Wells Cathedral School

Mission statement

The school’s mission is to "inspire every individual pupil to nurture their talents in a vibrant, creative, spiritual and stimulating environment to become a responsible global citizen."

Academics

Wells provides an innovative and bold curriculum with an Integrated Arts Programme, Modern Foreign Languages, STEM, a Specialist Music Scheme and a Specialist Maths Scheme. The school offers over 25 subjects at GCSE and A level and the Extended Project Qualification (EPQ). Sport is an integral part of the school’s overall education with numerous pupils gaining representation at county and national levels.

The school follows the GCSE and A level curriculum. Recent A level exam results showed 75% of pupils were awarded A* to B.

Over 90% of Wells’ pupils secure places in one of their first two choices of university. Over 80% to Russell Group, 5% to Oxford or Cambridge, and around 25% to one of the world’s leading music conservatoires with a 100% success rate for musicians applying to conservatoires.

Activities & sports

Wells Cathedral School believes that sport is an integral part of school life and encourages all pupils to take part. The school has a wide range of sports facilities including Astroturfs, netball and tennis courts, Multi Use Games Area (MUGA), a swimming pool, rugby fields, badminton courts and a climbing wall. The school is known to have the best cricket grounds in Somerset.

Wells Cathedral offers many different societies and activities from art, creative writing and photography to cooking, drama (with multiple productions each year) to Combined Cadet Force (CCF) and clay pigeon shooting. Their drama has a reputation for ambitious productions such as Les Misérables and Beauty and the Beast. Art flourishes with regular exhibitions in their dedicated, modern performance centre, Cedars Hall.

International student community

Wells Cathedral School welcomes international pupils and recognises the importance of English language support to help overseas students settle in and succeed. Approximately 20% of the student population are international pupils.

Wells Cathedral has a highly developed English as an Additional Language (EAL) programme which begins with an International Preparatory Course lasting 10 days. This quickly gives international pupils an idea of what to expect and makes it easier for them to settle in. Following this preparatory course, pupils are offered an individually tailored programme to support their studies throughout the school year.

Boarding life

In the Senior School at Wells Cathedral, approximately 50% of the pupils are boarders. Wells Cathedral is proud to create a strong family environment for pupils in a place that they can call home. Boarding pupils are encouraged to make the most of the facilities and resources available and to get involved with activities which are on offer. The school has eight boarding houses, all of which have common rooms and large garden spaces where there is the opportunity for barbecues and socialising. Weekend trips for boarders include going to the cinema, ten-pin bowling, sailing on the local reservoir and shopping in nearby Bath and Bristol.

The school provides a safe and caring environment where pupils can flourish in their surroundings, develop a commitment of responsibility to the school community and prepare them for life beyond school.

Each Boarding House has a resident Houseparent and Assistant (both are often joined by their families and pets!), along with a non-resident Matron and a number of staff. The House teams are vital to running the Houses smoothly, but more importantly, they give continuity to the boarders’ lives. We find boarders form strong relationships with our House teams, which enables them to have an adult they trust on hand to help with anything and everything.