Prior’s Field

Prior’s Field offers a distinctive route to high achievement. It’s a school where girls are encouraged to grasp opportunities – from taking the floor in national debating competitions, adopting leading roles in a West End calibre cast, designing electric guitars at lunchtime, creating artwork worthy of a public exhibition, scaling a glacier or rising to the challenge of young chemist of the year. It’s where they can be happy and confident enough to take risks, inspired by talented teachers, and enjoy positive, engaging relationships.

Motivation, self-belief and enjoyment

Prior’s Field, as a relatively small school of 422 girls aged 11-18, has a strong family ethos, wonderful team spirit and big ambitions for its pupils. The school pursues a broad and innovative curriculum, offering 26 A levels, alternative options including a BTec in Music Technology and Diploma in Food Science, and Extended Project Qualification (EPQ). Excellent results enable girls to go on to a wide range of top universities, including Oxbridge, to study courses as diverse as architectural engineering, fine art, neuroscience, music, philosophy and law.

Students are encouraged to involve themselves in the more than 50 extracurricular activities available, which include climbing, silversmithing, trampolining, Greenpower engineering, riding and debating.

Home from home

Prior’s Field’s warm atmosphere and levels of pastoral care are key factors in parents and pupils choosing the Surrey-based school. Boarding is at its heart, with a quarter of pupils boarding on a full, weekly or flexible basis. Its 2016 ISI inspection highlights the “atmosphere of trust, tolerance and friendship in the boarding houses” – testament to the commitment of girls and boarding staff to each other.

Excellent facilities include a newly opened Science, Music and Technology Centre with state-of-the-art interactive technology to support girls’ learning; an all-weather sports pitch, on-site tennis academy, superb Creative Arts centre, Sixth Form gym and separate Sixth Form House with quiet study areas, social loft space and ensuite bedrooms. Refurbishment of the Junior Boarding House includes ‘extra bouncy’ carpets in bedrooms and sparkly bathroom floors, at girls’ request.

The school is situated in 42 acres of Surrey parkland and offers a safe and rural environment, but is just minutes from the A3 to London and the south coast. Close to Godalming and Guildford town stations (the local train to London Waterloo takes just over 40 minutes), Prior’s Field is also conveniently placed between Heathrow and Gatwick airports.

Scholarships and bursaries

Scholarships and Exhibitions for Talent are awarded to pupils entering at 11+, 13+ and Sixth Form who display above average ability academically or in Art, Drama, Music or Sport. Means-tested bursaries are also available at these entry ages and a forces discount of 20% applies for those in receipt of CEA.