Welcome to
KING’S SCHOOL ROCHESTER
King’s is a remarkable school with a rich and diverse heritage, where pupils have been educated for over 1,400 years under the watchful gaze of Rochester Cathedral and Rochester Castle.
At King’s, we believe in preparing children for the 21st Century through educating the whole child. Our priority is ensuring that happy children perform to their best and the School is an exceptionally happy and friendly place where moral values, self-discipline, emotional intelligence and a Christian spirit underpin our family community.
Every step of the King’s School Rochester journey, from Nursery through to Sixth Form, is designed to help pupils flourish, grow in confidence and discover new passions. We believe that building a love of learning and developing independent thinking skills are just as important as achieving the best grades, and so our teachers help each pupil to realise their own potential.
There’s one motto we live by at King’s and that’s simply “Work Hard, Play Hard and Look After Each Other”, no matter what age you are.
why KING’S SCHOOL ROCHESTER
We are one school, where a happy learning environment is underpinned by a strong sense of care, kindness, moral values, self-discipline and emotional intelligence.
At King’s School Rochester, we believe in giving pupils the courage and confidence to be their best. Staff, pupils, parents and governors work together as one, to create and sustain the learning environment that makes our school so unique, ensuring its stewardship for generations to come.
We nurture the individual and celebrate diversity of talent – there truly is no typical King’s pupil. Each and every one is unique, and is treated as such. King’s School Rochester is a school for life, where pupils are prepared for life beyond education. We support this with our extra-curricular and careers activities whilst at the School, and then when a child leaves, we keep in touch and follow their journey, ensuring that they always remain a valued member of the King’s community.
Our motto is a simple one, “Work hard, play hard and look after each other” no matter what age you are.
King’s School Rochester finds itself situated in the heart of the historic town, nestled amongst cobbled medieval streets under the shadow of the Cathedral.
A stone’s throw from the beating heart of London, inhabitants of Rochester enjoy rolling countryside hills in one direction, and beautiful seaside in the other. The town is just over half an hour away by train into St Pancras International and easily accessible from Kent and the southeast. This gives our pupils the best of both worlds – a wealth of bustling culture on their doorstep, combined with the peace of living in a picturesque country town.
The busy high street, filled with independent businesses and a burgeoning arts scene, means our town is the perfect location to learn, develop and grow. Situated on the banks of the River Medway, Rochester is full of charm and intrigue.
Our location in Rochester is an integral part of School life.
Whilst we may be the second oldest school in the world, our vision is modern and resolutely forward-looking.
Steeped in history and surrounded by breath-taking heritage, King’s School Rochester has moved with the times for over 1400 years.
Our School lies in the shadow of Rochester Castle, nestled within the Cathedral precinct. Thousands of pupils have passed through the School over the centuries, leaving their mark and creating a tangible sense of history. With our one-of-a-kind setting, our pupils understand what has gone before them and consequently their role in shaping the future.
Our pupils are given the mindset, knowledge and self-belief they need to step out, flourish, and emblazon their own positive mark on the world.
Strategically placed, guarding an important crossing of the River Medway, this imposing fortress has a complex history of destruction and rebuilding.
Today it stands as a proud reminder of the history of Rochester, along with the cathedral and cobbled streets.
Through all the raids, battles and drama, King's School has stood under its impressive shadow, educating the children of Rochester.
King’s benefits from excellent transport links to London and beyond, perfect for international pupils.
Rochester Train Station is conveniently located less than a 10 minute walk from the School with London being just over a half an hour train journey away into St Pancras International.
Add to this the rolling countryside hills in one direction and the beautiful seaside in the other, our pupils have a wealth of bustling culture on their doorstep, combined with the peace of living in a picturesque country town.
It is our core belief that our pupils learn just as much outside the classroom as they do inside.
We consider participation in clubs and activities an integral part of the King’s experience.
From Reception through to Sixth Form, there is an extensive range of co-curricular pursuits from which to choose, taking place during lunchtime, after school and at the weekend.
We also offer a range of trips both in the UK and abroad to extend our young people’s horizons.
We instil in our pupils the practical knowledge and skills that will see them through the rest of their education and their future career.
At the end of their time at King’s, our pupils leave as fully rounded young adults, who go on to flourish and thrive in whichever path they take.
Our long established Old Roffensian Society allows past leavers to stay in contact with their contemporaries and participate in events and functions within the wider King’s network.
The Old Roffensians’ community provides pupils with a valuable network of contacts that will enrich and further their respective careers, in many cases giving them that crucial ‘foot-in-the-door’.
Senior School News, Whole School News
Our talented pupil organists, Alex M and Alex S, welcomed the congregation into the magnificent Rochester Cathedral, opening what was to be a spellbinding occasion. The annual Carol Service was a magical celebration of music, tradition and community, as the Cathedral’s stunning architecture was lit by candlelight and filled with the intricate harmonies of [...]
Nursery & Pre-Preparatory School News
There was a bit of a snowy surprise on the Pre-Prep playground on the last day of term. Children arrived to be greeted by staff in their best Christmas knitwear to a playground full of snow! Christmas music was playing and even Father Christmas turned up to wish everyone a Merry Christmas! What a [...]
Boarding
The annual Boarders Christmas dinner took place this week, a tradition dating back to Victorian times. The boys hosted the event in School House and did a wonderful job decorating the room. The girls, and selected invited guests were welcomed and enjoyed a fantastic three course meal. There were speeches from the Upper Sixth [...]
Preparatory School News
Friends and family of Prep School pupils were treated to an evening of singing, dancing and music-making with lots of festive treats. Choirs from Years 4, 5 and 6 sang songs that they have been learning in their music lessons, whilst the Choristers and Prep School Choir shared two of the songs they have been [...]
Nursery & Pre-Preparatory School News
Nursery and Reception children were so excited to take part in their nativity, Whoops-a-Daisy Angel. The performance took place yesterday in front of a captivated audience of parents and carers. This wonderfully festive play tells a delightful nativity tale, featuring a lovable but disorganised angel who has been chosen to show the way to [...]
Nursery & Pre-Preparatory School News, Preparatory School News
The Pre-Preparatory Supporters (PPS) have had a very busy couple of weeks, hosting not one but three different events for children across the school. The Pre-Prep pupils enjoyed playing games at the Christmas Fayre complete with Santa's Grotto, the Prep School Y4, 5 & 6 pupils danced the night away at the Christmas Party, [...]
Senior School News
As part of their enrichment a group of U5 pupils carried out a mock trial with a real barrister (Tania Dosoruth) presiding as judge. A court illustration was drawn by Alice H and the report written by the court's reporter Anita O. Lana M was the defendant and Ben R, Freddie R and William M [...]
Nursery & Pre-Preparatory School News
This week Ronnie the Elf asked Nursery children to plant some magic buttons. Imagine everyone’s surprise to find they had grown into candy canes overnight! Nursery pupils have also been learning about senses this week by exploring Christmas through smell and touch. [...]
Whole School News
Congratulations to Mrs Nathan who has completed an extraordinary musical challenge this week in aid of the music therapy charity Nordoff and Robbins. During 2024 Mrs Nathan has taken ten Grade 5 ABRSM music exams, nearly all in instruments she has been playing for less than a year: Harpsichord (April 2024) Treble Recorder (April 2024) [...]
Whole School News
This week King’s celebrated Christmas Jumper Day. With an array of reindeer, Santas and even the odd Grinch everyone looked festive-tastic!
Senior School News
The House Chess competition has taken place in the Senior School. The tension in the room, the rapid movement of pieces due to timed games and the focus of the pupils created a closely fought competition. Parker were the winners, with Storrs coming a close second! [...]
Nursery & Pre-Preparatory School News
Year 3 had a lovely time visiting Watts Almshouses to sing carols for the residents. Christmas spirit truly was in full swing, with the residents singing along to their favourite carols with us and Mrs Elvers on the flute and there were festive treats to enjoy. It was wonderful seeing the joy the older [...]
Senior School News
Last week, Mr Smith spoke to the Senior School on the theme of waiting. To illustrate the importance of watching and waiting in the Christmas story, Houses battled to open Advent calendars in the correct order. It proved harder than the pupils anticipated!
Whole School News
Last week the whole school had a delicious Christmas Dinner. Tables were decorated, Christmas jumpers were donned and the Christmas hits playlist activated, adding to the festive atmosphere. Both pupils and staff got to enjoy a fabulous festive meal together – as well as the usual dreadful cracker jokes! [...]
Preparatory School News, Senior School News
In the run up to Christmas, the Senior and Prep schools donated toys in their weekly service in support of struggling families. The Salvation Army collected the toys and will distribute them over the Christmas season to families in Medway. A heartfelt thank you for all that you donated. Our contributions will make a [...]
Whole School News
We announce that our Principal, Ben Charles, will be stepping down at the end of this academic year to take up the prestigious role of Head of Foundation at King’s School Worcester, starting in September 2025. While we are very sad to see Mr Charles and his family leave King’s, we deeply appreciate the exceptional [...]
Senior School News
We were fortunate to have nine mentors join us for a day to support our business challenge and to provide Lower Sixth pupils with a business problem to solve. Pupils were given a brief and then had the day to work on it, before presenting their business idea Dragon Den style to the mentors [...]
Preparatory School News
What an amazing few weeks it has been for our Year 5 pupils! They have truly knuckled down and immersed themselves in a variety of humanities subjects, including Religious Studies, Geography, History, and PSHEE. Their hard work culminated in a fantastic final project that involved creating artefacts linked to religion, beautifully merging elements from [...]
Nursery & Pre-Preparatory School News
Reception visited the Nativity at the cathedral on Friday. The children had a lovely time learning about the Nativity story. They had a chance to try on costumes and then made a ‘Nativity crown’ to record the story in pictures.
Preparatory School News
The overall results for the Nickless Prize for General Knowledge 2024 are now in! Christopher H (8W) was one of six centurions in Round Two of the Nickless Prize for General Knowledge. Recording a total of 141 points, Christopher snuck ahead of last year’s runner-up to claim the title by four points from classmate Emma [...]
Preparatory School News
The Choristers met the Master of the Mercer’s Livery Company this week when they sang for their Advent Sermon service. This took place in London and the Dean of Windsor was the Preacher at the service. The Choristers are also singing carols this week in aid of Air Ambulance.
Senior School News
Lower Fifth Computer Science pupils had the opportunity to visit the Centre for Computing History in Cambridge, a pioneering museum dedicated to the story of the Information Age. The visit included a fascinating tour showcasing the evolution of computing, an interactive session with the MegaProcessor - the world’s largest CPU - and a hands-on [...]
Senior School News
Recently 118 Senior School pupils participated in the Oxford/Raspberry Pi Bebras Computational Thinking Challenge (more than 40% of the whole Senior School!) and the results are now in. In Remove, 17 pupils got a Distinction, and 14 achieved a Merit award. In GCSE (L5 & U5), 12 pupils got a Distinction, and 11 achieved a [...]
Senior School News
Early this week, our pupils joined peers from 20 other schools across the country in attending the 2024 Benenden Model United Nations Conference. Senior School pupils from Removes through to Upper Sixth demonstrated research, negotiation and drafting skills in their work across several committees mirroring real world diplomacy as delegates representing Rwanda and Azerbaijan. [...]
START your journey
Every step of the King’s School Rochester journey, from Nursery to Sixth Form, is designed to help pupils flourish, grow in confidence and discover new passions.