Military Families

Crown & Country

Cheltenham College has a long and distinguished connection with the military dating back to 1841. It is a connection and understanding that remains just as strong within our community today. We are one of only three schools in England to have its own military colours.

Cheltenham College supports the Continuity of Education Allowance (CEA) from the Military of Defence, and Military families, who are in receipt of CEA and have children boarding, pay only 10% of the fees.

Foreign Commonwealth and Development Personnel

Cheltenham College also offers a 15% discount to day and boarding families serving within the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office who are in receipt of the FCDO support.

The Perfect Location

Cheltenham College is based in the centre of Cheltenham and is only five minutes by car from Cheltenham Spa train station, with a direct train to Paddington and links to Bristol, Birmingham, Bath and Oxford. Local major road and motorway links include the A40, M4, M5 and M6. Heathrow, Bristol and Birmingham airports are all easily accessible in under two hours.

Cheltenham is a thriving town, with over 118,000 people. Also known as ‘The Festival Town’, Cheltenham’s festivals attract thousands of regional and international visitors. The town is famous for holding the world’s oldest Literature Festival, along with Jazz, Science, Music and Food Festivals.

The world-renowned Cheltenham Festival takes place at The Racecourse in March and Cheltenham College is home to the annual Cricket Festival, which is the world’s longest running cricket festival.

Cheltenham College is also within easy reach of the main Army and RAF bases across the South West.

ARRC at Innsworth	25 minutes by car
RAF Brize Norton	42 minutes by car
Salisbury Plain	1 hour and 50 minutes by car
Shrivenham	47 minutes by car
MOD Abbey Wood	54 minutes by car

Moving from The Prep School to College

Nearly all the pupils in Year 8 at The Prep move onto College for Year 9, together with around 70 new pupils coming from schools across the UK and other countries. All pupils at The Prep have an opportunity to have an annual taster day at College from Year 4 onwards, this helps when the children move up to Year 9 at the end of their Prep School journey.

We encourage our Prep School parents to visit College before their child moves up, and you can arrange a tour or join a Small Group Visit on a Saturday morning through our College Visits Team on visits@cheltenhamcollege.org.

“Definitely one of the best boarding schools in the UK, especially for military families! Our son was at The Prep boarding from Year 3 and he is now at the College and our daughter started in Year 4 and is loving it…the school focuses on growth mindset in a huge way and the staff are incredibly supportive. As a family, we love Cheltenham Prep and the boarding house has a fantastic ‘home away from home’ environment – highly recommend to any military family looking for that ‘forever school’ for their children”

Current parent

FAQs

What happens if my child is missing home?

What happens if my child is unwell or needs to attend regular medical appointments?

How do parents stay informed about how their child is getting on?

You are welcome to contact the Boarding House at any point on prep.boarding@cheltenhamcollege.org

There is a weekly newsletter, ‘Prep Connected’ emailed to parents every Friday afternoon, and this includes highlights from the past seven days across The Prep community.

Our Instagram accounts, @cheltprep and @cadehousecc are updated weekly and are a great way of seeing what the boarders are up to!

How are boarders supported with homework?

What is the after school routine in the Prep School Boarding House?

At 5pm, children sign into House and change into home clothes, put any uniform/sports kit in the laundry and then enjoy some down time: playing games, relaxing in their dorms, playing outside. After-school clubs take place between 5pm and 6pm, followed by supper (6pm) and a House meeting (6.45pm).

On Monday, Wednesday and Friday, Music practice takes place for those who play an instrument (6.45pm – 7.15pm). Evening activities take place from 6.45pm followed by the bedtime routine starting at 7.30pm.