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Our View
This day and boarding co-ed for teenagers aged 13 to 19 is something out of the ordinary. Slap bang in central London, its bold, undulating façade nestles on the South Bank, offering a dynamic, grown-up space for students from over 60 countries to learn and live within its walls. Yet for all its modernist looks, at its essence, says deputy head academic Dr Sarah Watson, it’s ‘a small school environment, with small classes and lots of attention’.
Where?
Just five minutes’ walk from Westminster Tube and Waterloo mainline stations, the DLD College London campus is right in the centre of the capital with the Houses of Parliament and the River Thames on the doorstep. It’s dominated by a cool, curved futuristic tower, with 15 cylindrical steel-and-glass storeys.
Inside, there’s a light-filled multipurpose atrium hung with the 61 flags of the home nations of its students that’s used for assemblies and as a social space; above that are more than 50 state-of-the-art classrooms, study hubs, plus a drama studio, media and science labs, art, graphics and photography studios, a broadcast studio and music practice rooms, all accessible from wide, curvy hallways.
Head
New head James Kidd picked up the reigns in September 2024. Formerly senior vice principal at DLD College London, Mr Kidd has over 20 years working in education under his belt, and before arriving here he was assistant head at St John’s School, Leatherhead. We very much look forward to meeting him.
Admissions
In September 2023, a brand-new Year 9 intake joined (previously, the school didn't start until Year 10) with 12 pupils, and 24 are on the roll to start in September 2024, making two classes. The school is non-selective with a 50:50 split of domestic and international students. Pupils must provide a past school report and attend an interview and those joining for A-levels or BTEC programmes must have a minimum of five GCSEs at grade 4 or above. Anyone wanting to take the International Foundation Programme must have passed GCSE English or have an overall IELTS score of 5.0.
There are bursaries and scholarships available, valued at between five and 50 per cent of fees, as well as the Alpha Scholars Programme (also up to 50 per cent) for students who can demonstrate brilliance and leadership qualities.
Academics and destinations
Academics are important here, and pupils are expected to be engaged in, and take ownership of their educational journey (the head encourages them to identify their personal legacy and what they want to achieve during their time here). There are 11 lessons per day, each 35 minutes long. While many are doubles, maths and coding are only ever single lessons as concentration in these subjects has been shown to be better in short, sharp bursts.
The Year 9 curriculum is interdisciplinary, with three courses embedded in a traditional timetable of subjects (history, maths, English, etc) which take in people and places (sociology, psychology); creative arts (art, drama, graphic design, photography); and digital futures where pupils learn about crypto currency, marketing, media, coding and business. Year 9s also spend Fridays working on the ‘urban schools project’, which is based on the developmental goals laid out by the UN and World Economic Forum as to what the world needs by 2025. This can see them spending the day at Kew Gardens with a botanist, attending a lecture about sustainable set design at the National Theatre or taking a deep dive into character portrayal through costume design at a private tour at the Harry Potter Studios.
The school offers a wealth of GCSEs (which can also be taken as an intensive one-year course) and 21 subjects at A-level. There are also options to study vocational BTEC qualifications in business, performing arts, sports management, creative digital media production and E-sports, which covers everything from online streaming to sports marketing, management and competitive gaming.For international students, there is an Academic Preparation Course – a one-year course that can be taken before GCSEs or A-levels – and the International Foundation Programme, a one-year alternative to A-levels.
Classes have on average 12 pupils which means there’s tons of individual support, including dedicated university advisors. Lots of leavers go on to Russell Group universities, especially those in London such as Imperial, King's College and UCL. Popular international destinations include universities in Switzerland, Italy, the US and Canada.
Co-curricular
Pupils head to nearby Archbishop’s Park, which has football and tennis courts, for sport. The school has football, netball and basketball teams. There is also an on-site gym, pool and opportunities to learn rowing for those who are interested. The whole school does weekly PE on a Friday afternoon.
Art is very popular – and the school’s proximity to the capital’s many art galleries is a real draw. There are plenty of talented artists at DLD College London – last year, 98 per cent of art A-level grades were A* to B.
The school day includes a dedicated hour for co-curricular activities each afternoon, with more than 50 different options for students to pick from – from animation and boxing to chemistry Olympiads, public speaking and a ukulele band. The school is keen to deliver a holistic education and encourages pupils to get involved in the arts and sciences beyond the core exam content (plenty of speakers from these fields come in to talk to students).
Years 9 to 11 have a weekly careers lesson with a specialist careers advisor. Work experience is encouraged and partnerships have been established between local institutions, such as St Thomas’ Hospital, so that aspiring medical students can shadow doctors. Community projects including local food banks, Evelina London Children's Hospital (part of St Thomas's) and the Sutton Trust ensure that pupils are not confined to a privileged bubble.
Boarding
Full boarders make up 60 per cent of the pupil body – and it’s no wonder DLD College London has won awards for the experience it offers. Accommodation – 200 single rooms, all with an ensuite, and arranged around the building’s central atrium – feels like university halls and there are comfortable common rooms with far-reaching views across London. The structure of the boarding is built around close-knit huddles, which aim to encourage communities of friendship, with doors between different groups.
All students have an hour of supervised homework and after supper are allowed to go into London for 90 minutes in groups of three (with their phones). Weekend activities are all about getting out and exploring the capital.
School community
At the Wellbeing Centre, pupils have access to nursing, counselling, life coaching, as well as neurodiversity specialists who provide learning support. In fact, the focus on wellness is so outstanding here that DLD College London was the first school in the UK to win the gold award for ‘Mental Health in Boarding’, awarded by the Carnegie Centre of Excellence. In addition, there is a mentoring and tutor system to support new and younger children settle into the school. We love the sound of ‘Monopoly day’, when pupils visit all the streets on the board game so they can get their bearings in the city. The school house system is also London-based with each one named after a Tube station.
Pupils tell us that school rules are simple and centre around punctuality, respect and tolerance for others. Boarders have curfews, and the school ensures individual safety with an app called Reach, which enables pupils to let the school know where they are when they head off campus. Graduation ceremonies are held in the Houses of Parliament, and students organise their own prom (even managing the budget too) in an iconic setting. Past locations include the Globe Theatre.
And finally....
A unique place for young people who like to march to the beat of their own drum, this school has no uniform, everyone is on first-name terms (teachers too) and students have a real voice (they even vetoed the Starbucks coffee stand in the café, choosing to bring in the more sustainable Grumpy Mule instead). Mutual respect and tolerance is at the heart of the community and with London on the doorstep as an extended ‘classroom’, the school feels like it’s breaking the mould for education.