Denstone College Uttoxeter, ST14 5HN, Staffordshire 01889 590484

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School type	Co-educational Day & Boarding Preparatory, Senior & Sixth Form
Head of School	Miss Lotte Tulloch
Co-ed Age Range	4-18 years (boarding from 7)
Number of pupils	777
Number of boys	458
Number of girls	319
Day fees per annum	£15,048 + per annum
Boarding fees per annum	£30,936 + per annum
Associations	BSA, HMC, ISC

The ambition to explore every possible version of yourself at Denstone College

Denstone College and The Prep at Denstone College are an independent day and boarding school set in rural Staffordshire. The school has a rich history of 150 years and has just under 800 pupils.

The school shapes its ethos and vision around 'Denstonacity' which is described as 'the abition to explore every possible version of yourself'. Head of Denstone, Lotte Tulloch asks for pupils who jump up and down and make a difference in the world.

Denstone is filled with pupils from 4 years of age up to 18, all taking part is academia as well as a large array of sporting, musical or performance related activities with performance pathways into Leicester Tigers, Loughborough Lightning and England Cricket.

As well as education and co-curricular activities, Denstone is very much focused on the health and wellbeing of the pupils, with a newly branded Health and Wellbeing Centre on site with a dedicated team helping pupils deal with the world around them.

Junior-school pupils have a broader timetable, encompassing art, D&T, drama, music, PHSE and computing alongside the core subjects, giving them a 'solid academic foundation' together with their sporting and extracurricular pursuits.

The build-up to GCSE sees a real emphasis on the core subjects, and there's a requirement to take at least three additional subjects, totalling eight to 10 for most. Everyone starts off with triple science but with the option to adjust to a combined science programme (culminating in two science GCSEs rather than three separate subject exams) after the basics have been covered. Most pupils opt for a foreign language (French and Spanish are on offer here), and the majority of subjects are taught across five or six ability groups per subject, with plenty of individual attention for each pupil in these relatively small cohorts.

Sixth-formers set out with four A-levels but most eventually drop down to three. An EPQ is offered as a side option for the upper sixth. Traditional subjects are all on the table (plus the likes of D&T, computer science and psychology), but a BTEC in sport and a CTEC in ICT is also up for grabs. Science, computer science and ICT is a notably popular combo - most likely a result of a significant parental workforce in local tech giants such as Rolls-Royce, AstraZeneca, JCB and Merlin.

Pupils end up at a suitably rounded variety of destinations, from local degree apprenticeships to US rugby scholarships. Close to 50 per cent of pupils win places at Russell Group universities each year, and one of this year's cohort has an Oxbridge offer on the table. As the product of a US degree herself, Ms Tulloch is keen to encourage pupils who are enthused by the idea of a North American or European destination but equally buoyed by the fact that 19 students opted for the apprenticeship route last year.