Copthorne Preparatory School

Children are unique and every child deserves a school that is dedicated to developing individual abilities and confidence.

This is an ethos that informs everything we do here at Copthorne Prep; a local independent prep school nestling in 55 acres of beautiful West Sussex/Surrey countryside. Catering for children aged between 2-13 years, we believe in offering our boys and girls the very best all round education, together with a stimulating range of sports and activities.

This structured approach gives every one of our children the freedom to learn and grow within a safe nurturing environment.

To achieve this, a close partnership is established between each child and their teacher while ensuring that our class sizes remain small. Our commitment to providing exceptional pastoral care is also reflected in the strong sense of community that children enjoy at the school, coupled with a culture that encourages trust, tolerance and achievement.

To discover why Copthorne Prep School is the perfect fit for your child, please feel free to contact us or browse our website for further information.

Copthorne Prep School has developed an outstanding reputation for helping children to realise their full potential. By providing opportunities for all to succeed, children leave us as confident individuals, well prepared for their progression to senior schools of their choice. We inspire all our pupils to become lifelong learners, responsible global citizens and the very best that they can be.

We strive to:-

• Instil a desire for excellence in all areas of learning, celebrating effort as well as achievement
• Offer a well-considered, stimulating curriculum which provides opportunities for children to be challenged, to be curious and to develop as independent learners
• Support talented and enthusiastic staff who seek to enable children to fulfil their potential
• Provide a nurturing environment where all children are happy, valued and encouraged to develop as individuals
• Develop a strong sense of school community that is kind, inclusive and reflects the increasingly diverse and international dimension of school life
• Provide strong pastoral care based on traditional Christian values of mutual respect towards all members of the community
• Develop a partnership with pupils, parents and staff to promote a culture of trust, ambition and high achievement

The building now known as Copthorne Preparatory School was originally built as a private dwelling called Emsworth House, and was owned by the Kensington Family. Mr Edward Kensington was a wealthy advertising agent who retired to Copthorne in 1888. He died in 1895 at the age of just 55 years following a period of ill health. Newspapers of the time report that ‘Copthorne and neighbourhood has lost a valued resident and the poor inhabitants especially a kind and generous benefactor’.

In 1897, Emsworth House became a temporary home for Twyford School whilst their own buildings were reconstructed, and was then founded by Mr Bernard H. Rendall in September 1902 as a boys’ school. He was the brother of the then Headmaster of Winchester College, and the school was originally designed as a feeder school for Winchester. Copthorne Preparatory School began with just 9 boys.

Part of the original building that was initially used as an observatory, complete with tower, was converted into a Chapel for the school and was dedicated by the Bishop of Lewes on October 20^th 1910.

The first edition of the Copthorne School Chronicle was published in November 1911 with the object of ‘bringing old boys together who have lost sight of one another and to inspire present members of the school with a pride in their forerunners and determination that they will keep up the standard of work and play which others have handed down to them’. Subscriptions were initially 1/6 per annum.

In 1913 the sad news of the tragedy in the Antarctic touched many at the school as Dr Edward Wilson, who was Mr Bernard Rendall’s brother-in-law, had made the school his headquarters for a short time after the ‘Discovery’ Expedition. He visited again before starting out on the second expedition to tell the school of their aims and to thank the school for their generous contributions to the funds for the expedition from which a sledge named ‘PIP – Primus Inter Pares’ [First among equals] was provided as well as scientific instruments. Captain Scott also wrote to the school in the days before their departure thanking everyone for their financial assistance.

The Copthorne School Chronicle of the time notes that ‘In the manner and circumstances of their death they have left an undying heritage, ….an example of endurance, self-sacrifice and heroism.’ A fund was established at the school to honour Dr Edward Wilson’s memory and the stained glass window in the Chapel remains a fitting tribute to the man.