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Football and the Bryanston Method
Bryanston
School profile
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A Regional Partner of AFC Bournemouth since June 2026, and its grass pitches are also used by AFC Bournemouth Academy and other Premier League club academies
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Football led by Head of Football Mark Foster, a UEFA A-licensed coach, with a High Performance Sports Programme built around 3D motion cameras, force platforms and an indoor sprint track
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One of the country's longest-standing co-educational boarding schools, on a 400-acre riverside site, with A Level, IB and CTEC in the Sixth Form
About the school
Bryanston
Bryanston is a co-educational boarding and day school near Blandford Forum in Dorset, set on a 400-acre site beside the River Stour. It describes itself as one of the country's most long-standing co-educational boarding schools. Teaching follows the Bryanston Method: ambitious teaching, structured independent study and a dedicated personal tutor for every pupil. Boarding is organised into five senior boys' houses and five girls' houses, and day pupils belong to a boarding house too. In the Sixth Form pupils choose A Levels, the IB Diploma or CTEC. In 2026 the school reported that 66% of A Level grades were A* to B, that 94% of pupils secured a university place of their choice and 85% their first choice, and an IB Diploma average of 33.2 points against a global mean of 30.88. At GCSE, 92% of grades were 9 to 4 and more than one in four were 8 or 9. Leavers went on this year to universities including Oxford and Columbia, and some to degree apprenticeships. Around 15% of pupils are international.
Heritage
The house was designed and built between 1889 and 1894 by Richard Norman Shaw for the Portman family. Bryanston School was founded in 1928 by JG Jeffreys, a young Australian schoolmaster, with seven teachers and 23 boys, and it was one of the first English schools to adopt the Dalton Plan, whose principles remain central to the school today. Its motto is et nova et vetera, the new and the old, and it reaches its centenary in 2028.
Football Programme
Football at Bryanston
Football at Bryanston is open to boys and girls of every age, and the school sets out to cater both for pupils who play for fun and for those who want to compete. It is led by Head of Football Mark Foster, a UEFA A-licensed coach. In June 2026 Bryanston became a Regional Partner of AFC Bournemouth, a partnership both organisations say will share expertise in player development, performance and education, and in which the school sees stronger pathways for both its male and female players. Across the year, senior boys enter the ISFA, English Schools FA and Dorset County Cup competitions in the autumn; senior and junior boys play in the South West Independent Schools leagues and senior girls in the South West Girls' Independent Schools leagues in the spring, with three to four football engagements a week; and the summer brings futsal, a senior boys' summer league and individual sessions for football scholars. Match footage is analysed using Veo cameras.
The school's published record: in 2024, in their debut season, Bryanston's footballers were crowned winners of the U18 UK South West Independent Schools League. Sports scholars and performance athletes train within the High Performance Sports Programme, which the school says gives them personalised guidance on performance, strength and conditioning and recovery.
Outstanding Facilities
- Up to six grass football pitches, also used by AFC Bournemouth Academy and other Premier League club academies
- 11v11 box goals, 9v9 goals and target practice goals
- Sports Centre with two sports halls for indoor football and futsal
- High Performance Sports Programme gym with an indoor 40m sprint track, speed gates and force plates
- Sport science and strength and conditioning staff
- Video analysis rooms using Veo cameras
- Indoor heated 25m swimming pool
- Physiotherapy and rehabilitation programme
- 400-acre riverside site on the River Stour
- Five senior boys' boarding houses and five girls' houses
Pathway
A Football Pathway Inside an All-Round Education
International pupils can join in Year 9 or 10 for GCSEs, Year 11 for the pre-IB year or Year 12 for the Sixth Form, applying directly or through an educational agency. Pupils may apply for up to two scholarships, each worth from honorary up to 10% of the fees, and means-tested bursaries can add to or stand in for a scholarship. Football runs through the whole year, with Easter and summer performance camps.
Entry at Years 9, 10, 11 and 12A Level, IB Diploma or CTECBoys' and girls' teamsFootball scholarsScholarships up to 10% of feesMeans-tested bursariesInternational admissions route
Accolades
Track record
AFC Bournemouth Regional Partner (June 2026)U18 UK South West Independent Schools League winners, 2024 debut seasonHead of Football is UEFA A-licensed66% of A Level grades A* to B (2026)IB Diploma average 33.2 against a 30.88 global mean (2026)92% of GCSE grades 9 to 4, 100% pass rate (2026)94% of pupils secured a university place of their choice (2026)One of the country's longest-standing co-educational boarding schoolsFounded 1928, centenary in 2028
Location
Blandford Forum, Dorset (South West)
Nearest large towns
Poole approx. 16 miles, Bournemouth approx. 19 miles
Nearest stations
Poole approx. 15 miles, Dorchester South approx. 19 miles, Salisbury approx. 27 miles
Nearest airports
Bournemouth (BOH) approx. 20 miles, Southampton (SOU) approx. 45 miles, Bristol (BRS) approx. 65 miles
Long-haul
London Heathrow (LHR) approx. 106 miles
Distances are approximate driving distances.
Fees
Investment
Boarding (Senior School)
£59,250/year
2026-27, three terms, inc. VAT. £19,750 per term
Day with a bed (Senior School)
£48,585/year
2026-27, three terms, inc. VAT. £16,195 per term
Day without a bed (Senior School)
£40,665/year
2026-27, three terms, inc. VAT. £13,555 per term
Additional night
£74.53
inc. VAT
Scholarships
Up to 10%
Of fees; apply for up to two; bursaries means-tested
Football programme
Not published
Ask admissions about any programme supplement
Fees are published by the school for 2026-27 and should be confirmed with Bryanston admissions before any decision. Fees are reviewed by the Governors and may increase during a pupil's time at the school.
Next Steps
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