sixth Form
Sport is fantastic here, with pupils picking from a Super Eight that includes netball, hockey, cricket, football, gymnastics, rowing, tennis and skiing. Most training takes place a few miles away at the Hinchley Wood Sports Ground, and teams are varied and plentiful – everyone can represent the school if they wish (and 80 per cent do), and Saturday fixtures regularly involve A-F teams. Pursuing areas of strength is a recurring theme here: from Year 7, girls choose their own PE pathway for their weekly lessons from the Competitive, Artistic or All-rounder options, and by Year 10 the programme expands to include activities including yoga, body combat and rock climbing. The rowing programme is, according to the head, ‘the largest girls' programme in the country’, with 250 rowers regularly training out of the old BBC boathouse in Teddington. A few are already sporting GB colours with several more in line for selection.
Drama is awesome at Surbiton High, with incredibly professional annual productions staged at a nearby theatre – this year they put on West Side Story at New Wimbledon Theatre and everyone’s involved, including Year 4 and 5 girls from the prep. Their own drama room has had an upgrade with a new floor and lighting system and in addition to year-group plays and drama clubs, there’s an annual dance show (dance is as superlatively good as drama here and it’s offered at both GCSE and A-level).
Music is equally slick, with more than 300 individual lessons taught each week at Surbiton High and 18 concerts a year. The school orchestra accompanied West Side Story and pupils also sing at Cadogan Hall and the Royal Opera House.
It’s clear that staff genuinely understand and indeed champion the role of co-curricular activities in education, and there is an almost unimaginable array of clubs, clinics, activities, mentoring and trips available for the students at Surbiton High – the co-curricular handbook is a weighty 116-page tome with opportunities ranging from Surbiton Sunshine (a breakfast politics discussion group), and running club to life drawing and morning strolls along the river. There are also community weeks, house weeks and European language week - which saw pupils performing international karaoke.
School community at Surbiton Senior School & Sixth Form
Surbiton High School’s motto ‘May Love Always Lead Us’ is at the core of all the Surbiton schools, and pupils and parents alike buy into the ethos of empowering every pupil to find their strengths, celebrate success and build lifelong relationships. The overarching aim is to develop confident individuals, and all pupils are encouraged to ask for help whenever they might need it. Three counsellors and two nurses ensure that specialist care is available on tap, and both online and on-site workshops are regularly on offer to parents and staff.
The six houses are a big part of life at Surbiton High. Named after female pioneers (Franklin, Austen, Curie, Parks, Nightingale and Pankhurst), they form the backbone of year-group integration, while numerous inter-house competitions see pupils compete across curricular, co-curricular and extracurricular activities and learn leadership and teamwork skills.
On Fridays (or FAB Fridays, as they’re known), lessons end early and house groups take turns to staff the tuck shop, hold bake sales and raise money for their own house-chosen local charity.
The parents’ association is very active, organising lots of events to raise money both for the school and local charitable causes – and the whole school charitable annual donation total often exceeds £50,000.
And finally....
While academic results are impressive, Surbiton High girls are also encouraged to learn outside the classroom, challenge themselves and develop a can-do attitude, which they do with gusto thanks to the fantastically supportive environment. Staff are always available to pupils and the girls are equipped with everything they need to become self-aware, discover their strengths and succeed on their own terms both in and outside the classroom.