The College reviews fees annually, with any changes taking place at the beginning of each academic year. Any fee amendments are notified to parents at the end of the preceding academic year.
A non-refundable registration fee of £100 is payable when a pupil’s name is first registered for entry. This is the first stage of the admissions process and ensures that a pupil will be considered for entry.
Upon receiving an offer to join Shiplake College, a deposit of £1,750 (UK and EU pupils) is required in order to confirm your child’s place. If parents change their mind and withdraw the child before starting, the deposit is not returnable. However, those starting with us will be credited with £500 of the deposit as part of the second term's bill.
The deposit for pupils outside the European Union is the equivalent of one term's fees.
The deposit will be retained by the College until the pupil leaves and will be returned (minus outstanding debts) unless parents wish to donate all or part of the deposit to the College.
Fees are charged termly in advance (three equal bills annually) and payment is due by the first day of each term or by monthly instalments with the prior agreement of the Bursar. The College Governors review fees annually and will minimise fee increases where possible. Parents are normally advised of fee increases prior to the beginning of the summer term each year.
Fees are inclusive of all the normal maintenance and recreational requirements of each pupil, including lunch, supper and snacks (plus breakfast for boarders). Also included in the fees are: Academic lessons and text books; sports coaching; laundry (not day pupils); pastoral support from housemaster/mistress, tutor and matron; medical cover; a full time Chaplaincy; access to ICT and the internet; a 47 acre riverside site for outdoor activities; extensive co-curricular activities programme; plays and concerts in the Tithe Barn and Sports Hall; music rehearsal facilities; the Thinking Space; transport to matches, museums and plays (if mandatory part of the curriculum); accommodation for private study; careers advice; personal accident insurance; House subscriptions; Old Viking Society membership.
We make every effort to ensure our fees are as close to 'all-inclusive' as possible but there will inevitably be some additional charges added to the bill, examples of which are found below:
ICT Device
The College has a unified device policy for all new pupils and classroom-ready Microsoft Surface Pro devices are available for parents to purchase. These devices form part of a comprehensive education toolkit and can be used either as a laptop or as a tablet, which ensures pupils can access learning in an individual and flexible way, all while providing a secure and robust learning environment.
Pupils are required to have a Surface device from a predefined list, with a type cover (keyboard) and Surface pen (a stylus). Depending on the device ordered, the cost will be in the region of £1,000-£1,500.
Pupil devices, accessories and warranty are sold via a custom store and managed by our partners, First Technology, who will prepare the device with all required software and ship it to your chosen address. Shiplake receives an educational discount on these devices which is passed straight on to parents.
Shiplake College Device Shop
Digital Strategy 2023 (inc FAQs)
Outings/Trips
Occasional outings with tutors, some visits to the theatre or cinema and parties or dances/socials at other schools may also be charged on account. We believe these are an essential part of the full programme of activities that should be offered in a boarding school.
Individual Music Lessons
All pupils are encouraged to learn a musical instrument and free tuition is given during timetabled lessons in Years 7 and 8 as part of the Music for All programme.
Individual 35-minute lessons for all instruments are charged at £29.00 per lesson (2023-2024). Charges are raised one term in advance. As part-time music staff are contracted on parents’ behalf, written notice one term in advance is required to stop lessons.
Further information about individual music lessons can be found here.
Fees in Advance Scheme
Shiplake College offers a Fees in Advance (FIA) Scheme. Please click on the link below for further details. Parents should advise the Accounts Department what level of termly credit they would like to pay in advance (minimum £3,000) and over how many terms (minimum six and maximum 15 terms) - the 'Fee Credit'.
The College will then apply the discount rate set out in the Standard Table at the end of the FIA Terms and Conditions to the amount of the Fee Credit. This calculation will generate the amount of the advance lump sum payment payable by you.
Parents should complete the application form and agreement and return to the College before making the transfer of the advance payment.
Fees in Advance Scheme (As of 1 March 2024)
Overnight Accommodation and Exeat Weekends
Where there is sufficient space, parents may apply for day pupils to stay overnight at the College for a maximum of two nights per week. This may take place in any of the Houses where beds are available and not necessarily in the pupil's allocated House. All applications must be made in writing at least 72 hours in advance to the pupil’s Housemaster. Charges will be added to the pupil’s end of term fee invoice. If the pupil will be staying overnight regularly they may pay the flexi-boarding rate which results in a discount on the equivalent two nights' stay.
More information on flexi-boarding can be found here.
| Accommodation |
Charge 2023-24 |
| Overnight stay |
£75.00 per night |
| Exeat weekend |
£200 per weekend |
| Exeat weekend (including a Bank Holiday) |
£350 per weekend |
Learning Development and EAL
Fees for places in the Learning Development Department (Core Places), which include additional timetabled group lessons of tailored support per week, are charged at the following for 2024-2025:
Years 7-11: £1,500 per term
Sixth Form: £750 per term
Click here for more information about Learning Development.
Fees for English as an Additional Language (EAL) are currently charged at £1,500 per term (2024-2025). For further information, please request to see our EAL policy.
Public Examination Fees
Public Examination Fees are charged to the pupil’s account.
Clubs and Societies
If a pupil selects a certain club or society as a co-curricular activity (for example golf, or clay pigeon shooting, if being offered that term), parental approval is required in writing, as there is an additional charge of about £80 - £100 per term. There are also additional rowing subs for those who are part of the Boat Club which are charged termly and may cost between £40 and £90 depending on the pupil.
Boarders Activities Programme
Our dedicated Boarding Activities Co-ordinator organises a variety of events and activities for boarders during the week and for those who stay in over the weekend.
The weekend activities programme covers a mixture of cultural, social and sporting events. On Sundays, boarders are allowed a ‘lie-in’ or have personal time until brunch at 11.30am. Sunday afternoons are reserved for more active activities, in which all boarders are strongly encouraged to take part.
The cost of the evening and weekend activity programme is included in the termly school fees for all full boarders. Weekly boarders and day pupils are welcome to participate in the weekend trips and activities, and the cost of these will be added to their end-of-term bill.
Insurances
The insurances detailed below are currently available (2023-2024).
Healthcare – Parents may opt for pupils to be covered by a private medical scheme. If required, a subscription for AXA PPP of £126.00 (incl Insurance Premium Tax) is added to accounts to provide cover against the cost of private specialist and hospital treatment. However, this does not cover the cost of prescriptions, dentists and some medical specialists not covered by AXA PPP, and parents will be charged for any extra cost arising from these.
Personal Effects - Unless covered by their home household policy, parents are strongly advised to take out the Personal Effects insurance scheme offered by the school as the main school insurance policy does not cover personal effects. Please note that there is a £5,000 limit to insurance cover, single item limit of £2,000, bicycle limit of £350, watches and individual items of jewellery limit of £500 (with a valuation) and a claims excess of £25 or £100 for laptop claims. The premium is currently £7.73, incl tax per term (2023-2024). Please review the policy information document for full details of the policy and exclusions.
School Fees Refund Scheme - The School Fees Refund scheme is optional and is available at a premium of 0.95% of the termly rate for boarders or 0.82% of the termly rate for day pupils (2023-2024). This scheme secures a refund if your child cannot attend school because of illness or injury.
Further details on all insurances are available from the Policies and Downloads page.
Transport
Shiplake uses specialist transport management company Vectare to run our School Transport Service which includes daily transport routes and a weekly route for West London weekly boarders. Bookings are made through this system and payment is expected to be made separately termly in advance. Click here for details of routes and charges.
Transport (via our trusted taxi services) can also be arranged for pupils for example to and from Reading Station at exeats and half terms. Pupils may book taxis through the College office; charges for occasional transport will be made in arrears.
Medical Appointments
In the case of emergencies/accidents, the school will arrange transport as necessary. Where parents are unable to accompany pupils for routine/pre-arranged appointments, the following (2023-24) charges will apply:
Accompanied (by staff member): £35.00 per hour + Taxi Charge
Unaccompanied (ie by taxi): Taxi Charge
Travel Money
It is not the school’s policy to advance travel money or money for visits of a purely recreational nature. Parents who live abroad must deposit sufficient money for travel with their child’s Housemaster (and for any other expenses at half term or for exeat weekends).
School Uniform
Shiplake College uses the online retailer Schoolblazer to supply uniform and sports kit. This allows parents to order anytime and from anywhere at their convenience. Go to www.schoolblazer.com for further details and to place your order.
Please note that haircuts, additional or missing uniform, etc. are also charged to pupils’ accounts. Click here for the uniform and equipment guide.
Child Student Visa Support
For non-British or Irish pupils, a Child Student Visa will be required for study in the UK unless they are lawfully entitled to study in the UK on another basis such as by virtue of a visa granted to a parent. This requirement also applies to current pupils continuing into the Sixth Form who will be required to apply for a new visa.
Shiplake wishes to make every effort to make this process as easy as possible and so will be supported by Nathan Millard of Cater Leydon Millard Limited for all Child Student Visa applications. All parents/pupils who require such a visa will receive personalised support throughout the visa process. Cater Leydon Millard Limited will keep you informed throughout your application process, highlighting key steps and documents that are required and answering any questions that you may have. Additionally, they will be working closely with our Admissions Team to ensure things run smoothly. If you have any queries before then, his contact details are [email protected].
There will be a non-refundable administrative cost of £500.00 (2023-2024) to cover the additional work required to ensure the smooth running of the visa process which will be invoiced at the same time as fees.