In May 2024, Abingdon announced its decision to move to co-education. We will be welcoming girls to our First Year and Sixth Form from September 2026 and Third Year from September 2028.
Timeline for girls’ entry:
| First Year (Year 7) | Third Year (Year 9) | Sixth Form (Year 12) |
|---|---|---|
| Entry from September 2026 | Entry from September 2028 | Entry from September 2026 |
| Abingdon School will be fully co-educational from 2030 | ||
How can I apply for a place for my child?
In the first instance you may like to visit the school at one of our regular events. Our move to co-education will be discussed at all of these. Book a visit.
Further details about the process for each of our entry points can be found on the corresponding admissions page. The first step is to register for a place, and then we will be in touch with further details about the assessments. Register for a place.
If you would like to discuss any aspect of your child’s application, please contact the admissions team at [email protected].
Key dates for girls’ entry
| Register for a place | Assessments | Entry to the School | |
|---|---|---|---|
| First Year (Year 7) entry | 1 October 2025 | 10 January 2026 | September 2026 |
| Sixth Form (Year 12) entry | 1 October 2025 | 31 January 2026 * | September 2026 |
| Third Year (Year 9) entry | 1 May 2026 | 17 October 2026 | September 2028 |
* Timelines for day applicants. For boarding timelines please contact [email protected].
Read the full announcement
Abingdon School and Abingdon Prep School announce their move to co-education
Today, Monday 13 May 2024, we are delighted to announce that we will very soon be offering girls the same wide ranging opportunities – high academic standards, formidable extracurricular programmes, and outstanding pastoral care – that our boys have enjoyed over the centuries.
Abingdon and Abingdon Prep School have long been highly successful but we want the education we deliver to be reflective of today’s society – one where equal opportunity for the sexes is promoted and in which both girls and boys should be able to be as ambitious as each other and be in control of their own future success. We believe that the life skills of teamwork, emotional intelligence, mutual understanding and the ability to relate to others are better fostered in a co-educational environment and one which more closely mirrors the conditions of real life. Our values of intellectual curiosity; a balanced education; and outstanding pastoral support will remain the core of all that we do and we believe a stronger and better Abingdon will emerge as a result of this move.
Chair of Governors for The Abingdon Foundation, Professor Mike Stevens, comments: “I am very excited by what this development will mean for the Abingdonians of the future. The Abingdon I have known has always been open to the opportunities that change can bring and our decision has been driven by what we think is best for education today. As the senior school’s Aims and Ethos statement already expresses it, Abingdon has “a constant eye on innovation to reflect the needs of a rapidly-changing world”. Our vision is very much of a stronger Abingdon Foundation with the proposition of an education that will be exceptional for both girls and boys in terms of its opportunities, its excitement and its ambition for their future.”
Abingdon Prep School will admit girls to its Pre-Prep from September 2024; and to Years 3 to 6 from September 2025. Abingdon Senior School will admit girls to its First Year (Year 7) and Sixth Form (Year 12) from September 2026.
