Copthorne Preparatory School is an independent preparatory school for children aged between two and eleven near Copthorne in West Sussex, but just over the county boundary in Surrey.
The school is owned by an educational trust and is a member of the Caterham Family of Schools, affiliated with the public school of Caterham. It has a nursery school for infants from the age of 2½, a junior department for children under the age of eight (from Reception to Year 2), and a main school for those aged eight to eleven .
Buildings The main building, or 'Old Block', is largely taken up by dormitories and sleeping quarters for staff, but it also has the school's dining room, a music room, a theatre, and some classrooms. The 'New Block' is the main teaching building.
History The 'Old Block' of Copthorne Preparatory School began as a private English country house called Emsworth House and in the 19th century was owned by a family called Kensington. In 1900, it became a small girls' school. In 1902, after that had closed, Bernard Rendall, a brother of Montague Rendall, then the Second Master of Winchester College, founded the present schoolWhich School (Truman & Knightley Educational Trust, 1988), pp. 171–172 with a view to preparing boys for Winchester.Henry John Hardy, Winchester College, 1867–1920 (P. and G. Wells, 1923), p. 123
The Rendalls had a brother-in-law, Dr Edward Wilson, one of the men who died in 1913 while on Robert Falcon Scott's polar expedition, and Wilson used Copthorne School to prepare for his trip, with the boys giving money to provide huskies. A stained glass window in the school chapel commemorates him."School history & tradition", Copthorne Prep School, accessed 1 January 2026
The school motto, Pervincet Vivida Virtus (Lively manliness conquers all) may be inspired by the lines of the Swiss writer Henricus Loritus Glareanus (1488–1563), in his poem Ad Erasmum RoterodamumHENRICI LORITI GLAREANI: Ad Erasmum Roterodamum at uni-mannheim.de (accessed 13 January 2008) -
At longe tua me probitas, tua vivida virtus Vincit, et est versu non bene picta meo.
In 1928, Edward Skeete Workman took over the running of the school in partnership with J.P. Howard. Tim Workman took over as Headmaster in 1952 on the death of his father"A Note about Copthorne School" in Richard Perceval Graves, A Taste of Sparta (1954-1959): The Second Volume of a Memoir (Troubador Publishing, 2025), p. 13 and was later joined as joint Headmaster by David Sale. Then Sale was joint Headmaster with David Cann and then with David Newton. Sale died in 1984, David Newton was the sole Headmaster until his retirement in 1999, then was followed by Charles Allen who was Headmaster for six years. The present head, Kylie McGregor was appointed in 2025.
During the Second World War, the school was evacuated to the Lee Bay Hotel in Ilfracombe. Its home was requisitioned for use by the Army (the Buffs had it for six weeks) and then by the Royal Air Force.
In 1976 the school was formed into a charitable trust, and in 1980 girls were admitted for the first time. A Pre-Prep school was started in the late 1970s.
A Nursery was opened in 1997. The school is now predominantly a day school, although some children board weekly and others flexi-board.
Copthorne School is in Surrey and has some of playing fields and woodland. It is now a member of the Caterham Family of Schools, affiliated with Caterham School.
Notable former pupils See also :Category:People educated at Copthorne Preparatory School Former pupils of the school, known as Old Copthornians, include:
Derek Abbott (born 1960), scientist and engineer"Profiles of Academic Staff: Derek Abbott", at archive.ph, accessed 2 January 2026 Charles Brutton (1899–1964), soldier, Clerk of the peace, and cricketer"Brutton, Charles Phipps", Who Was Who, online edition published 1 December 2007, accessed 1 January 2026 Charles Graves (born 1899), author Robert Graves (born 1895), poet, novelist Richard Perceval Graves (born 1945), biographer, poetRichard Perceval Graves, A Very English Family (1945-1954): The First Volume of a Memoir (Troubador Publishing, 2024), p. 317 Stuart Head, Great Britain and England field hockey international Sir Adrian Holman (1895–1974), diplomat"Holman, Sir Adrian", Who Was Who, online edition published 1 December 2007, accessed 1 January 2026 Rory Knight-Bruce, author, journalist Dennis Price, actor Frederic Raphael (born 1931), authorRoger Lewis, "Going Up to Cambridge and Beyond: A Writer’s Memoir by Frederic Raphael", The Times, 8 August 2015 Edward Sanders, actor Oliver Stewart, First World War flying ace"Stewart, Major Oliver (26 Nov. 1895–22 Dec. 1976), CompRAeS; writer and broadcaster", Who Was Who published online 1 December 2007, accessed 1 January 2026 Sir John Stanley, Conservative member of parliament Crispian Steele-Perkins, classical trumpet player Derek Tangye, author Francis Wheen (born 1957), journalist"Wheen, Francis James Baird (born 22 Jan. 1957), author and journalist" Who's Who, online edition published 1 December 2007, accessed 1 January 2026
Notable former staff Sarah Kennedy, radio and television presenter who was matron at the school for a time
Footnotes
External links Copthorne School Website Government report