St Edward's School is a public school (English fee-charging boarding and

day school A day school — as opposed to a boarding school — is an educational institution where children are given instruction during the day, after which the students return to their homes. A day school has full-day programs when compared to a regular s ...

) in

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

, England. It is known informally as 'Teddies'. Approximately sixty pupils live in each of its thirteen houses. The school is a member of the Rugby Group, the

Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference The Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference (HMC), formerly known as the Headmasters' Conference and now branded HMC (The Heads' Conference), is an association of the head teachers of 351 private fee-charging schools (both boarding schools ...

, and the Oxfordshire Independent and State School Partnership. Termly fees in 2024/2025 are £15,906 (+ VAT) for boarding and £12,725 (+ VAT) for day pupils. The school is also affiliated to the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

. The school teaches the

GCSE The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a range of subjects taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, having been introduced in September 1986 and its first exams taken in 1988. State schools ...

A Level The A-level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational ...

and International Baccalaureate (IB) qualifications. The sixth form is split evenly between pupils studying A Levels and the IB Diploma.

History

The school was founded in 1863 by Thomas Chamberlain, student of

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church (, the temple or house, ''wikt:aedes, ædes'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by Henry V ...

, and vicar of St Thomas the Martyr's Church, Oxford. The school carries the name of St Edward the Martyr, King of England from 975 to 978. The original school building was Mackworth Hall, which at that time stood on New Inn Hall Street in central Oxford. In 1873, after a storm damaged the school buildings and in anticipation of growing numbers, A. B. Simeon, the first Warden, moved the school to Summertown. At the time, the site was on the boundary of Oxford and surrounded by farmland, and Simeon bought a large plot for the school. The school remains on that site today, with the Quadrangle and playing fields on opposite sides of Woodstock Road. Simeon created an

independent school A private school or independent school is a school not administered or funded by the government, unlike a State school, public school. Private schools are schools that are not dependent upon national or local government to finance their fina ...

with monastic-style buildings around a quadrangle. The original buildings were designed by William Wilkinson. The north range was built in 1873 and 1886, the

gatehouse A gatehouse is a type of fortified gateway, an entry control point building, enclosing or accompanying a gateway for a town, religious house, castle, manor house, or other fortification building of importance. Gatehouses are typically the most ...

in 1879, and the east range, including Big School and the library, in 1881. Wilkinson's most significant building at St Edward's is the chapel, built in 1876. Henry Ewing Kendall was warden from 1925 to 1954. In the Second World War, air raid shelters were dug into the grass of the Quad. These included, among many others,

Guy Gibson Wing Commander Guy Penrose Gibson, (12 August 1918 – 19 September 1944) was a distinguished bomber pilot in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. He was the first Commanding Officer of No. 617 Squadron, which he led in the "Dam ...

of 617 Squadron, who led 'The Dambusters', flying ace Douglas Bader, and Adrian Warburton, famous for his role in the defence of Malta. Pacifist inclinations during the 1970s and 1980s caused the window to be relocated, before it was put back on display in the Old Library. The window has since been moved again and can now be seen on display in the warden's dining room. The school also has a scholarship fund to assist pupils whose parents are in the armed forces. The whole school became fully co-educational in 1997.

Recent history

In 2016, the school announced a new building project to complete the school's main Quad. The new development, designed by architect Nick Hardy (TSH Architects) and completed in 2020, includes a purpose-built Library, a university-style academic centre, and a new hall, with a capacity for 1,000 people. July 2007 marked the official opening of The North Wall Arts Centre. The centre was built on the site of the old school swimming pool, which was the oldest swimming pool in the country. The North Wall Arts Centre is run by Ria Parry and is a producing theatre. The North Wall Arts Centre won several major architectural awards for its design, including a RIBA award. The Martyrs Pavilion, designed by architect John Pawson, was opened in 2009 and won the 2010 Oxford Preservation Trust award in the New Buildings category. In May 2025, St Edward’s School faced public backlash after a teacher was suspended for allegedly sharing a racist image in a WhatsApp group. The image depicted Adolf Hitler as a Black man, alongside text resembling a racial slur. The incident, reported by the BBC, caused outrage within the school community. The school stated it had launched a full investigation and claimed it does not tolerate racist or discriminatory behaviour.

Sport

The sports on offer for girls include rowing, cricket, hockey, football, netball and tennis, while the main sports offered for the boys include rowing, rugby, hockey, cricket, football and tennis. The school has over of playing fields in North Oxford. In rowing the St Edward's School Boat Club has won The Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup at

Henley Royal Regatta Henley Royal Regatta (or Henley Regatta, its original name pre-dating Royal patronage) is a Rowing (sport), rowing event held annually on the River Thames by the town of Henley-on-Thames, England. It was established on 26 March 1839. It diffe ...

on five occasions, more than any other British school except

Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...

and

St Paul's School, London St Paul's School is a Selective school, selective Private schools in the United Kingdom, independent day school (with limited boarding school, boarding) for boys aged 13–18, founded in 1509 by John Colet and located on a 43-acre site by Rive ...

. In 1984 the 1st VIII became the first ever crew to achieve the 'Triple', winning all three school events that year: The School's Head of the River; The Queen Mother Cup at the National Schools Regatta; and The Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup at Henley Royal Regatta. In 2013 the boys 1st VIII boat rowed in the fastest Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup final ever seen at Henley, chasing the holders

Abingdon School Abingdon School is an independent day and boarding school in Abingdon-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, England. It is the List of the oldest schools in the United Kingdom, twentieth oldest Independent School (UK), independent British school. In May 202 ...

down to within half a length. Both crews beat the existing course record, having dispatched other leading international schools on the way to the final. In 2014, the boys 1st VIII were again the losing finalists. Having won Henley events eight times (including three years as winners of the now-discontinued Special Race for Schools), and been the losing finalist seven times, St Edward's School is one of the most successful boys' rowing schools. In 2023, St Edward's School became the first co-educational school to win Gold in Championship events for both boys' and girls' crews in the same National Schools' Regatta, winning the Jim Mason Plate for Girls Coxed Fours (for the second time) and the Queen Mother Challenge Cup for Boys Eights (for the fourth time). The girls' hockey has been particularly strong and teams are frequently County Champions. In 2013/14 the school had both boys and girls in Regional, National and Great Britain squads. In 2010 the boys' hockey 1st XI won the inaugural Charlie Barker Trophy, a competition between local rival schools including Radley College, Eton College,

Marlborough College Marlborough College is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English private boarding school) for pupils aged 13 to 18 in Marlborough, Wiltshire, England. It was founded as Marlborough School in 1843 by the Dean of Manchester, George ...

and

Cheltenham College Cheltenham College is a public school ( fee-charging boarding and day school for pupils aged 13–18) in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England. The school opened in 1841 as a Church of England foundation and is known for its outstanding linguis ...

and finished the season unbeaten. Most recently, in 2018 the girls' U16 and U14 sides won their County tournaments with the 1st XI also progressing to the Regional tournament. 2017 was a good year for St Edward's further down the age-groups too, with the Junior Colts A (U15) and Junior Colts B XVs both recording seasons of 10 wins from 11 matches. In 2018, the 1st XV were crowned County Champions for Oxfordshire after beating Cokethorpe School in the final. There are some six former or present pupils in their respective age group's England development squads/teams including James Forrester. The 2013 cricket season included victories over Radley College, Harrow, Uppingham School and

. In 2017, the 1st XI began the season with a historic win over Oxford MCCU in University Parks, going on to achieve 18 victories in the season - the second highest ever - the team was also crowned South Central T20 Champions. Former pupil AJ Woodland was announced as the Wisden School's Cricketer of the Year for 2016 and other accolades for current pupils included selection for England U17s, an England U19s Invitational XI, and a variety of representational and county sides. The Steeplechase is the school's annual cross country race and is held once a year with the seniors running a race across Port Meadow, the floodplain of the

River Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the The Isis, River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the Longest rivers of the United Kingdom, s ...

Notable alumni

Former pupils of St Edward's are known as Old St Edward's, abbreviated to OSE. Notable OSE include: * Admiral Sir Peter Abbott, former Vice-Chief of the Defence Staff * Sir Douglas Bader, WWII pilot * Arthur Banks, WWII pilot awarded GC * Richard Bampfield, cricketer * Antony Barrington Brown, photographer and explorer * Geoffrey Wallis Steuart Barrow, British historian and academic * Sir Russell Bencraft, cricketer * Pippa Bennett-Warner, actress *

John Berger John Peter Berger ( ; 5 November 1926 – 2 January 2017) was an English art critic, novelist, painter and poet. His novel '' G.'' won the 1972 Booker Prize, and his essay on art criticism '' Ways of Seeing'', written as an accompaniment to t ...

, art critic, novelist, painter, and author * Neil Biswas, screenwriter, playwright and film and television director * Richard Brooke, cricketer * Nicholas Budgen, Conservative MP * Admiral Sir Harold Burrough, Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff in WWII * Sir Geoffrey Callender, naval historian * Richard Carline, artist * Peter Carter-Ruck, lawyer *

David Frederick Case David Frederick Case (25 April 1932 – 1 October 2005), alias Frederick Davidson, was a prolific English narrator of over 700 audiobooks, primarily in the 1980s and 90s when the commercial audiobook industry was maturing. He was one of the first ...

, audiobook narrator * Emilia Clarke, Four-time Emmy nominated actress * Brian Cleeve, author and broadcaster * Joshua Compston, gallerist * Rear Admiral Anthony Cooke (Royal Navy officer), President of the Royal Naval College, Greenwich * John Davies, businessman and cabinet minister * Sir

Geoffrey de Havilland Captain (British Army and Royal Marines), Captain Sir Geoffrey de Havilland, (27 July 1882 – 21 May 1965) was an English aviation pioneer and aerospace engineer. De Havilland, The aircraft company he founded produced the de Havilland Mosquit ...

, founder of de Havilland Aircraft Company. * Richard Dinan, businessperson * George Fenton, Oscar nominated film composer * Gabriel Fielding ("Alan Barnsley") author, W.H. Smith Literary Award Outstanding Contribution to English Literature 1963 * Anthony FitzClarence, 7th Earl of Munster * James Forrester, England rugby union international * Paul Gibb, England Test cricketer *

VC, Dambusters hero, * Robert Gittings, poet and biographer * Jon Goodridge, rugby player * John Galbraith Graham, crossword compiler (Araucaria) *

Kenneth Grahame Kenneth Grahame ( ; 8 March 1859 – 6 July 1932) was a British writer. He is best remembered for the classic of children's literature ''The Wind in the Willows'' (1908). Born in Scotland, he spent most of his childhood with his grandmother in ...

, author * Ernest George Henham, author * Mark Herdman, diplomat, Governor of the British Virgin Islands (1986–1991) * Sir

Tom Hopkinson Sir Henry Thomas Hopkinson (19 April 1905 – 20 June 1990) was a British journalist, picture magazine editor, author, and teacher. Early life Born in Manchester, his father was John Hopkinson (priest), John Hopkinson, a Church of England cl ...

, journalist * Noel Baring Hudson, Anglican Bishop * Hugh Ingledew, Welsh rugby union international * Stewart Innes, British Rower * Poppy Jamie, TV Presenter * Sir David Lewis,

Lord Mayor of the City of London Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or are ...

* James Lockyer, Canadian lawyer and social activist * Andrew MacLachlan, Scottish actor and cricketer * Rob Marris, Labour MP *

Arthur Miller Arthur Asher Miller (October 17, 1915 – February 10, 2005) was an American playwright, essayist and screenwriter in the 20th-century American theater. Among his most popular plays are '' All My Sons'' (1947), '' Death of a Salesman'' (1 ...

, cricketer * Norman Miscampbell, Conservative MP * Philip Mounstephen, bishop of Winchester * Sir John Moreton, diplomat * Sir

Laurence Olivier Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier ( ; 22 May 1907 – 11 July 1989) was an English actor and director. He and his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud made up a trio of male actors who dominated the British stage of the m ...

, actor, director and producer * Sir Derek Oulton * Hugh Padgham, record producer * Florence Pugh, Oscar nominated actress * Sir Nicholas Pumfrey, judge * Ernest Read, cricketer * Georgina Rylance, actress * Lord Michael Sandberg, former CEO of HSBC Group * John Sandoe bookseller * John Silver, early member of rock band Genesis * Jon Snow,

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...

newscaster * Harmeet Singh Sooden, political activist * Ian Edward Stewart, bandleader, pianist, musical director Savoy Hotel (1955-1978) * Gordon Strachan, unorthodox minister *

Louis Strange Louis Arbon Strange, (27 July 1891 – 15 November 1966) was an English aviator, who served in both the First and Second World Wars. Early life Louis Strange was born in Tarrant Keyneston, Dorset, and was educated at St Edward's School, Oxfor ...

, WW1 pilot * Georgia Tennant, actress * Sir David Thorne * Sir Brian Tovey, former director of

GCHQ Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) is an intelligence and security organisation responsible for providing signals intelligence (SIGINT) and information assurance (IA) to the government and armed forces of the United Kingdom. Primar ...

* Sir Stephen Tumim, judge * Sam Waley-Cohen,

Grand National The Grand National is a National Hunt horse race held annually at Aintree Racecourse in Aintree, Merseyside, England. First run in 1839, it ...

and

Cheltenham Gold Cup The Cheltenham Gold Cup is a Grade 1 National Hunt horse race run on the New Course at Cheltenham Racecourse in England, over a distance of about 3 miles 2½ furlon ...

winning jockey * Alan Waldron , cricketer and soldier * William Wallace, Baron Wallace of Saltaire * Adrian Warburton DFC,

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

British pilot * Sir Barry Wilson * Sir Francis James Wylie, first warden of

Rhodes House Rhodes House is a building part of the University of Oxford in England. It is located on South Parks Road in central Oxford, and was built in memory of Cecil Rhodes, an alumnus of the university and a major benefactor. It is Listed building#En ...

* Teddy Wynyard, cricketer and footballer * Leia Zhu, violinist * Kelvin Ho-Por Lam, Hong Kong district councillor, political activist, former

HSBC HSBC Holdings plc ( zh, t_hk=滙豐; initialism from its founding member The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation) is a British universal bank and financial services group headquartered in London, England, with historical and business li ...

economist * All members of the band

Glass Animals Glass Animals are a British indie rock band formed in Oxford, England in 2010. The band's line-up consists of Dave Bayley (vocals, guitar, keyboards, drums, songwriting), Drew MacFarlane (guitar, keyboards, backing vocals), Edmund Irwin-Singe ...

(Dave Bayley, Joe Seaward, Ed Irwin-Singer and Drew MacFarlane)

Notable masters

Notable masters of the school include: * James Cope, first-class cricketer (former master in charge of cricket) * David Conner, Dean of Windsor; former Bishop to the Forces (former school Chaplain) * A. Maitland Emmet, became one of Britain's foremost authorities on microlepidoptera * Richard Howitt, cricketer (former master in charge of cricket) * Sir George Mallaby, public servant (former housemaster)

International links

The school has built up links with a number of schools around the world, which include: ; Mayo College, India. : An exchange programme was set up in 1997 which saw a lower sixth boy study at Mayo and a lower sixth boy from Mayo study at Teddies. ; The

Gilman School Gilman School is an all-boys independent school, independent, day school, day, college preparatory school located in the Roland Park neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland, United States. There are three school divisions: Lower School, grades pre ...

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

, USA. : Gilman and St. Edward's operate a scholarship known as the Hardie Scholarship. One Lower Sixth boy from St. Edward's studies at Gilman during March/April and a Junior from Gilman studies at St. Edward's during June. ; Roland Park Country School, Baltimore, USA. : In 2004 St. Edward's established an exchange programme with Roland Park. The programme runs at the same time as the Harry Hardie Scholarship, with one lower sixth girl from St. Edward's studying at Roland Park and a Junior girl from Roland Park studying at St. Edward's. ;

The Doon School The Doon School (informally Doon School or Doon) is a Selective school, selective all-boys Private school, private boarding school in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India, which was established in 1935. It was envisioned by Satish Ranjan Das, a lawyer ...

, India. : An exchange programme was set up in 2002 which saw a lower sixth boy study at Doon School and a lower sixth boy from Doon study at Teddies. ; The King's School, Parramatta : King's traditionally play Teddies once every two years during their UK Rugby tour. Teddies played King's in Sydney for the first time in 2003.

Arms

The school received a grant of arms in December 2017.

References

External links

St Edward's School website

Profile
at the '' Good Schools Guide''
Profile
at the Independent Schools Council website {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Edward's School, Oxford Private schools in Oxfordshire Schools in Oxford Boarding schools in Oxfordshire Co-educational boarding schools Member schools of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference Educational institutions established in 1863 1863 establishments in England International Baccalaureate schools in England Church of England private schools in the Diocese of Oxford