Cotswolds private school to close after over 100 years

Rendcomb College, near Cirencester across the border from Oxfordshire, announced it will permanently shut its doors this summer.

This will bring an end to a 106‑year history of educating day pupils and boarders in the heart of the Cotswolds.

The independent day and boarding school opened in 1920 and has around 380 pupils on its roll.

It said that current and projected pupil numbers, combined with the economic climate facing fee‑paying schools, mean it is no longer financially viable.

In a statement, governors said they had “reluctantly” agreed the college must close at the end of the 2025‑26 academic year, after exploring “every other feasible option”, including potential mergers, alternative owners and additional sources of funding.

"Despite Rendcomb College’s extremely strong track record as a school, the reality is that current and projected pupil numbers, alongside the economic situation facing independent schools across the country, do not make the school financially viable in the future," read the statement.

"It has therefore reluctantly been decided that the school will close at the end of the academic year.

"The staff and governors have done everything to make Rendcomb College an excellent school, and its closure is highly unfortunate but sadly unavoidable.

"For many years, the college has benefited from significant funding from the Rendcomb College Foundation.

"Whilst this has made the operation of the college possible until now, the enormous increase in the deficit for the current year, and the anticipated financial picture for next year, mean that such support is unsustainable.

"This is a very sad decision to have taken and follows the exploration of every other feasible option, including mergers and other forms of funding.

"Our focus now will be on helping pupils find appropriate alternative provision and assisting our highly professional and dedicated staff to find posts elsewhere."

Wycliffe College, another independent school in Gloucestershire, has said it is prepared to offer places in all year groups to affected Rendcomb pupils and has pledged to match existing fees for those transferring into certain years, in a bid to minimise disruption.

The closure adds to growing concern about the pressures facing private schools across the region, coming after a series of high‑profile warnings about the impact of rising costs and the introduction of VAT on school fees.

In Oxfordshire, Our Lady’s Abingdon, a 160‑year‑old Catholic independent day school, shut in 2025.

A range of "economic pressures" were cited, including the planned imposition of VAT on school fees, higher National Insurance contributions, the loss of business rates relief and falling pupil numbers.

Carrdus School, a prep school serving the Banbury area, also confirmed it would close in 2025 due to financial pressures.