Royal High School Bath: now girls aged 9–18 on one Lansdown site

Royal High is no longer the 3–18 school on older pages

Royal High Bath announced that Nursery through Year 4 and its separate Prep site would close in July 2026. From September 2026, Years 5 and 6 joined the Senior and Sixth Form community at Lansdown. The school’s restructuring announcement now describes one girls’ school for ages 9–18.

This is not a small wording update. Reception, 7+ and the old Prep journey are no longer entry routes. A Year 5 family is considering a recently established arrangement on the Lansdown site, not the long-running lower-school model described in the March 2024 inspection.

Our view: that change need not be a reason to dismiss the school. It is a reason to ask concrete questions. Where do Years 5 and 6 spend lessons and breaks? Who leads their pastoral care? How much do they mix with older pupils? What transition measures are in place, and when will parents see evidence from the first term and year?

Royal High is part of the Girls’ Day School Trust, but its Bath setting includes boarding as well as day places. Families should compare the actual week they need—not assume every GDST school or every boarding label means the same thing.

Do not assume the IB remains open to a 2027 entrant

The current recruitment page centres A levels and allows up to four subjects. The prospectus also describes Future Skills and academic electives such as an EPQ or additional AS study.

Yet the school’s August 2026 results still celebrate IB Diploma graduates, and the March 2024 inspection covered both A levels and IB. The old “A Level or IB” route now redirects to the A-level page. This establishes a recent IB cohort—not availability for a new September 2027 entrant.

If IB is central to the shortlist, ask for a direct written answer before applying. Otherwise compare the actual A-level combinations, enrichment and workload with another school’s current offer. A historical qualification label is not a reason to choose a school.

For younger pupils, the Middle School model may be more consequential than the sixth-form headline.

Full, weekly and flexible boarding solve different problems

The boarding page defines weekly boarding as Sunday night to Friday after school. Flexible boarding is £96 a night for up to three nights, prepaid and subject to a bed. Separately, theschool’s international FAQ says all boarders attend Saturday Sport for All from 9am to noon. Weekly families should ask which statement controls their child’s Saturday.

Years 10–11 are £41,979 weekly or £46,911 full. Exeat residence is charged separately. A published fee still does not prove a bed is available for the desired pattern.

There is an important conflict: the fee table prices Year 5–6 weekly and full boarding, but the boarding overview says boarding is offered in Years 7–13. A Year 5 family should obtain written confirmation of eligibility, house, nights and weekend arrangements before relying on the younger figures.

Test the 4.30 bus against the activities she would use

The current bus network serves areas including Bath, South Bath, Malmesbury, East Bristol, Bishop Sutton, Frome, Sutton Benger and Chippenham. The fee and transport schedule publishes departures at 4.30pm Monday–Thursday and 4.10pm Friday.

Those times are useful, but they do not establish the exact morning start, ordinary lesson finish or a late route after every activity. Test the journey at school times, not on a quiet weekend.

Wraparound listings imply provision from 4.05pm, but prices are still marked to be confirmed. “Day boarding” is listed at £30 without enough detail to understand the meal, supervision, hours or booking rules. Request a practical definition before using it as a transport solution.

Separate everyday support from paid specialist provision

The March 2024 ISI inspection found that teaching was adapted effectively for pupils with SEND and that some received individual or small-group support. Inspectors reported SEND and EAL pupils progressing in line with peers.

Inspectors also described proactive anti-bullying work, approachable staff, safe boarders and effective safeguarding. That is useful independent evidence from one period. It does not show the exact support available to a particular pupil after the September 2026 reorganisation.

Share relevant reports before assessment and ask for a meeting with the appropriate support lead. Request a written explanation of classroom adjustments, charged specialist tuition, counselling, boarding support and review points. The school’s current policies index is the starting point, not a substitute for an individual plan.

A family should also ask how admissions adjustments are requested and by what evidence deadline. Do not wait until the assessment invitation to discover that a professional report is needed.

The inspection is positive—and belongs to the old structure

In March 2024, ISI found every applicable standard met. The report covered 581 pupils, including 75 boarders, across the former ages 3–18 and two-site organisation. Its single recommended next step was clearer reporting of progress to parents in Years 7–9.

The findings provide useful context on teaching, boarding, wellbeing and safeguarding. They cannot independently validate the new Years 5–6 arrangement, because that arrangement did not exist during the inspection.

Ask how progress reporting changed after the recommendation and how parents now see attainment and next steps. Then ask a separate question about the first younger cohort at Lansdown. Combining both into “the inspection was good” would miss what a current family actually needs to know.

Add compulsory lunch before comparing day fees

The current 2026–27 fee page separates tuition and lunch. The right comparison is the visible annual floor, not tuition alone. September 2027–28 fees were not published on 4 September 2026.

Examinations, transport, uniform, some trips and clubs, and parts of additional support sit outside those totals. Request a first-year estimate for the actual child. Years 5–6 families should include the published £170 annual curriculum-trip charge and £600 residential charge, not just the headline fee.

Registration is £150 for a UK applicant and £200 for an international applicant. Deposits are £550 for a UK day place, £1,000 for UK boarding and one full term’s fees for an international pupil. Those sums affect how many offers a family can hold at once.

The GDST terms ordinarily require one full term’s written notice or the next term’s full fee in lieu without discounts. Read the applicable contract before accepting, especially if a bursary or boarding discount changes the amount the family usually pays.

Forces wording on the fee page is internally inconsistent: one section says 20% off basic boarding fees, while another says CEA families pay 10% of school fees and other serving families receive 20% off boarding. Eligible families should request a written invoice calculation rather than choosing one sentence.

Additional SEND tuition is listed at £62 an hour and counselling at £72 a session. That does not mean every reasonable adjustment or pastoral conversation is charged. It means a family needing regular specialist input should ask exactly what is included before judging affordability.

GDST bursaries at Years 7, 9 and 12

Royal High publishes means-tested bursaries for Year 7, external Year 9 and sixth-form entrants. The school aid page and GDST guidance make clear that income, assets and household circumstances are assessed and awards are reviewed annually.

The 2027 calendar is useful—but it has three gaps

The school has published substantially more of its 2027 calendar than many peers. Put the following dates into one family calendar, then add the missing 9+, Year 9 assessment and sixth-form acceptance dates when Admissions confirms them.

These dates come from the live 2027 page. The same page does not give a complete Year 5 timetable, a general Year 9 written-test date or the sixth-form acceptance deadline. Ask for all three in writing rather than assuming a common independent-school calendar.

At 11+, the interview includes a prepared talk

The current process includes an entrance assessment and interview. Candidates prepare a three-minute talk and bring an object they are proud of. An earlier timeline mentions CAT4 and English writing; treat that detail as provisional until the school confirms the 2027 specification.

The talk is not a reason for an adult-written performance. Help your daughter choose something she genuinely knows and likes. Can she explain why it matters, describe one difficulty and respond when the conversation goes somewhere she did not expect?

For example, a fictional pupil might bring a repaired music stand. She could explain why it kept slipping, how her first fix failed and what she changed. This is an original illustration, not a Royal High prompt or an accepted answer.

If the current assessment is confirmed as CAT4 plus writing, practise the online interface, calm reasoning and completing a piece of writing independently. Do not prepare toward an invented cutoff; the school publishes neither a pass mark nor acceptance odds.

Our 11+ admissions guide and interview guide help organise preparation without turning a child into a rehearsed script.