Mayfield School

Mayfield School has grown around the Old Palace at Mayfield, where the Catholic tradition of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus remains part of its character. The palace was restored in the 1860s, pupils arrived from St Leonards in 1872 and Victorian buildings followed. Today that historic setting houses an 11-to-18 girls' education with both day and boarding routes.

Years 7 to 9 provide a broad academic foundation before GCSE choices in Year 9. English, mathematics, religious studies and science form the core, with ceramics, classics, computing, languages, drama, food and nutrition, music and physics among the options. In the Sixth Form, most pupils take three A levels, with an EPQ and enrichment programme available for further independent work.

Pastoral and spiritual life is rooted in the Catholic ethos and Cornelian values, giving the historic surroundings a clear educational purpose rather than treating them as decoration. Boarding can be flexible or full, so the experience can be shaped around different family circumstances while retaining the continuity of the senior years and the community built around the Old Palace.

Entry is organised around 11+, 13+ and Sixth Form routes, each with its own assessment context. The combination of a defined Catholic tradition, a broad pre-GCSE curriculum, specialist options and flexible boarding makes Mayfield a distinctive setting for girls who want both continuity and room to shape their later subjects.