Age range. 4–13.
Number of children. 414 girls and boys (including 12 Choristers and 5 Non-Chorister boy and girl boarders).
Fees per year (2024-2025). Day: £19,674–£24,324; Boarding: £38,328; Choristers: £12,777. Bursaries available for Choristers.
Profile. St John’s prides itself on the quality of the academic and pastoral care it provides for each child. Through relaxed and friendly relations with children in a well-structured environment rich with opportunity; through close monitoring of progress; through communication and cooperation with parents; through expert staffing and, above all, through a sense of community that cares for the strengths and weaknesses of each of its members, St John’s has consistently achieved outstanding results exemplified by over 70 scholarships during the last three years. While its Choristers maintain the tradition of choral services and tour the world, St John’s status as an Expert Centre for ICT, and other innovations, ensure the School’s commitment to the future. Mrs Sarah Wright has been appointed as the new Head from September 2025, having worked at Haberdashers' Girls' School in London. Mrs Wright will succeed Mr Neil Chippington.
Entry. At 4–7 by parental interview; at 7–12 by parental interview, report from previous school and, as appropriate, assessment.
Curriculum. The curriculum surrounds the core of formal skills teaching with a breadth of enrichment and extension for each child’s talents. In addition to the usual subjects including specialist taught French, DT, ICT, Art, Music, Dance and Drama, and PE for all pupils, the following are also available: Latin (from 9+) and Greek (optional from 11+). Pupils in Year 8 are prepared for 13+ Entrance Exams and Scholarship examinations. Philosophy and Study Skills are now regularly taught to pupils in certain year groups and all pupils are introduced to Mindfulness.
Leavers. Virtually all go to senior independent day or boarding schools. The School works closely with parents to assist them in finding the best school for their child.
Consultation. Tutorial system (1 teacher to 10 pupils) with daily tutorial session timetabled. Half yearly academic assessments, end of year examinations, termly Parents’ Evenings and weekly staff ‘surgery’ times.
Sports. Athletics, badminton, basketball, cricket, cross-country, field run, fives, football, golf, gymnastics, hockey, netball, rowing, rugby, squash, swimming, table tennis, tennis. All games are timetabled and therefore given significant status. All major sports strong.
Activities. Numerous clubs including Aquathlon, Art, Athletics, British Sign Language, Book Café, Calm, Chatterbooks, Chess, Circuits Training, Computer Control and Electronics, Cricket, Dance, Debating, Design Technology, Craft, Drama, Dungeons and Dragons, Field Run, General Programming, Golf, Hockey, Indoor Hockey, Italian, Jewellery, Maths games and puzzles, Maths Clinic, Mini Tennis, Cycling Proficiency, General Knowledge, Debating, Lego, Micro:bit, Mindful Colouring, Philosophy, Poetry, Pupil Forum, Rowing, Rugby, Science, Sewing, Times Tables, Writers and Yoga. College Choir of international status, Chamber Groups, Orchestras, School Chapel Choir, Junior Chamber Choir, Parents’ Choir, Major theatrical productions, e.g. Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat (Year 7), Passion Play and three Shakespeare Plays (Year 8) and theatrical opportunities for every year group of children. A range of visits relating to curriculum plus French, Classics trip to Naples, Earth Sciences trip to Iceland, Ski trip to Italy and residential outward bound trips for Years 5 to 8, plus a range of day excursions for all year groups.
Facilities. School on two sites with facilities used by all pupils. All children throughout the school can use the St John's College's Playing Fields directly opposite the school.
Byron House (4–8). Outstanding facilities including Science, DT and Art Centre, Library, Gym/Hall, and specialist Music building. The children use the landscaped and planted ‘Forest Garden’ and the Kindergarten children spend either a morning or an afternoon with a designated Forest School teacher in the Forest Garden once a week. The Kindergarten children also have their own garden plus vegetable and fruit beds. The site comprises large learning spaces and classrooms for child-initiated learning, play-based and digital learning. The rooms are fitted with bespoke, streamlined storage. Investigative and collaborative skills are fostered by the use of the ‘writeable tables’.
Senior House (9–13). Facilities include the Chapel, Drama theatre, Gymnasium, two Science Laboratories, Art Room, Computing Room, Swimming Pool and Music School, and the site boasts 14 classrooms, an outstanding Library, a DT and Computer Control and Graphics facility, a Multi-use Studio, Music facilities, a Quiet Garden, a Multi-Sports Court and changing block, extensive storage and excellent staff facilities. The children make use of our 3D printers and laser cutter.
Boarding. From age 8. Girl and boy boarders form an integral part of life at St John’s and benefit from all the School’s facilities while living in the homely, caring atmosphere of a Boarding House. The Boarding House accommodates up to 40 boys and girls and facilities include recreation areas, a library, TV, table tennis, their own garden and use of all Senior House facilities. Day boarding and ‘Waiters’ facilities allow the School to be flexible to the needs of parents and children alike.
Charitable status. St John’s College School, Cambridge, a charitable company limited by guarantee, registered in England and Wales, company number 13396877, charity number 1194790.