Sedbergh School

With thanks to Sedbergh School for the use of this video.

Situated in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, at the foot of the Howgill Fells, Sedbergh School offers a picturesque place to learn, live and work. Academic study will always take priority for every pupil in the school, but experiences of life at Sedbergh School are never confined only to the classroom.

Our location lends itself to outdoor activity – to not make the most of our surroundings would be criminal! With so much open green land around us, we are never short of pitches. With an all- weather floodlit astroturf for hockey, the school’s pitches are set for rugby in the first two terms and then transformed in the summer to cricket pitches and athletics track for our highly competitive sports day.

Fell running is a Sedbergh School tradition. For centuries, pupils have been tackling the local fells and enjoying breath-taking views from their ascent. Our passion for fell running at Sedbergh is celebrated in the form of two special races. Sedbergh Preparatory School, located just 10 miles away in Casterton, host their 7 mile fell race for Year 7 and 8 pupils, named ‘The Epic’. This tradition is then carried on at Sedbergh School, as pupils in year 12 and 13 qualify to run the famous ‘Wilson Run’. A 10 mile fell race that dates to 1881 and is named after then Schoolmaster, Mr Bernard Wilson.

[Year 13 pupil, Reuben, winning Wilson Run 2019]

Our love of sport and outdoor activity is something that is built into the DNA of Sedbergh Prep School and Sedbergh School. We take pride in our sporting history, as pupils respect all those who have been before them whilst paving the way for those who will follow. The relationship between our Prep School and Senior School is very important. We recognise that the Senior School pupils are role models for their younger teammates. We run regular training sessions across several sports with senior players mixing with younger players to help strengthen the bond across both schools and teams. Sedbergh School Director of Rugby, Mr Simon Mulholland, explained the shared team spirit:

“We are one club. All of our players within the school want to wear our famous Brown jersey with pride and leave a legacy that both past and present Sedberghians can be proud of.”

[Year 7 & 8 pupils train with Sedbergh School 1 st XV]

Our first XV rugby team enjoyed another record-breaking year last season, winning the Daily Mail Schools trophy, Rosslyn Park National Sevens and National Super Tens, all for the second year running. Completing the ‘double-treble’ is a truly remarkable feat in Schoolboy rugby.

Rugby is, however, only one of many successful sports at Sedbergh. The School has recently been included in the Top 100 Cricket schools in the country and last season, the Under 15 boys won the national T20 title and the under 18s finished runner-up. Sedbergh is home to several talented target shooters and is the only independent school in the country to have international target shoot representation at every age group.

In total, 90 pupils have represented their country across 8 different sports in the past 10 years. Most recently, Year 10 pupil, Freya played for the England under 15 girls’ basketball team, having previously represented at under 14 level as well.

[Basketball star, Freya, in action for England]

Earlier this year, Sedbergh let professional teams take centre stage on their home turf. In June, Sedbergh became the newest first-class cricket venue as it played host to Lancashire v Durham in their County Championship fixture. The first two days saw crowds of over 3000 people attend, with two temporary stands in use and hundreds of people opting for their own personal seat around the boundary, at a ground that Australian batsman, Cameron Bancroft described as “like a postcard everywhere you look”.

Just a couple of months later, following their third-place finish at the Netball World Cup, England Netball came to Sedbergh for their first training camp under new Head Coach, Jess Thirlby. The team stayed locally and were integrating with pupils as the busy start of term got underway. Whether it was in the gym, in the sports centre or in the dining hall, the England netball team settled in and took time out of training to meet and chat with pupils. Pupils from Sedbergh Prep School also took part in a once-in-a-lifetime training session with some of the squad, soaking up every bit of knowledge and advice on offer.