Stonar School

Stonar's identity is unusually bound to horses. Equestrian work sits alongside academic study as a daily strand, with a British Horse Society-approved centre, indoor and outdoor arenas, stabling for 74 horses, a riding track and a cross-country course. Pupils can work towards Pony Club and BHS qualifications, while sixth-form students can take a BTEC Level 3 qualification in equine management.

The wider journey runs from nursery to sixth form and includes day and boarding provision; the registered age range is 2 to 18. Stonar began as a girls' school in 1895, moved to Cottles Park during the Second World War, admitted boys through the Prep School and became fully co-educational in 2016. That history helps explain the mixture of established boarding traditions and a modern, mixed model.

Senior pupils have a choice of 20 GCSE subjects, while the sixth form offers more than 20 A-level and Level 3 courses. Sixth-form classes typically number between five and 14 students, with mentoring, careers guidance and a social programme alongside sport, creative work, adventure training, flying and riding.

Boarding is organised through York for sixth-form girls, Hart for senior and prep boys and Year 11 girls, and Ganbrook for girls in Years 5 to 10. Nearly half of the senior cohort boards, bringing different ages and nationalities into the houses. The houses combine a homely atmosphere with extensive enrichment, including equestrian sport.