The Leys: a six-day week, and one school with St Faith’s from 2028

The 2028 reorganisation belongs near the top of your list

The Leys is a selective coeducational day and boarding school with a Methodist ethos. Its city location and large boarding community shape the week: Saturday is a normal school day, not an occasional fixture exception.

In September 2028, The Leys and St Faith’s are due to become one all-through school. The St Faith’s site is planned for Early Years through Year 8; the present Leys site for Years 9–13. The school says the September 2027 Year 7 cohort—the final one admitted to the current Leys site—will remain there throughout its education.

From 2028, new Year 7 pupils will be based at St Faith’s and Year 7 boarding will end. The school says day, Home Boarding and boarding patterns will continue from Year 9, along with Saturday school. That matters for younger siblings even when the 2027 entrant’s own site is protected.

Our view: this can suit a child who wants a busy, structured week and is comfortable in a community where day and boarding lives overlap. It is less natural for a family wanting a simple five-day day-school routine. Put the 2027 cohort’s site pathway, leadership and curriculum continuity into the offer discussion, not just the open-day conversation.

The broad early curriculum narrows to a conventional A-level route

Years 7–8 include French and Latin, with German added in Year 8. At GCSE, pupils take English language and literature, maths, separate biology, chemistry and physics, plus four options.

School-published 2026 results show 22.5% grade 9 and 46.5% grades 9–8 at GCSE. At A level, 16.4% were A* and 78.3% A*–B. The school does not publish the entry-count denominator with those percentages. They are not a measure of value added for a particular child.

Saturday is school; Sunday is more flexible

Saturday is a normal school day for day pupils, Home Boarders and boarders. There are four morning lessons and, from Year 9, afternoon sport. Pupils can generally leave after their commitments. Sunday trips and services do not mean every weekend is compulsory. Weekly chapel is part of school life, and day pupils are expected to attend their own House Sunday service once each term in full uniform.

Day pupils usually leave between 16:30 and 18:00, although houses can remain open later. Home Boarders in Years 9–11 stay to about 20:15 and sixth form to 21:00, then sleep at home. Occasional overnight beds depend on availability and may cost extra. Home Boarding is not a published weekly-boarding scheme.

Years 7–8 day pupils share Moulton House with boarders and may leave at 16:15 or stay for activities and prep; older day pupils belong to three coeducational day houses. Published activity windows are 16:30–17:20 and 17:25–18:15, with choices made each term.

This rhythm can be a feature, not a burden, for a child who enjoys a full community day. For a family with weekend sport, siblings or a long commute, it may be the deciding constraint. Build a sample week before comparing academic brochures.

The public bus map is much smaller than the likely catchment

The current transport page publishes joint routes from Royston and Saffron Walden. They finish at St Faith’s, followed by an approximately ten-minute walk to The Leys. Detailed stops, prices and timings are not public.

Ask specifically about the morning handover, the ordinary return, evening Home Boarding, activities and Saturday. A bus that serves the academic day but not the child’s real week is not a workable route.

The campus is central enough for some families to use rail, cycling or local buses, but the school’s public pages do not provide a complete safe-route plan. Test it at the actual hour and season.

Support is documented, but some policies are due replacement

The September 2025 SEND and EAL policies describe classroom adjustments, pupil profiles and small-group or individual help. Both list September 2026 as their next-review month. Reasonable adjustments are uncharged, but specialist assessment, extra teaching or English support may attract fees.

Published usual English-language minima are A2 at 11+, B1 at 13+ and B2 at 16+.

The February 2026 phone policy requires Years 7–11 to hand in phones at the start of the day. Sixth-form pupils cannot use them in public areas before 17:25. Medical or disability exceptions can apply. Boarders should ask separately about evening and weekend access.

The everyday support chain runs through Housemaster or Housemistress, Matron and tutor, with a Medical Centre, counselling and an independent listener also published. The school says the Medical Centre operates around the clock during the school week except Saturday night to Sunday evening, when cover is on call. Confirm how this works for the child’s pattern.

The inspection is positive without being a blank cheque

The November 2025 ISI inspection found all five inspected standards areas met and safeguarding effective. It identified art and the inclusive environment as significant strengths and found suitable boarding accommodation, planned weekend/evening provision and day pupils integrated into the six-day week.

Two written risk assessments did not accurately reflect the effective practice inspectors saw. Both were corrected during inspection. The recommended next step was to review documented assessments regularly.

The 2025 report uses the current standards framework, so it should not be translated into the older “excellent” rating. Its specific evidence is more useful than a borrowed label.

Home Boarding is a distinct product, not discounted weekly boarding

These are the school’s 2026–27 VAT-inclusive fees, annualised across three terms. They are not a 2027–28 quote.

Application is £200. Every family pays a £600 entry deposit; overseas-resident families also pay an overseas deposit equal to one term’s fee less £600. Exams, trips, optional music, speech and drama, shop purchases and the compulsory device scheme can add to the bill. Visa-compliance management is £595; guardianship is separate.

The public site did not provide 2027–28 fees, current device pricing or a Parent Contract.

Discretionary support with no public income scale

Means-tested support can reach 100% but is limited, discretionary and reassessed each year. Income, assets, housing equity, other help and lifestyle can all matter. The linked bursary guidelines sit under a 2024 upload path and no exact 2027 deadline or income scale is public.

Year 7 and Year 9 share a deadline, not identical decisions

The current route pages publish useful September 2027 dates. Around 30 Year 7 places and roughly 70 added Year 9 places are intake descriptions, not acceptance rates. They do not reveal applicant totals or the split between day and boarding offers.

The school does not publish the exact January test date or a reserve plan. Years 8 and 10 require a real vacancy; there is no normal Year 11 or Year 13 entry route.

The 105-minute Quest session rewards switching, not one trick

Year 7 assessment combines interviews, group activity and a 105-minute Quest test: 30 minutes English, 20 maths, 10 verbal reasoning, 10 non-verbal reasoning, 15 puzzles and 20 creative comprehension. A current school report is also part of the process.

A sensible practice session mixes short maths, vocabulary and spatial questions before a longer reading task. Then stop. A child also needs energy for conversation and group activity. Repeatedly drilling one favourite question type can make the real switching feel harder.

The school publishes no component weighting, pass mark or interview ratio. Ask how access arrangements work within Quest and what evidence must arrive by the deadline. Do not assume a current-school adjustment transfers automatically.