A beautiful location and delightfully happy children were just two of the reasons why Alastair Cook wanted to set down roots at The Downs Malvern
Name of school: The Downs Malvern
Name of head: Alastair S Cook B Ed (Hons) FRGS
Address of school: Brockhill Road, Colwall, Malvern, Worcestershire, WR13 6ET
Tel: 01684 544 108 (Registrar)
Website: www.thedownsmalvern.org.uk
How long have you been at The Downs Malvern?
I am starting my fifth year at the school.
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What attracted you to it?
My wife and I first visited the school in 2009 and were impressed by the delightfully happy children and its outstandingly beautiful location on the western side of the Malvern Hills.
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What do you consider the strengths of the school to be?
The strengths are many and varied; each pupil has the opportunity to develop his or her own interests, skills and talents and to shine.
The recent inspection summarised: ‘The school offers an excellent educational experience. Throughout the school the pupils’ achievement is excellent and they reach high standards both in their academic work and in a wide range of extra-curricular activities’.
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Tell me something about your pupils…
The Downs is a leading day and boarding prep school for girls and boys from 3 to 13 years. The pupils progress to a variety of senior schools at Year 8; many gain scholarships and other awards. The majority move across the Hills to our affiliated senior school, Malvern College.
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What are the fees?
The fees range from £2,068 per term in Reception to £6,578 per term for the full boarding.
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Famous alumni?
The Downs was founded in 1900 and over the past 113 years many of the children and staff have gone on to achieve in a wide variety of fields: military, science, education and business. The school can boast two science Nobel Laureates, Alan Hodgkin and Frederick Sanger who was only the fourth ‘Double Laureate’ as well as Lawrence Gowing, a national artist and AJP Taylor, the notable historian.
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What does the future hold?
The future is bright with an emphasis on a modern education with strong traditional foundation of care, good manners and hard work.
