The Hurst School

The Hurst School is a successful and highly regarded school of over 1000 students aged 11-16, situated within easy driving distance of Reading, Newbury, and Basingstoke. The school enjoys a semi-rural location and sits on a large site with green surroundings. It was rated “Good” by Ofsted in October 2024.

The Hurst School is a values-led, inclusive community, and our students and teachers are proud to study and work here. We are committed to the highest standards of teaching and learning and have enthusiastic subject specialist teachers. We provide a purposeful learning environment and as you walk around the buildings, you can feel the positive energy.

The vision of The Hurst School is to prepare and inspire our students for a rapidly changing world by developing confidence, resilience and independence alongside a love of learning. This is reflected in our school vision; “Building minds and character for future life success.”

Our curriculum provides young people with the core knowledge and cultural capital needed for further academic study, while enabling them to develop as citizens and engage effectively in the world beyond school. The curriculum is balanced and rigorous, maximising students’ knowledge as well as their personal development.

Our personal learning programme includes opportunities for students to get involved in extra-curricular activities such as sport, music, drama, and overseas visits, creating an environment to inspire and develop students beyond the classroom.

We are a large school with a small school feel, and pride ourselves on the friendliness of the school community and the close relationships between staff and students.