Cotswolds private school for sale at £30m as it closes after 100 years

Rendcomb College, near Cirencester across the border from Oxfordshire, permanently shut its doors this summer.

This brought an end to a 106‑year history of educating day pupils and boarders in the heart of the Cotswolds.

The independent day and boarding school opened in 1920 and had around 380 pupils on its roll at the time of the closure.

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Now, a new report in The Times published today (Wednesday, July 29) has confirmed that the school has been renamed Rencomb Park.

Entering the property market with Knight Frank soon, the estate is expected to be listed for a total price between £20 million and £30 million.

The Times report said: “With its hallowed halls empty, what will happen to the 32,000 sq ft Italianate mansion, with its five-storey tower, exquisite stained glass windows, ornate friezes, intricate cornices and Corinthian columns?

“Its 190,000 sq ft of outbuildings include about a dozen period residential properties, including an old rectory and numerous staff cottages, plus a stable block, modern dormitories, a sports hall, a squash court, an old post office, a café and a £3.3 million theatre that opened in 2017.

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“The 230 prime Cotswolds acres contain tennis courts, a cricket pitch, a rugby field, a deer park, a walled garden, formal gardens and woodland.

“The property, rechristened Rendcomb Park, is about to launch to the market with Knight Frank, and pricing will be in the range of £20 million to £30 million.”

The school had said earlier this year that current and projected pupil numbers, combined with the economic climate facing fee‑paying schools, meant it was no longer financially viable.

In a statement, governors said they had “reluctantly” agreed the college must close at the end of the 2025‑26 academic year.

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This was after exploring “every other feasible option”, including potential mergers, alternative owners and additional sources of funding.

“Despite Rendcomb College’s extremely strong track record as a school, the reality is that current and projected pupil numbers, alongside the economic situation facing independent schools across the country, do not make the school financially viable in the future,” read the statement.

“It has therefore reluctantly been decided that the school will close at the end of the academic year.

“The staff and governors have done everything to make Rendcomb College an excellent school, and its closure is highly unfortunate but sadly unavoidable.

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“For many years, the college has benefited from significant funding from the Rendcomb College Foundation.

“Whilst this has made the operation of the college possible until now, the enormous increase in the deficit for the current year, and the anticipated financial picture for next year, mean that such support is unsustainable.

“This is a very sad decision to have taken and follows the exploration of every other feasible option, including mergers and other forms of funding.

“Our focus now will be on helping pupils find appropriate alternative provision and assisting our highly professional and dedicated staff to find posts elsewhere.”