Frensham Heights A GSG School
- Frensham Heights
Rowledge
Farnham
Surrey
GU10 4EA - Head: Ben McCarey
- T 01252 792561
- F 01252 794335
- E admissions@frensham.org
- W www.frensham.org/
- An independent school for boys and girls aged from 3 to 18.
- Boarding: Yes
- Local authority: Surrey
- Pupils: 510; sixth formers: 90
- Religion: Non-denominational
- Fees: Day £10,710 - £30,312; Boarding £33,966 - £47,304 pa (last updated on 09/12/2024)
- Open days: Friday 11th October 2024 - Whole School Open Morning; Wednesday 16th October - Sixth Form Open Evening; Monday 30 September 2024 - Performing Arts (yr 5)
- Review: View The Good Schools Guide Review
- Ofsted report: View the Ofsted report
- ISI report: View the ISI report
What The Good Schools Guide says..
‘Not your typical school,’ parents absolutely choose Frensham for its ethos. A progressive school since its founding in 1925, pupils wear their own clothes and are on first name terms with teachers. ‘Some people get the wrong end of the stick,’ one parent says, referring to local suspicion that Frensham is too laid back, ‘Frensham Heights isn’t a relaxed school, it’s just… being there is relaxing.’
What the school says...
Frensham Heights is a progressive day and boarding school - refreshingly different since 1925 - founded by three women passionate about offering an alternative style of education with the child at its heart. A school and a community based on mutual respect, tolerance and generosity of spirit which strives to educate the whole child – mind, body and spirit. And so it has been ever since. Frensham offers something truly different to the formal, hierarchical instructional-style of teaching found in most traditional state and private schools. Instead children take an active part in their education – championing independent thought and curiosity. ...Read more
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Other features
All-through school (for example 3-18 years). - An all-through school covers junior and senior education. It may start at 3 or 4, or later, and continue through to 16 or 18. Some all-through schools set exams at 11 or 13 that pupils must pass to move on.
What The Good Schools Guide says
Head
Since 2024, Ben McCarey. New to this headship, he already looks at home. Maybe it’s the laid-back vibe of his yellow trousers, blue shirt and trainers that gives us that impression, or the springer spaniel curled up in his office. To work here, ‘you have to be fully in tune with the values of the school,’ he tells us, and from all we’ve heard, he’s Frensham to a tee.
Mr McCarey (everyone calls him Ben) was a chorister at Christ Church Cathedral School in Oxford, then attended Stowe on a music scholarship and full bursary. After a BA in English Literature from the University of York he undertook his PGCE at Oxford then started his teaching career with nearly a decade at a comprehensive school in North Oxfordshire. He moved...
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Overall school performance (for comparison or review only)
Results by exam and subject
Subject results
Entry/Exit
Special Education Needs
Frensham Heights provides group lessons from Year 1 for those considered to have mild learning difficulties. These lessons not only offer support, but enable the teacher to monitor individual progress. From Year 7, the school uses diagnostic tests to assess the learning needs of all students. This then influences how lessons are planned and how those with learning needs are managed. Frensham Heights does not have a Special Needs Unit. Our provision is managed by a Director of Support for Learning and a Head of Support for Learning (Junior School). They work with a team of peripatetic specialist teachers who also provide support on a one-to-one basis. Where this is required, it is charged separately. Support teachers and tutors attend a number of continuing professional development courses annually to ensure that they are fully conversant with current theories and strategies in order to support students.
| Condition | Provision for in school |
|---|---|
| ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder
Might cover/be referred to as;
ASD - Autistic Spectrum Disorder, Aspergers, Autism, High functioning autism, Neurodivergent, Neurodiversity, Pathological Demand Avoidance (PDA), PDA , Social skills, Sensory processing disorder |
|
| HI - Hearing Impairment
Might cover/be referred to as;
Hearing Impairment, HI - Hearing Impairment |
Y |
| MLD - Moderate Learning Difficulty
Might cover/be referred to as;
Learning needs, MLD - Moderate Learning Difficulty |
|
| MSI - Multi-Sensory Impairment
Might cover/be referred to as;
MSI - Multi-Sensory Impairment, Sensory processing |
|
| OTH - Other Difficulty/Disability
Might cover/be referred to as;
Downs Syndrome, Epilepsy, Genetic , OTH - Other Difficulty/Disability, Tics, Tourettes |
|
| PD - Physical Disability
Might cover/be referred to as;
PD - Physical Disability |
Y |
| PMLD - Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulty
Might cover/be referred to as;
Complex needs, Global delay, Global developmental delay, PMLD - Profound and Multiple Learning Difficulty |
|
| SEMH - Social, Emotional and Mental Health
Might cover/be referred to as;
Anxiety , Complex needs, Emotionally based school avoidance (EBSA), Mental Health, SEMH - Social, Emotional and Mental Health, Trauma |
Y |
| SLCN - Speech, Language and Communication
Might cover/be referred to as;
DLD - Developmental Language Disorder, Selective mutism, SLCN - Speech, Language and Communication |
|
| SLD - Severe Learning Difficulty
Might cover/be referred to as;
Complex needs, SLD - Severe Learning Difficulty, Cerebral Palsy (CP) |
|
| SpLD - Specific Learning Difficulty
Might cover/be referred to as;
ADHD, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Auditory Processing, DCD, Developmental Co-ordination Difficulties (DCD), Dyscalculia, Dysgraphia, Dyslexia, Dyspraxia, Handwriting, Other specific learning difficulty, SpLD - Specific Learning Difficulty, Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) |
Y |
| VI - Visual Impairment
Might cover/be referred to as;
Special facilities for Visually Impaired, VI - Visual Impairment |
Who came from where
| School | Year | Places | Scholarships | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barfield School | 2024 | 1 | ||
| Edgeborough School | 2024 | 1 | ||
| Longacre School | 2024 | 2 | ||
| South Farnham School | 2024 | 1 | ||
| St Andrew's School | 2024 | 1 |
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