Colchester High School
Catchment Area, Reviews and Key Information

At Colchester High School we believe it’s important for children to want to be here. That’s why we regularly invite parents and children to visit our school.

Unfortunately due to the current situation, we are only able to provide socially distanced events and tours after school hours at this time but we hope they will still provide you with a strong understanding of what the school has to offer.

Our next Virtual Open Morning will be held on Thursday 6 May at 10am to provide prospective parents with an opportunity to learn more about our School.

Our Admissions Manager, Mrs Hilton can be called on 01206 217116 or emailed at [email protected] to book an appointment.

WATCH OUR VIRTUAL OPEN DAY PRESENTATION HERE >>

If you are unable to attend our Virtual Open Morning, but would like to arrange to see a recording of the Open Morning, please contact Mrs Hilton on 01206 217116 or at [email protected]

At Colchester High School we celebrate the individual. Our small class sizes and high-quality teaching are the two key characteristics that the success of our school is built on, allowing us to offer a tailored education to each individual boy and girl in the school.

Working with a small class, a good teacher can get to know each pupil as an individual and identify their strengths and needs. This allows them to know what motivates them and how to best help them progress. Our great teachers are specialists in their subject and this expert teaching in music, French, ICT and PE is accessed by children at every stage of the school, right from nursery.

Our small class sizes and high-quality teaching also allow us to offer strong pastoral care. We know our boys and girls with all of their enthusiasms, fears and dreams. This allows us to support their on a spiritual, moral, social and cultural education in a focused and tailored way, ensuring that they develop the kind of personal qualities our society needs.

Parents who visit our school always remark on how happy the children are. It’s no coincidence that we place such an emphasis on providing excellent pastoral care.

Good pastoral care is about making children feel at ease so that they can thrive at school. That means making every child feel valued and cared for, which in turn means knowing them well, having good relationships with their families, and offering them the right support.

Read more about our Pastoral Care here.

Students from Colchester High School are celebrating an incredible year of GCSE results, despite this year’s challenging circumstances, with 97% of grades achieved at the Grade 4 or above (national average of 78.8%) and, more pleasingly, 88.6% of grades at Grade 5 or above (national average of 61.5%). 43.5% of grades were 7 or above (national averages of 27.5%). 93.4% of pupils achieved at least 5 Grade 4 and above passes including Mathematics and English. We are particularly delighted that 14 subjects achieved a 100% pass rate.

David Young, Head of Colchester High School, said, “This year has certainly been a challenging and anxious time for our Year 11 pupils and it is such a pleasure to celebrate today with our students such excellent GCSE results.  Colchester High School is proudly non-selective and these results are testimony to the hard work of our pupils combined with the benefit of small classes, excellent teaching and robust assessment throughout our Senior School.  My congratulations go to all of our GCSE students and I wish them every success as they take their next steps into A Levels and beyond.”

Colchester High School is very proud to announce that they have won the highly prestigious ISA Award for Outstanding Sport for a large school! 

Mr Young, Principal said “This is wonderful testimony to the passion and innovation of our PE Department in ensuring that there are sporting opportunities offered to all our pupils through partnership with the community. This award is also for our pupils who embrace all the sports that are offered and proudly represent the School at fixtures both locally and nationally” 

The Independent Schools Association (ISA)  is the registered charity that represents the Heads of 528 of the UK’s best independent schools The ISA Awards are an annual event that celebrates success in their Members’ schools and recognises the breadth of quality and provision in independent education across the country.

Colchester High School & Nursery are proud to announce that our Early Years Department (Nursery to Reception) has been awarded ‘Millie’s Mark.' Awarded by National Day Nurseries Association (NDNA) in association with Department for Education and Millie’s Trust, this award is a Quality Mark for nurseries that demonstrates their commitment to going above and beyond the requirements for keeping children safe and minimising risks and accidents.  This has been

Millie’s Mark is named after Millie Thompson, who tragically died as a result of choking in a nursery in 2012. Her parents Dan and Joanne Thompson have campaigned for all staff to have paediatric first aid training and having Millie’s Mark demonstrates that nurseries have met this. In addition, it shows they work hard to keep these crucial skills in the forefront of employees’ minds, so they are competent and can apply paediatric first aid in any situation.

Ms Gracie-Langrick, Headteacher said, “We are absolutely thrilled to have been awarded Millie’s Mark.  This is a special achievement and shows how serious our Nursery staff and Reception teachers are about ensuring children are safe when they are in our care.  We are delighted that their efforts have been rewarded and I want to thank everyone who has worked so hard through this process.  Although we are now an official Millie’s Mark awarded Early Years Department, our hard work of continuously developing our quality care and education will not stop. It is crucial that we maintain the criteria to ensure the ongoing safety of our children. We are also so proud of the work of our Early Years Department who were also last year shortlisted for the prestigious Independent Schools Association Early Years Award for Excellence and Innovation in Provision.  Open 51 weeks of the year, our Early Years Department offers a safe and welcoming environment where our children develop, flourish and become happy, confident and independent learners with a curiosity about the world around them.  The perfect place for young children to start their educational journey.”