At Queen’s College, Outdoor Education encompasses a wide range of outdoor learning experiences, including adventure education, personal and social development, and environmental awareness. These key areas contribute to a program designed to foster leadership, teamwork, and communication skills, while also enhancing pupils’ health and wellbeing. The goal is to instil an appreciation for the environment and enable pupils to challenge themselves, learning to manage risk as a way to develop resilience and initiative.

A variety of outdoor activities is offered, led by a team of qualified and highly experienced staff. The school provides a packed program during the week, with trips extending further afield every weekend.

Queen’s College is recognised as a centre of excellence for The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme, which is the world’s leading youth achievement award. This program complements the Outdoor Education provision, offering an enjoyable, challenging, and rewarding experience that promotes personal development and helps young people build lifelong confidence in their abilities.

Students interested in furthering their knowledge in Outdoor Education can choose to study for a BTEC in Sport and Outdoor Activities during Years 12 and 13.

The breadth of opportunities available includes, but is not limited to:

• Archery
• Caving
• Climbing (Boulder, Top rope & Lead, Competitive)
• Duke of Edinburgh’s Award (DofE)
• Exmoor Challenge
• Horse Riding
• Mountain Biking
• Overseas Expeditions
• Paddle sport (Canoeing, Canoe Polo & Kayaking)
• Scuba Diving
• Ten Tors

These activities cater to everyone, from novices to experienced Grade 4 paddlers. Regular sessions are held in the school pool to improve basic skills and eskimo roll techniques, open to all year groups. As a PaddleUK affiliated club, Queen’s College competes regularly in both Canoe Slalom and Canoe Polo.

Weekend river trips are organized to a variety of rivers across Dartmoor, Exmoor, and North Wales. During the summer months, surf kayaking trips are offered along the coasts of North Devon and Cornwall. The highlight of the Paddle sport program is the annual trip during the summer holidays to destinations such as the Alps, Norway, or Iceland, where students gain further experience on glacial rivers.

Climbing activities are conducted year-round on the school’s state-of-the-art indoor climbing wall. As the weather warms in the summer, pupils are frequently taken to some of the limestone crags of the Mendips, South Wales, and South Devon, or the granite Tors of Dartmoor. Additionally, there are summer trips to the sea cliffs of Cornwall and the beachside crags of Portland and the Gower Peninsula. Queen’s College holds NICAS and NIBAS Level 3 accreditation, allowing pupils the opportunity to earn nationally recognised NICAS and NIBAS awards from Level 1 to Level 5. While climbing is recreational for most students, those with recognised potential can compete in bouldering and lead climbing competitions throughout the year.

Mountain biking takes place just 15 minutes away in the Quantocks, which boasts some of the best natural cross-country bike riding in England. Queen’s College offers a number of active mountain bike clubs for different year groups, along with a full fleet of trail-ready bikes. Throughout the year, all abilities can experience a range of riding venues, from the free-flowing single track and technical downhill trails of the Quantocks to the purpose-built trails of Haldon Forest, Ashton Court, and the Forest of Dean. For more experienced students, night riding is available during the darker months.

Queen’s College boasts an enviable reputation for music, striving to produce work of the highest calibre. The musicians are highly valued members of the school community, contributing significantly to school life. With multiple ensembles—including chamber music, orchestral training, jazz, rock, musical theatre, and choirs—there are a wide range of performance opportunities available for students of all standards. The energy and enthusiasm of the staff ensure that music thrives at Queen’s College.

The school features excellent facilities, including a spacious, purpose-built Music School equipped with multiple practice rooms, class teaching rooms, and a music technology suite. This complex adjoins the Queen’s Hall auditorium, a 570-seat fully equipped concert hall that houses a Steinway Model D concert grand piano and a 30-stop pipe organ with a mobile console, as well as state-of-the-art lighting and sound systems.

Queen’s College offers exceptional instrumental teaching support with a highly qualified team of over 20 visiting teachers, covering every aspect of orchestral and band instruments, from double bass to piccolo. The school also has a skilled lineup of keyboard teachers specializing in jazz, modern, and classical music. Many students pursue the grade system, and each term, Queen’s acts as an exam centre for music examinations. The school takes pride in the number of top musicians who reach diploma level while still enrolled.

There is a wealth of musical ensembles to join at Queen’s, catering to all ages and abilities. While maintaining key ensembles, the school continually explores new musical avenues and opportunities, ensuring that the musicians of Queen’s have the best chances to develop exclusive musical skills alongside the soft skills associated with music that will benefit them throughout their lives. The following list highlights some of the breadth of opportunities available:

• Chamber Orchestra
• College Orchestra
• Pit Orchestra
• String Orchestra
• College Choir
• Funk Band

The array of performance opportunities fosters a vibrant musical community within Queen’s College, encouraging students to thrive as both musicians and individuals.

Queen’s College takes pride in offering the highest level of coaching across all activities, with the aim of engaging and challenging all pupils to become their best selves through a diverse range of sports and physical activities. The school recognises that sport, physical education, and physical activity enrich lives by enhancing physical and mental health and boosting academic achievement.

The concept of “Sport for Life” is essential at Queen’s, where every pupil is given a positive experience of physical activity. The school seeks to inspire students to look forward to participating in sports, fostering an understanding of the importance of physical activity in maintaining a balanced and healthy lifestyle. This foundation allows pupils to develop their skills and physical attributes, ultimately leading to greater success, health, and confidence.

Representative sport is a prominent aspect of the college’s sporting life, providing valuable opportunities to teach students about responsibility, teamwork, perseverance, and resilience. Queen’s College is committed to providing every pupil with the chance to represent the school competitively in both team and individual sports, participating in a regular schedule of fixtures as well as inter-house sports competitions.

While the following list is not exhaustive, it highlights some of the main sporting opportunities available to pupils:

• Athletics
• Badminton
• Basketball
• Cricket
• Cross Country
• Football
• Hockey
• Netball
• Recreational Running
• Rugby
• Swimming
• Tennis

Through this comprehensive sports program, Queen’s College aims to cultivate a lifelong appreciation for physical activity among its pupils.

Queen’s College is renowned as a centre of excellence for the Performing Arts, guided by a team of highly dedicated practitioners, all of whom possess professional experience in the field.

The college boasts some of the finest facilities in the country for the Performing Arts, with a well-established reputation for its specialism in this area. The Queen’s Hall, a fully equipped 570-seat theatre, features state-of-the-art lighting and sound systems and serves as the venue for all major productions, as well as rehearsals and practices. At Queen’s, there is a strong emphasis on encouraging all pupils with an interest in performing, and the college takes pride in involving a significant number of students of varying abilities in its productions. Many pupils also find joy in working behind the scenes, engaging in activities such as set design, costume creation, lighting, sound, and makeup.

Queen’s College consistently achieves a level of production quality that far exceeds typical expectations for a “school play.” The production staff bring professional theatre experience, often collaborating with professional dancers, musicians, designers, and technicians, who mentor pupils throughout the process. Each production benefits from meticulously researched period details and expert application of make-up and wigs.

Additionally, a popular “Crew Club” operates weekly, encouraging pupils interested in the technical aspects of theatre to participate in activities such as programming lighting boards and creating recorded soundscapes. Through these initiatives, Queen’s College fosters a vibrant and inclusive performing arts community where all students can explore their talents.

Drama 

Queen’s prides itself on achieving a production quality far above that which is normally associated with the ‘school play’. All the production staff have had experience of professional theatre and in addition we draft in professional dancers, musicians, designers and technicians who are shadowed by the pupils. Shows range from Musicals (Senior and Middle School), Shakespearean (Senior)  and more contemporary collaborations (Senior and Middle School) with opportunities to perform further afield such as the Edinburgh Fringe. 

Speech

Speech lessons are available with pupils working towards LAMDA exams. The LAMDA syllabus covers speech, voice production, verse-speaking, reading, play reading and the use of English. These lessons have immense value  not just for dramatic opportunities but also giving pupils the confidence to speak in a wider context with debating and MUN conferences.

Dance

A wide range of dance choices are offered to give the pupils a sense of balance, physical accuracy and rhythm as well as improving posture which lasts throughout their lives. Those interested in dance have the opportunity to participate in a wide variety of dance including RAD Ballet, Contemporary, Jazz, Modern, Tap, Street Dance and general dance classes. Exam classes usually follow set syllabuses, leading to Royal Academy of Dance grades. There are also opportunities to perform in informal shows, local dance competitions and the annual College dance extravaganza.

Model United Nations (MUN) is a highly regarded society at Queen’s College, welcoming members from Year 9 through to Year 13. In this engaging program, students simulate actual United Nations scenarios, attending conferences at various schools throughout the South West, where they act as delegates representing specific nations or individuals within committees. Participation in MUN not only enhances debating skills but also teaches students valuable lessons in diplomacy, argumentation, and global awareness of pressing issues.

In addition to attending external conferences, Queen’s College proudly hosts QuMUN, an annual conference that attracts over 15 schools from across the South West each year. This event provides a platform for students to showcase their skills and further develop their understanding of international relations in a collaborative environment.

To find out more about the Co-Curricular opportunities offered at Queen’s College, and those specific to your child’s age group and interests, please contact Admissions:

Nursery, Pre-Prep and Prep School Admissions

Maria Lamb – Admissions Officer

Telephone: +44 (0) 1823 278928

Email: prepadmissions@queenscollege.org.uk

Senior School and Sixth Form Admissions

Jayne Gray – Admissions Officer

Telephone: +44 (0)1823 340830

Email: admissions@queenscollege.org.uk