Reed's School is an independent secondary

day A day is the time rotation period, period of a full Earth's rotation, rotation of the Earth with respect to the Sun. On average, this is 24 hours (86,400 seconds). As a day passes at a given location it experiences morning, afternoon, evening, ...

and

boarding school A boarding school is a school where pupils live within premises while being given formal instruction. The word "boarding" is used in the sense of "room and board", i.e. lodging and meals. They have existed for many centuries, and now extend acr ...

for boys with a

co-educational Mixed-sex education, also known as mixed-gender education, co-education, or coeducation (abbreviated to co-ed or coed), is a system of education where males and females are educated together. Whereas single-sex education was more common up to ...

sixth form In the education systems of Barbados, England, Jamaica, Northern Ireland, Trinidad and Tobago, Wales, and some other Commonwealth countries, sixth form represents the final two years of secondary education, ages 16 to 18. Pupils typically prepa ...

located in

Cobham, Surrey Cobham () is a large village in the Borough of Elmbridge in Surrey, England, centred south-west of London and northeast of Guildford on the River Mole, Surrey, River Mole. It has a commercial/services High Street, a significant number of pr ...

, England. There are currently around 700 day pupils (620 boys, 80 girls) and 100 full-time boarders (80 boys, 20 girls). The school was founded in 1813, by Andrew Reed and incorporated by Act of Parliament in 1845 under the presidency of the

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the Primus inter pares, ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the bishop of the diocese of Canterbury. The first archbishop ...

, the

Duke of Wellington Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they ar ...

and the

Marquess of Salisbury Marquess of Salisbury is a title in the Peerage of Great Britain, held by a branch of the Cecil family. It was created in 1789 for the 7th Earl of Salisbury. Most of the holders of the title have been prominent in British political life over t ...

. From 1951 until her death in 2022 Queen

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

acted as the school's 15th patron and visited the school twice, in 1997 and in 2014, as the reigning monarch.

Alumni Alumni (: alumnus () or alumna ()) are former students or graduates of a school, college, or university. The feminine plural alumnae is sometimes used for groups of women, and alums (: alum) or alumns (: alumn) as gender-neutral alternatives. Th ...

of the school are known as 'Old Reedonians'.

History

Founding

A notable early sponsor was the

, a future Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

London Orphan Asylum, London (1813–1871)

The foundation was established to provide relief to destitute orphans, including children whose fathers had died and whose mothers were unable to provide for them. Initially the Asylum used two houses; one at Hackney Road,

Shoreditch Shoreditch is an area in London, England and is located in the London Borough of Hackney alongside neighbouring parts of Tower Hamlets, which are also perceived as part of the area due to historic ecclesiastical links. Shoreditch lies just north ...

for the boys and one in

Bethnal Green Bethnal Green is an area in London, England, and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in east London and part of the East End of London, East End. The area emerged from the small settlement which developed around the common la ...

for the girls. Exploring Surrey's Past The asylum's first unified site was at Lower Clapton Road, Clapton, where

Newcome's School Newcome's School was a fashionable boys' school in Hackney, then to the east of London, founded in the early 18th century. A number of prominent Whig families sent their sons there. The school closed in 1815, and the buildings were gutted in 18 ...

had stood. There were 206 pupils in 1826 and 453 in the 1860s. During the asylum's time in East London, it was famous for having had some 2000 hymns written for it by the English architect

James Edmeston James Edmeston (10 September 1791 – 7 January 1867) was an English architect and surveyor; he was also known as a prolific writer of church hymns. He was born in Wapping, Middlesex, England. His maternal grandfather was the Reverend Samuel ...

, a strong supporter of and frequent visitor to the London Orphan Asylum. Following the school's 1871 move to Watford, the East London buildings were used by the

Salvation Army The Salvation Army (TSA) is a Protestantism, Protestant Christian church and an international charitable organisation headquartered in London, England. It is aligned with the Wesleyan-Holiness movement. The organisation reports a worldwide m ...

. Only the facade of the classical-style building remains, and forms part of the Clapton Girls' Academy

London Orphan Asylum/School, Watford (1871–1939)

) for the new school. The Prince of Wales, later

Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until Death and state funeral of Edward VII, his death in 1910. The second child ...

, and his wife the Princess of Wales and future

Queen Alexandra Alexandra of Denmark (Alexandra Caroline Marie Charlotte Louise Julia; 1 December 1844 – 20 November 1925) was List of British royal consorts, queen-consort of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India, from 22 Januar ...

, laid down the foundational stones on 15 July 1869 and the school formally opened in 1871. The school was renamed to the "London Orphan School" in 1915, following a merge with the recently closed Royal British Orphan School in Slough it was again renamed the "London Orphan School and Royal British Orphan School", before finally being named "Reed's School" in 1939, in honour of the late founder. In the early 1880s the London Orphan Asylum lost two football matches against the then named Watford Rovers, now known as

Watford F.C. Watford Football Club is a professional football club based in Watford, Hertfordshire, England. The club competes in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The team played at several grounds in their early history, includ ...

Headmasters at the Watford site included Oliver Carter Cockrem and H.W. Russell. In the 1980s the buildings were converted into residential accommodation.

Reed's School, Totnes & Towcester (1939–1945)

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

the school was evacuated from Watford. The site was used as an Army hospital and then by the

Ministry of Labour A ministry of labour ('' UK''), or labor ('' US''), also known as a department of labour, or labor, is a government department responsible for setting labour standards, labour dispute mechanisms, employment, workforce participation, training, and s ...

Reed's School, Cobham (1945–present)

The Sandy Lane site had been purpose-built for the Sandyroyd School in around 1905 by architects Treadwell and Martin, who were also responsible for the design of Scott's restaurant (now part of the Trocadero Centre) and other notable structures. The new site provided facilities including a heated indoor swimming pool, a nine-hole golf course, and two squash courts. A new headmaster,

Robert Drayson Robert Quested Drayson DSC (5 June 1919 – 15 October 2008) was an English naval officer and schoolmaster. During the Second World War Drayson was decorated for sinking the German Navy auxiliary cruiser ''Komet''. After the War he returned to C ...

, was appointed in 1955 and remained until 1964, when he migrated to Stowe. , while retaining its charitable element.

Royal Patrons since 1815

The school has had many royal patrons. *1815

Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathearn (Edward Augustus; 2 November 1767 – 23 January 1820) was the fourth son and fifth child of King George III and Queen Charlotte. His only child, Queen Victoria, Victoria, became Queen of the United Ki ...

*1817

Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex (27 January 1773 – 21 April 1843), was the sixth son and ninth child of George III, King George III and his queen consort, Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. He was the only surviving son of George III ...

*1819

Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld (Marie Louise Victoire; 17 August 1786 – 16 March 1861), later Princess of Leiningen and subsequently Duchess of Kent and Strathearn, was a German princess and the mother of Queen Victoria of the ...

*1819

Leopold I of Belgium Leopold I (16 December 1790 – 10 December 1865) was the first king of the Belgians, reigning from 21 July 1831 until his death in 1865. The youngest son of Francis, Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld, Leopold took a commission in the Imperial Rus ...

*1821

Ernest Augustus, King of Hanover Ernest Augustus (; 5 June 177118 November 1851) was King of Hanover from 20 June 1837 until his death in 1851. As the fifth son of George III of the United Kingdom and Hanover, he initially seemed unlikely to become a monarch, but none of his e ...

*1822

Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany Prince Frederick, Duke of York and Albany (Frederick Augustus; 16 August 1763 – 5 January 1827) was the second son of George III, King of the United Kingdom and King of Hanover, Hanover, and his consort Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz. A so ...

*1823

George IV George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 29 January 1820 until his death in 1830. At the time of his accession to the throne, h ...

*1826

Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge (Adolphus Frederick; 24 February 1774 – 8 July 1850) was the tenth child and seventh son of King George III of the United Kingdom and Queen Charlotte. He held the title of Duke of Cambridge from 1801 until ...

*1826

William IV William IV (William Henry; 21 August 1765 – 20 June 1837) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death in 1837. The third son of George III, William succeeded hi ...

*1837

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

*1843

Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (Franz August Karl Albert Emanuel; 26 August 1819 – 14 December 1861) was the husband of Queen Victoria. As such, he was consort of the British monarch from Wedding of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, th ...

*1856 The Prince of Wales, later

*1870 The Princess of Wales, later

*1910

George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until Death and state funeral of George V, his death in 1936. George w ...

*1936

George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until Death and state funeral of George VI, his death in 1952 ...

*1951–2022

Sports

The major sports at Reed's School are rugby, hockey and cricket with academies in tennis, skiing and golf. The senior pupils (13+) play rugby, hockey and cricket in the autumn, spring and summer terms respectively. Pupils in the junior school (11–13) play hockey, rugby and then cricket. The indoor tennis centre was opened by alumnus and former British number one,

Tim Henman Timothy Henry Henman (born 6 September 1974) is a British former professional tennis player. He was ranked world No. 4 in men's singles by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) during the early 2000s. Henman won 15 career ATP Tour titl ...

on 18 November 2014. The foundation stone for the 25 metre, five lane indoor swimming pool was laid by

Duncan Goodhew Duncan Alexander Goodhew, (born 27 May 1957) is an English former competitive swimmer. After swimming competitively in America as a collegian at North Carolina State University, he was an Olympic swimmer for Great Britain and won Olympic gold ...

on 15 November 1990. Reed's has won the

International School Sport Federation The International School Sport Federation (ISF) is an international sports governing body for school sport. Founded in 1972 with 21 European signatory nations, the federation has been organising international competitions to encourage education t ...

's world schools' tennis championship more than any other team (in 2009, 2011 and 2015).

Headmasters

* Robert Heath, (1826–1852) * Henry Beattie, (1852–1869) * A. F. Houliston (1869–??) * W. F. Jones * H. W. Bussell (1878–1886) * A. R. Clemens (1886–1887) * Dr. Oliver Carter Cockrem (1887–1915) * E. Hartley Parker (1915–1921) * John J. Jackson (1921–1924) * G. K. Allen (1924–1931) * C. R. Attenborough (1931–45) * H. E. D. Axton (1945–1954) *Philip Scott, acting (1954–1955) *

(1955–1964) *

Rodney Exton Rodney Noel Exton (28 December 1927 – 22 December 1999) was an English first-class cricketer and educator. Exton was born at Bournemouth in December 1927. He was educated at Clifton College, where he captained the college cricket team and wa ...

(1964–1977) – Hampshire cricketer and schoolmaster *

John Baird Tyson John Baird Tyson, , (7 April 1928, in Partick – 10 March 2014) was a British school teacher who mapped previously unexplored areas of the Himalayas. Tyson's father was deputy headmaster at St Paul's School in London, where he was brought up. He ...

(1978–1982) – mountaineer and teacher * David Prince (1983–1997) * David Jarrett (1997–2014) – the first person to win a cricket

blue Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB color model, RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB color model, RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between Violet (color), violet and cyan on the optical spe ...

for both Oxford and Cambridge * Mark Hoskins (2014–present)

Notable staff and associated people

, architect and prolific hymn writer; wrote "Lead us, heavenly Father, lead us" for the children of the London Orphan Asylum * Sir Benjamin Louis Cohen, former President of the London Orphan Asylum * Sir

William Blizard Sir William Blizard FRS FRSE PRCS FSA (1 March 1743 – 27 August 1835) was an English surgeon. Life He was born in Barn Elms, Surrey, the fourth child of auctioneer William Blizard. After an apprenticeship to a surgeon and apothecary in Mor ...

, consulting surgeon to the London Orphan Asylum * Keith Medlycott, cricket coach * Tom Hardy, actor

Notable Old Reedonians

Royalty

* Prince Zeid Raad of Jordan, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights * Prince Mired Raad of Jordan

Business

Alan Bott Captain Alan John Bott (14 January 1893 – 17 September 1952) was a World War I flying ace who was credited with five aerial victories. He later became a journalist, editor and publisher who founded Pan Books.Shores ''et.al.'' (1990), p.82. P ...

, founder of

Pan Books Pan Books is a British publishing imprint that first became active in the 1940s and is now part of the British-based Macmillan Publishers, owned by the Georg von Holtzbrinck Publishing Group of Germany. History Pan Books began as an indepe ...

*Sir

Simon Robey Sir Simon Christopher Townsend Robey (born 5 July 1960) is a British investment banker and supporter of cultural organisations. Early life and education Robey was adopted as a child and grew up in Cambridge. He has described himself as an 'odd ...

, banker and co-founder of Robey Warshaw

Literature

* Thomas Burke *

Richard Dinnick Richard Dinnick (born 22 January 1968) is a British screenwriter, novelist, comic book writer, narrative games narrative designer, audio playwright. He is a frequent guest at writing events (including the London Screenwriters' Festival) and such ' ...

, screenwriter and author

Sport

* Henrik Breimyr, Norwegian professional football player * Paul Brown-Bampoe, professional rugby union player *

Jeffrey Bruma Jeffrey Kevin van Homoet Bruma (; born 13 November 1991) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a centre-back. Club career Chelsea Bruma joined Chelsea's youth setup from Feyenoord at the age of 15 for a fee of £100,000, and was ...

, professional footballer, currently playing for

PSV Eindhoven Philips Sport Vereniging (; ), abbreviated as PSV and internationally known as PSV Eindhoven (), is a Dutch sports club from Eindhoven, Netherlands. It is best known for its professional association football, football department, which has pla ...

Alex Corbisiero Alexander R. Corbisiero (born 30 August 1988) is an English retired rugby union player who played as a loosehead prop. Early life and education Born 30 August 1988, Alexander Corbisiero is the great-grandson of Riccardo Corbisiero, who emigra ...

, rugby player for

Northampton Saints Northampton Saints (officially Northampton Rugby Football Club) is a professional rugby union club from Northampton, England. The club plays in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby union. It was formed in 1880 as "Northampton St. ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

and the

British and Irish Lions The British & Irish Lions is a rugby union team selected from players eligible for the national teams of England national rugby union team, England, Ireland national rugby union team, Ireland, Scotland national rugby union team, Scotland, and ...

Jamie Delgado Jamie Delgado (born 21 March 1977) is a British tennis coach and former professional player. Delgado has represented Great Britain in the Davis Cup, most recently in 2006. Delgado holds the all-time male record for playing in consecutive Wimbl ...

, British tennis player and coach * Daniel Douthwaite, British cricketer for Glamorgan *

Jack Draper Jack Alexander Draper (born 22 December 2001) is a British professional tennis player. He has a career-high ATP singles ranking of world No. 4, achieved on 9 June 2025 and a doubles ranking of No. 203, attained on 21 April 2025. Draper has wo ...

, British tennis player who recently placed in the semi finals of the US open * Chris Eaton, British tennis player *

Alastair Gray Alastair Gray (born 22 June 1998) is a British tennis player. Gray has a career high ATP singles ranking of World No. 237 achieved on 19 September 2022. He also has a career high ATP doubles ranking of World No. 304 achieved on 20 June 2022. ...

, British tennis player *

Phil Salt Philip Dean Salt (born 28 August 1996) is a Welsh professional cricketer who plays internationally for England and domestically for Lancashire County Cricket Club, and previously for Sussex. Primarily an aggressive right-handed opening batter ...

, England cricketer *

Evan Hoyt Evan Hoyt (born 16 January 1995) is a Mexican-born British tennis player. Hoyt has a career high ATP singles ranking of world No. 319, achieved on 16 September 2019. In doubles, he peaked at No. 217 on 12 August 2019. Hoyt has won one ATP Ch ...

, British tennis player * Jack Gower, British alpine ski racer *

, British tennis player *

Oskar Kolk Oskar Magnus David Kolk (born 9 January 1997) is an English first-class cricketer. Kolk was born at Guildford in January 1997. He was educated at Reed's School, before going up to Cardiff University. While studying at Cardiff, he made two appe ...

, cricketer * James Morrison, golfer *

Luke Steyn Luke Henri Steyn (born 7 June 1993) is a Zimbabwean alpine skiing, alpine skier. Steyn competed for Zimbabwe at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, becoming the first Winter Olympian to represent the country. He finished in 57th place in the Alpi ...

, ski racer * Theo Vukašinović, rugby player * Jack Kenningham, rugby player

Arts/entertainment

* Richard Bagguley, muralist and artist * Marcel Grant, filmmaker *Dr.

Keith Scholey Keith Scholey (born 24 June 1957 in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania) is a British producer of nature documentary, nature documentaries for television and cinema, and a former television executive. He is currently a joint Director of Silverback Films Ltd ...

, nature documentary producer *

Elvi Hale Patricia Elvira Hake (29 January 1931 – 1 March 2025), known as Elvi Hale, was a British actress. She played Anne of Cleves in '' The Six Wives of Henry VIII'', broadcast in 1970. Life and career Hake was born on 29 January 1931, in Romford ...

, actress * Tom Hardy, actor *Sir

Simon Keenlyside Sir Simon Keenlyside (born 3 August 1959) is a British baritone who has performed in operas and concerts since the mid-1980s. Biography Early life and education Keenlyside was born in London, the son of Raymond and Ann Keenlyside. Raymond play ...

, opera singer *

Nigel Mitchell Nigel Mitchell is a British television presenter, television and radio presenter and voice-over artist. Early life and education Nigel was born in Kingston Upon Thames. He attended Shrewsbury House School in Surbiton, from where he gained a sch ...

, television and radio presenter *

Sir Nolan Nolan Lambroza (born July 25, 1990), better known as Sir Nolan, is an American record producer and songwriter based in Encino, Los Angeles, California. He has worked with notable artists such as Daniel Caesar, Tyla, Selena Gomez, Justin Biebe ...

, music producer and songwriter * Shaun Scott, actor *

Renton Skinner Daniel Renton Skinner (born 25 January 1973) is an English actor and comedy writer, working in stage, film and television. Skinner often performs as the character Angelos Epithemiou, and is also one half of the ''Brian and Roger'' podcast. Ear ...

, actor and comedian *

Toby Tarrant Tobias Charles Tarrant (born 29 October 1991) is an English radio personality, radio broadcaster on Radio X (United Kingdom), Radio X. Early life Tarrant is the youngest son of broadcaster Chris Tarrant, who previously presented the breakfast s ...

, radio DJ and son of Chris * Jamie Treays, aka Jamie T, singer-songwriter

Politics

Edward Kellett-Bowman Edward Thomas Kellett-Bowman JP (born Bowman; 25 February 1931 – 22 November 2022) was a British business and management consultant. He had a political career as a local councillor and as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for the C ...

, Conservative Member of the European Parliament

Law

* Stuart Popham, British lawyer

References

External links

Reed's School website
{{authority control Boys' schools in Surrey Private schools in Surrey Member schools of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference Boarding schools in Surrey Educational institutions established in 1813 Relocated schools 1813 establishments in England Leopold I of Belgium