A school that produces Olympic swimming champions and national football stars without neglecting Oxford and Russell Group admissions.

About the school

Mount Kelly occupies 100 acres of Devon countryside near Tavistock, with Dartmoor National Park practically on its doorstep. Around 500 pupils aged 4 to 18 study here, and two hundred of them board. The school was founded in 1877 by an admiral for naval officers’ sons — a maritime heritage that lives on through its CCF detachment and Conway House, named after a training ship. Today it welcomes both boys and girls as day pupils or boarders.

Records

A third of GCSE students achieve top grades in five or more subjects, while over 75% of sixth-formers secure places at their first-choice universities. Nearly a third head to Russell Group institutions like Oxford, Birmingham, Exeter, and Edinburgh. Yet the school’s real pride is swimming: it has produced 115 international swimmers who’ve brought home 8 Olympic medals, 16 from the Commonwealth Games, and 32 Paralympic titles. The girls’ football team has also claimed back-to-back national championships in the under-18s category.

Studies

Mount Kelly’s curriculum unfolds in three stages. The junior school follows IPC principles, weaving history, geography, and sciences through shared projects rather than treating them as separate subjects. Middle school prepares pupils for their GCSE years, when everyone takes English, mathematics, and sciences alongside four choices from fifteen options — anything from drama to business. At A Level, students typically select three subjects from over twenty possibilities, and many complete an EPQ research project that universities particularly value.

Extracurricular life at Mount Kelly

Sports, music, drama, the CCF, Duke of Edinburgh expeditions, and adventure trips fill the calendar, developing leadership and collaborative skills along the way. The sporting year follows a clear rhythm: winter brings rugby and hockey for boys, hockey and netball for girls, while summer shifts focus to cricket, athletics, and tennis. Behind this lies substantial infrastructure — three artificial pitches, an indoor sports hall, squash courts, and both 50-metre and 25-metre pools, plus a heated outdoor one.

Boarding

From Year 3 onwards, families can opt for day attendance, weekly boarding, or full seven-day arrangements. Younger boarders live in Tavy House, which overlooks the river valley, while seniors occupy four houses — two for boys, two for girls. Each house operates under a housemaster supported by tutors and matrons who provide pastoral care. Weekends stay active: Saturdays mean sports fixtures and organized events, while Sundays often involve surfing trips, visits to the Eden Project, karting sessions, or walks across Dartmoor.