Learn more about plan to admit girls to Bedford School for first time in its history at open day
Parents interested in learning more about plans for Bedford School's future are invited to attend an Open Day on Saturday, October 3.
Visitors will have the opportunity to meet staff and pupils, tour the school site and hear more about the plans to welcome girls for the first time in its near 475-year history.
The Harpur Trust announced on Tuesday that Bedford School will become co-educational from September 2027, emphasising it marked the start of an ongoing period of engagement with parents, pupils, staff and alumni.
It admitted that there was no formal consultation on its co-ed move, but the Open Day will give parents the chance to find out more. Places can be booked via the school’s website.
However, a petition calling for ‘meaningful consultation’ before the school goes co-ed next year has already been started.
The plan to go co-ed will be accompanied by significant investment in the school, including a dedicated girls' boarding house, a state-of-the-art Sixth Form Centre and wider improvements to facilities across the campus.
The move will mean girls will be able to join as day pupils, flexi boarders, weekly boarders and full boarders, welcoming girls into every year group across both its Prep and Upper Schools.
Information events are taking place throughout September and feedback from the school community will continue to help shape detailed implementation plans ahead of September 2027.
John Holland-Kaye, chair of the governing body, said: "Bedford School has continually evolved throughout its history while always staying true to its values. It has long been known for the quality of its academic education, co-curricular provision and pastoral care, giving young people the strongest start in life.
“Welcoming girls is a natural next step in that evolution and will allow more young people to benefit from everything Bedford School has to offer."
Michael Sloan, head master of Bedford School, said: "This decision is being taken from a position of confidence and with a firm understanding of what makes Bedford distinctive. Much will evolve in the years ahead, but the qualities and values that lie at the heart of the school will remain unchanged.”
He added: “By welcoming girls, we are extending that opportunity to a wider community of young people while remaining true to everything that has always made Bedford distinctive. Our ambition is unchanged: that each young person who comes here leaves with greater confidence, broader horizons and a stronger sense of who they are. Put simply, that each become more."