Ardingly College

We are a co-educational school in the Woodard Corporation, founded to teach the Christian faith.

Our founder, Nathaniel Woodard, had a simple aim: to build schools which were Christian communities. There, children could be nurtured in the values of the Gospel and each could, within the limits of their own conscience, engage with Christ in the mystery of the bread and wine of the Eucharist.

Today, we are the proud successors of that inheritance.

We welcome students from across the world, from all religions and none, and retain at our heart our founding values.

We are a community of stewards and our aim is to produce young men and women, confident in their own faith and being, with a sense of justice for all – with a desire to make a difference to the wider world.

Ardingly College is known as Nathaniel Woodard’s ‘Jewel in the Crown’.

As a pupil, parent, prospective parent or in a professional capacity, you will already know something about us, if only from the outside.

But it is of course the inside that counts. Most importantly, it is the intangible qualities of a school that matter most: its spirit, its culture and the collective beliefs of the people who form it. The layout of this site is intended to reflect aspects of Ardingly’s character, and what we see as important.

We are a school of ambition and are proud of the achievements of our pupils. In a globalised world, securing strong qualifications and a track record of success has never been more important.  We also ensure that our pupils enjoy a great deal of choice to enable them to succeed in the classroom and in the activities they pursue in their wider school life.

An excellent education also requires us to look beyond the school gates, and engage with the world around us. Whether they live five minutes down the road or come from the other side of the world, every pupil must leave school with a positive engagement and understanding of the world around them. This is what World Ready aims to achieve.

Finally, confidence. That intangible quality that is essential for personal fulfilment. Confidence comes from having the support and understanding of the community in which you live.  Above everything else, we aim to understand every child, to support them through the opportunities and challenges of growing up, and to help them to grow in understanding, respect and enjoyment of the people and the world around them.

You’ll find Ardingly College on the outskirts of Ardingly village, surrounded by 230 acres of outstanding natural beauty. Ardingly College is situated in an enviable location. It offers the best of all worlds; the surrounding beauty of the Sussex countryside, close proximity to the vibrancy of Brighton on the South Coast and the culture of London and, for international students, the convenience of being just 13 miles away from Gatwick Airport.

Our teaching and boarding facilities are very much 21st century and are subject to continual investment to meet technological progress and ensure the highest standards. Over the past five years the most notable developments have been an impressive addition of a Sixth Form house, Godwin Hall; total refurbishment of all the girls’ boarding and day houses; a contemporary Economics and Business Studies Centre; second all-weather sports pitch; a state-of-the-art Strength & Conditioning Centre; and a £4.5 million refurbishment and extension of our Science Centre, enabling the incorporation of the Design & Technology Department.

Our range of sports facilities includes six tennis courts, two all-weather pitches, three cricket squares, nine football pitches, a swimming pool and a host of recreational spaces throughout our beautiful estate.

We have our own impressive observatory that was opened by our great friend, Br Guy Consolmagno SJ (Keeper of the Vatican’s Meteorites). It is equipped with a powerful telescope capable of seeing Jupiter and it provides a base for our enthusiastic astronomers.

We are currently building a second girls’ day house. Our longer-term plans include a new facility for our performing arts.