Sevenoaks is a co-educational day and boarding school for 11 to 18-year-olds

 

Rated excellent by the ISI for Pupils’ Achievement and Pupils’ Personal Development, we are proud of our innovative approach to education and academic excellence, while at the same time providing a strong pastoral and co-curricular foundation.

 

 

Our superb 100-acre campus is in the Kent countryside, just half an hour from Central London and Gatwick International Airport. The International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme inspires an inclusive, enriching and global dimension. Sevenoaks School is the top co-educational independent school in the UK in The Sunday Times Parent Power 2023 guide. We are Spear’s School of the Year 2022, recognised for our innovative approach to education, outstanding academic results, excellent pastoral care and use of technology.

 

MEET THE HEADMASTER

 

A very warm welcome to Sevenoaks, a world-leading, co-educational day and boarding school whose community is both local and global. I hope you find the school as inspirational and exciting as I do. Founded in 1432, Sevenoaks School enjoys the distinction of being among the UK’s oldest schools, with a tradition of innovation and excellence. We have been co-educational for almost 50 years, and in 1978 we became one of the first schools in the UK to adopt the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme in the Sixth Form.

The IB Diploma is the best Sixth Form education available in the world. It offers the breadth of studying six subjects as well as an extended essay and a critical thinking course. It also pulls together aspects of creativity, action and service, to develop well-rounded young adults with a range of skills and aptitudes; it is superb preparation for university and life. Our impressive IB Diploma average is consistently eight to ten points above the world average and our students go on to study at top universities around the world. The majority go to Oxbridge, London and other Russell Group universities, and with our global outlook we see around 20 per cent of our students going to international universities, increasingly to Ivy League and other colleges in North America.

 

 

Yet a Sevenoaks education is about much more than results. We instill the love of learning for its own sake and genuine academic endeavour. We encourage collaboration, communication and teamwork, not just competition. We develop inquiring, caring and knowledgeable young people, empowered with the skills to create a better and more peaceful world. Our state-of-the-art facilities, together with high-level instruction, provide rich opportunities for students to participate in a wide variety of sports, the performing arts, and many other co-curricular activities. We ensure all our students flourish through outstanding pastoral care, and breadth and balance across the curriculum and co-curriculum. Ultimately, our fundamental measure of success is that our students leave Sevenoaks as happy, empowered and dynamic young adults ready to thrive in the next stage of their lives. Our team of specialist tutors, boarding house staff and divisional heads ensure our pupils receive expert care and support, which creates mutual respect and friendliness between students and staff. I encourage you to visit us to experience Sevenoaks for yourself.

 

ABOUT THE HEADMASTER

 

Mr Jesse Elzinga has been Headmaster of Sevenoaks School since September 2020. Since then, he has managed the school through the pandemic, overseen our successful exam results and supported the wellbeing of the school community, including as part of Harvard University’s groundbreaking Human Flourishing Program. His aims for the school’s future include widening access to a Sevenoaks School education through more financially assisted places. As a recipient of bursary support himself he knows that access to exceptional education can transform life opportunities. He is also working towards the school becoming carbon neutral, developing partnerships with other leading IB schools and furthering Sevenoaks School’s global outlook.

He is committed to the school’s award-winning ethos of service and partnerships which connects us to our local community and supports communities around the world. Jesse joined Sevenoaks from Reading Blue Coat School, Berkshire, where he had been Headmaster since 2016. Before this, he was Director of Studies at Harrow where he broadened their academic curriculum. He also worked at St Edward’s School, Oxford, as Director of Studies, IB Coordinator and residential Assistant Housemaster, and Whitgift School as a teacher of Theology and Philosophy, Assistant Head of Sixth Form and Theory of Knowledge Coordinator. He has a BA Honours cum laude in Comparative Religion and Philosophy from Harvard University, and his subsequent MSt from Oxford University focused on ethical philosophy. Jesse was a three-time national champion rower at Harvard and Oxford. He then became a competitive cyclist, twice racing against Sir Bradley Wiggins at the British Time Trial Championships (although Jesse is keen to point out that Sir Bradley won by a significant margin on both occasions!). Jesse is also an Ironman triathlete and marathoner, and he can be spotted early morning running in Knole Park. Jesse’s wife Elaina works in the investments team at the Wellcome Trust, and they enjoy cooking and travelling, are Friends of the Royal Opera House and supporting members of England Rugby Club. They live in Sevenoaks with their three daughters.