Senior School Facilities

The Senior School site

The 8-acre Senior School site is close to the cliff-top in Bournemouth and uses teaching and boarding facilities built around the old Wentworth Lodge which were once part of the Portman Estate. The house, built in 1872, was used by Viscount Portman as a summer residence for around six weeks every year. The school has formal gardens, very attractive surrounding woodlands and extensive sports and play areas.

 

Senior School Facilities

Wentworth Lodge, built in 1872 as the family home of Lord Portman, remains at the heart of the SeniorSchool site and provides an elegant setting for the staff and administrative areas as well as some converted teaching space. Teaching mainly takes place in custom-built areas designed much more recently to provide an open and modern learning environment together with the school’s dining hall, which looks out across the gardens. The classrooms are light and airy, and are supplemented by two south-facing art studios, a ceramics studio and a drama studio. The music block has a large number of teaching and practice rooms, and is well furnished with a wide selection of instruments. Pupils enjoy excellent facilities for food technology, with a well equipped food preparation area that includes the latest labour saving technology.

The school’s information technology facilities were completely renewed in 2009, and include an interactive whiteboard in every teaching space, together with ActiveExpression© devices to encourage interactive learning. There are several newly-equipped ICT suites, one of which is dedicated to Sixth Form use. Other specialist teaching areas include a custom-built Design and Technology suite and the Jones Hall, which has been equipped with theatre lighting for drama teaching and performances.

There is a large sports hall equipped with two trampolines and facilities for indoor tennis, netball, basketball and badminton, together with a separate fitness studio. The 25 metre indoor swimming pool is heated and the sports field is used for hockey, rounders and athletics. The all-weather football and hockey pitch, which incorporates the latest astro-turf technology, is part of our ongoing sports development plan which has also seen the building of a new hard recreation area and the refurbishing of the tennis and netball courts with a new non-slip textured surface.

 

Taking care

As part of the refurbishment of the Senior School site, a new Medical Room facility has been created in the main building to serve both boarders and day pupils.The School Nurse Practitioner is based on the Senior Site but provides guidance on the Preparatory Site. She is registered with the Nursing and Midwifery Council.