Cheam School

Word From The Head

William Phelps

Cheam is a very special place offering the brightest of learning environments. It is the perfect place to grow - we know that the early years of a child’s life are the very best time to prepare the ground for their adulthood, and our focus at Cheam is on providing the most compelling setting for every child to thrive.

There is a ‘feeling’ about our school that cannot be engineered. It is an organic manifestation of an educational environment where opportunity is provided alongside reassurance, where independence co-exists with support, and where kindness is instilled alongside resilience.

It is this ethos that ensures our Cheam leavers, year on year, take happiness, confidence and emotional intelligence with them on to pastures new. Cheam has long standing relationships with some of the very best day and boarding schools in the country, and we pride ourselves on guiding every child in our care to exactly the right next step. We help parents manage applications, pre-tests and the successful transition of their children at 13, delivering outstanding exam results and winning a wide range of scholarships along the way.

The way we see it, a child’s Cheam years aren’t just a stepping stone to a top public school. They are a voyage of discovery, a chance to discover their own essence of excellence, to develop phenomenal talents and to build the foundations (in both work and play) of the adult that child will one day be.

In a world as rapidly changing as our own it is impossible to predict what society will ask of our children in the years to come. What we can say with certainty though, is that an education that prepares a child for anything, that teaches them to be the very best versions of themselves, and that enables them to look ahead with confidence, and behind with pride, is both timeless and priceless.

The Cheam staff and I hope that our website gives you a fleeting glimpse into a childhood spent in our community, but we know it cannot possibly show you how Cheam really ‘feels’.

For that, we’d urge you to come and see Cheam for yourself, and we guarantee you a warm welcome. Please see our Admissions page to arrange an individual tour. Our forthcoming Open Morning is on Friday 3rd February 2023, 9.45am to 12.30pm and we would be delighted if you would join us.

Best wishes

William Phelps, Headmaster

MA (New York) BA AKC (King’s College London)