An elite independent school in the Cotswolds has been put on the market with an asking price of up to £30 million after ceasing operations this year following more than a century of educating children.
Rendcomb College, located close to Cirencester on the Gloucestershire side of the border with Oxfordshire, permanently ceased functioning this summer.
The closure marked the end of a 106-year legacy of providing education to day students and boarders in the heart of the Cotswolds.
The independent institution first opened its doors in 1920 and was serving approximately 380 pupils when it shut.
Reports in The Times have now confirmed that the former educational establishment has been rebranded as Rencomb Park.
The estate is due to be marketed by Knight Frank shortly, with an anticipated listing price ranging from £20 million to £30 million.
According to The Times coverage, the 32,000 square foot Italianate manor house stands empty, featuring a five-storey tower, elaborate stained glass, decorative friezes, detailed cornices and Corinthian columns. The 190,000 square foot grounds contain roughly a dozen historic residential buildings, encompassing a former rectory and various cottages previously used for staff accommodation, alongside a stable yard, contemporary boarding accommodation, a sports facility, a squash court, a disused post office, a café and a theatre built in 2017 at a cost of £3.3 million. The 230 acres of prime Cotswold countryside encompass tennis facilities, a cricket ground, a rugby pitch, a deer park, a walled garden, manicured grounds and forested areas. The property, now called Rendcomb Park, is preparing to come to market through Knight Frank, with values anticipated between £20 million and £30 million.
The institution had indicated earlier that current and anticipated enrolment figures, combined with the challenging economic environment affecting fee-charging schools, rendered continued operation financially impossible.
Governors announced in a statement that they had with great reluctance concluded the college would need to shut at the conclusion of the 2025-26 academic year.
This decision followed exhaustive examination of every other realistic possibility, including potential partnerships with other institutions, acquisition by different operators and exploration of supplementary income streams.
Despite Rendcomb College’s exceptionally impressive educational record, current and projected pupil numbers alongside the broader financial challenges confronting independent schools nationally meant the institution could not remain economically sustainable going forward, the statement continued.
Consequently, with deep regret, it was determined that the school would close at the end of the academic year.
The employees and governors had spared no effort in establishing Rendcomb College as an outstanding institution, and its closure represented a deeply regrettable but unavoidable outcome.
For many years the college had depended upon substantial financial support from the Rendcomb College Foundation.
Although this assistance had enabled the college to function until now, the dramatic widening of the deficit during the current financial year and the projected financial situation for the following year meant such backing could not continue.
This had been an exceptionally difficult determination to reach and followed exhaustive investigation of all realistic alternatives, including mergers and other funding arrangements.
Priority would now shift to supporting students in locating suitable alternative educational placements and helping the committed and professional staff secure new employment opportunities.