United Kingdom · Cheltenham
Cheltenham Ladies’ College is a girls’ day and boarding school from Year 7 through Sixth Form. It offers A levels and the IB Diploma, with separate admissions routes at ages 11, 13, 14 and 16.
Cheltenham Ladies’ College (CLC) is a girls’ day and boarding school in Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. It is separate from the coeducational Cheltenham College.
CLC reports about 820 pupils and an approximately 80:20 boarding-to-day split. Families can choose day attendance or boarding, then A levels or the International Baccalaureate Diploma in Sixth Form.
The useful distinction is educational fit, not the shared town name. CLC suits a family seeking girls-only education with both Sixth Form routes. Compare Cheltenham College if coeducation is important.
CLC uses its own names for familiar English school years:
Pupils work towards General Certificates of Secondary Education (GCSEs) before Sixth Form. A levels allow concentrated study of selected subjects. The International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma is a broader two-year programme.
The 2026–28 course booklet describes three or four A levels, with examinations at the end of the two-year course. Pupils taking Further Mathematics are advised to study at least two other full A levels alongside Mathematics.
Additional options include the Extended Project Qualification, an independent research project, or a standalone beginner IB language course. An individual IB language certificate is not the full IB Diploma.
For the 2027 intake, ask for the current subject combinations and course booklet. Choose A levels for greater subject concentration; consider the IB if continued breadth suits the pupil’s strengths and university plans.
CLC reports a 40.6-point average in the 2026 IB Diploma, with 71.4% of candidates reaching at least 40 points. The main admissions page’s 38.9 figure is older. These are school-reported cohort results, not a prediction for an individual pupil.
A Year 10 entrant starts GCSE study immediately. CLC warns that some classmates will already have begun parts of their courses. Ask the school to compare prior study with the proposed subjects before accepting a transfer.
CLC is academically selective. Its published admissions policy requires the candidate and parents to visit before a place is confirmed, with only limited discretion for exceptional circumstances.
Bring valid identification to assessment: the policy says applicants without it cannot take the tests. Offers also require a satisfactory reference on CLC’s own form. Disclose diagnosed or suspected learning, medical and accessibility needs at registration and again when applying for examinations.
The 11+ entry page gives this timetable:
| Step | Published date |
|---|---|
| Registration and exam form | 21 September 2026 |
| Assessment | 1, 5 or 6 October 2026 |
| Offer | November 2026 |
| Acceptance | Beginning of March 2027 |
Assessment includes group activities and discussions, plus written and adaptive online tests in English, mathematics and verbal reasoning. Adaptive tests change difficulty in response to answers. The school also requests the current headteacher’s reference.
An offer requires acceptance payments and a deposit; the current tuition table does not state their amounts. Late applications may sometimes be considered, without any guarantee of a place.
For Year 9 in September 2027, the standard application round has passed. The 13+ page invites families to ask about an autumn 2026 round.
Its table gives registration by 1 September 2026, an exam form by 30 September, and assessment on 16 November. The registration date has already passed as of this review. Contact Admissions before assuming the later assessment remains available.
The school publishes a subject briefing paper and verbal-reasoning familiarisation exercise. Offers consider tests, assessment-day feedback and the current school’s reference.
For Year 10 in September 2027, entrance examinations are on 12 October 2026. The school does not publish the number of available places. There are no scholarships or bursaries for this entry point.
The 16+ entry table distinguishes two registration deadlines:
The page’s general prose gives the later registration date without that distinction. Applicants outside UK schools should ask about late consideration.
Assessments are allocated on 12 October, 4 November, 5 November or 10 November 2026. Candidates take two chosen-subject papers, adaptive reasoning and subject-area tests, an interview and a group activity.
Non-native English applicants must submit a UKiset assessment profile. The table gives October submission and requires a profile dated between 1 January and 30 September 2026; confirm the exact submission day.
Singapore assessments are offered on 21–22 November 2026, subject to eligibility and a previous CLC visit. Offers are scheduled for early December, with acceptance dates in individual letters.
The linked 2025–26 policy says GCSE results are not normally an offer condition unless the offer letter states otherwise. It nevertheless considers predicted and final grades alongside tests and interviews. Read the individual offer rather than assuming a universal GCSE threshold.
The same policy gives a 30 September scholarship deadline, a day earlier than the current webpage. Submit early and ask Admissions to resolve the difference.
Beale Awards are means-tested fee assistance, ranging from 1% to 100%. For 2027, applications cover day or boarding entry to Years 7 and 12. Fee-paying parents must be UK tax residents.
Bursary registration costs £12, refunded if the process produces no place. Subsequent admissions fees and deposits are reduced proportionately to the award.
The Year 7 deadline is mid-September 2026, with October assessments and a January 2027 outcome. Ask for the exact registration day.
Year 12 registration closes at the end of September 2026, with early-November assessments and a January outcome. One paragraph incorrectly says 2026 entry beneath the 2027 heading; confirm the intended intake.
Awards are reviewed annually and may change with family finances. Proportionate help with uniform and activities is available; request the Bursary Extras document for coverage.
Scholarships recognise talent and provide enrichment, not fee reductions. Financial assistance requires a separate Beale Award assessment. Military families have no automatic fixed discount.
The published tuition table includes VAT. Fees are charged in advance each term.
| Stage | Day per term | Boarding per term | Day: three-term calculation | Boarding: three-term calculation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Years 7–8 | £12,840 | £20,400 | £38,520 | £61,200 |
| Years 9–11 | £13,260 | £20,880 | £39,780 | £62,640 |
| Sixth Form, continuing pupil | £13,500 | £21,300 | £40,500 | £63,900 |
| Sixth Form, new entrant | £14,460 | £22,740 | £43,380 | £68,220 |
Annual amounts are our calculation of three unchanged termly fees, not complete first-year invoices.
Teaching, essential materials, textbooks, meals, snacks and pastoral care are included. The school also includes personal-accident insurance and many trips, activities and weekend programmes.
The page still says a full fee schedule will follow. Obtain registration and acceptance charges, deposit terms, extras, payment conditions and withdrawal liability before committing. Do not assume the tuition total is the full cost.
The admissions policy says the ordinary registration fee is non-refundable. The acceptance fee is also non-refundable if a family subsequently withdraws before joining. The Beale Award registration refund described above is a separate exception.
Do not treat the acceptance fee and deposit as interchangeable. Ask which payments are refundable or credited, and what further liability applies if plans change.
The archived 2025–26 schedule provides a useful warning about upfront cash, but not a current quotation:
Before joining, that schedule requires one term’s cancellation notice, or two for Year 9 entry. For enrolled pupils it generally requires a term’s notice; Years 12–13 require two terms, although the stated substitute charge is one term’s fees.
Leaving after Year 11 requires notice by the first day of the Easter holiday, otherwise a term’s fees are due.
Changing boarding/day status requires a full term’s notice or the applicable fee difference. Paid activities have separate cancellation deadlines.
It lists chargeable examinations, optional trips, devices, extra tuition and transport. Occasional boarding was £72 nightly.
Request current Standard Terms, deposit-repayment rules and prices. These historical figures do not establish a 2026–27 invoice.
Younger day pupils use Eversleigh House, open from 7.30am; Sixth Form pupils use Bayshill, open from 7am. Both remain open until 7pm on weekdays.
Saturday opening differs: Eversleigh closes at 1pm, and the Sixth Form house at 2pm. Lunch and early-evening snacks are included. Check the full Saturday attendance expectations when planning family commitments.
Local buses serve five corridors covering areas including Winchcombe, Bourton-on-the-Water, Cirencester, Stroud and Gloucester. Confirm the exact stop, journey and price.
Day pupils may board for up to two nights per week, Monday to Friday. Sunday nights are sometimes possible by request. Supper and breakfast are included in the separate boarding charge, which appears on the termly bill.
CLC offers admissions and visa-process support, guardianship guidance and bookable escorted airport transfers at term boundaries. These services do not mean that every cost is included in boarding tuition.
The school requires international pupils to have a UK-based guardian. It strongly recommends an accredited guardianship provider and requires compliance with its own educational-guardianship rules.
CLC expects a high level of English before entry. The 2025–26 admissions policy normally expects C1, an advanced level on the European language framework, before inviting relevant overseas Sixth Form applicants to assessment.
It permits some flexibility at B2, an upper-intermediate level, for a mathematics/science pathway. The current webpage requires UKiset from non-native English applicants more broadly than the older policy’s overseas-school wording. Confirm which requirement applies.
The multilingual policy may make English support a condition of younger pupils’ admission. Its internal A/B/C categories are not explained as European-framework levels: category A is rejected, B requires timetabled support, and C is admitted with classroom strategies.
The policy lists a weekly Year 7 English class and twice-weekly provision for the year it calls LC3. Current admissions pages call Year 9 UC3 instead. Ask for the actual timetable and charges for the child’s year.
In Year 12, pupils needing the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) for university entry can receive free weekly 55-minute group coaching from October to before Easter. Pupils book their own test.
Additional coaching for a summer retake or in Year 13 is chargeable. Confirm the test fee, extra-lesson rate and the intended university’s accepted evidence of English proficiency.
CLC’s December 2025 visa FAQ restricts its Child Student sponsorship to international boarders whose parents live overseas, not day pupils. This is CLC’s stated policy, not a blanket UK prohibition on day-school study.
For this arrangement, CLC requires the nominated guardian to be over 25, live within 100 miles, and have British citizenship or settled status. A time-limited visa is insufficient under its published requirements.
CLC must approve and record travel and care outside school, including holidays and individual nights away. Discuss any proposed relative or alternative living arrangement before appointing a guardian.
The FAQ’s £524 visa fee is outdated: the current government page gives £558, plus the applicable healthcare surcharge. Visa costs are additional to school fees.
The FAQ also suggests an electronic travel authorisation for every short stay. That is too broad: visitor study rules and nationality determine whether a visa, travel authorisation or another arrangement is required. Check the individual case before booking travel.
CLC’s October 2025 policy describes support for special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) within ordinary classes. Possible provision includes individual or small-group teaching, reading and mathematics support, help with organisation, and adapted materials.
An individual plan, called a Pupil Passport, records needs, strategies and targets. Support is reviewed, and examination adjustments depend on evidence and the relevant exam board’s rules.
The school pays for agreed reasonable adjustments. Specialist lessons or additional provision may be chargeable under the fee schedule; those prices are not stated in the policy.
CLC considers applicants with Education, Health and Care Plans, statutory plans specifying a child’s additional provision. It consults parents and, where appropriate, the local authority to establish whether it can deliver the plan and who funds additional services.
The admissions policy acknowledges limited facilities for disabled pupils. Request the Accessibility Plan and inspect the classrooms, boarding accommodation, toilets, dining areas and evacuation routes the child would use.
Continued attendance depends on the school being able to meet the pupil’s needs. Following consultation, CLC may require withdrawal if needs exceed its provision, relevant information was withheld, or parents decline necessary assessment, support or medication.
For withdrawal required under this SEND clause, the policy says no fees in lieu of notice are charged, and the deposit is credited to the account. This does not establish the rule for an ordinary voluntary withdrawal.
CLC is worth considering for a girl who wants boarding or an extended day-school routine, with a choice between A levels and the IB Diploma later.
For 2027 Year 7 applicants, the September registration deadline comes before the whole-school open day on 3 October 2026. Do not wait for that event to start an application.
Official pages and documents we read. If a figure matters to your budget or your application, open the link and confirm it is still current.
Friendly orientation, not an application. Dates, fees, and programme details move. Confirm everything with the school.
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Cheltenham Ladies’ College and Cheltenham College differ in entry age, pupil mix and sixth-form qualifications. Compare the exact year group and boarding arrangement, not just their names.
5 minStart with your child’s needs and the schools you can realistically access. A boys’, girls’, or co-educational label does not tell you enough about teaching, friendships, support, or daily life.
8 minStart with the child and a realistic weekly timetable. Then confirm who provides care, which nights are covered, and what happens when plans change.
7 minStart with the qualification your child would actually receive. Then check its subjects, language demands, and recognition in the countries where they may study next.