ETON GROUP: AN ASSOCIATION OF LEADING BRITISH INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS

The Eton Group is a select grouping of leading Public Schools (independent private schools) in England, assembled by Eton College. Its membership is comprised of those schools considered to be peers of Eton College and that have shared concerns regarding management and administration. The informal grouping was established as an alternative to the older Rugby Group of boarding schools bringing together a mixture of day and boarding institutions from the South of England. Sporadic meetings are convened amongst the schools’ Headteachers and/or bursars.

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ABOUT

The group’s membership is comprised of schools operating as public schools in the truest sense, many of whom were original members of The Heads’ Conference (HMC) (formerly The Headmasters’ Conference / The Headmasters’ and Headmistresses’ Conference) and most of which are boarding schools. As such, the schools are amongst the top public schools in the country, typically offering a post-prep education to fee-paying pupils. The group’s earliest records date back to 1977 when Eton’s famed headmaster, Sir William Eric Kinloch Anderson, chaired the group.

The group’s existence is borne of a long, collaborative relationship between the various member schools that dates well back into the 19^th Century. Some of the Eton Group’s member schools have been in existence for centuries, with others being established during the Victorian age, embodying the Public School ethos that had come into fashion at that time. Many of these schools began to form cooperative relationships when widespread changes to the provision of education began to take root following successive efforts towards a universal education system. Indeed, whilst the Clarendon Commission of 1861 would exempt some of the Eton Group schools from being subject to the later provisions of the Endowed Schools Act and enshrining their status in law as Public Schools through the Public Schools Act (1868), it would bring about various other changes that would see the Clarendon Schools working closely with their peer schools that had been excluded from those provisions. It was, in fact, schools like Uppingham School, Dulwich College, Highgate School, The King’s School, Sherborne School, and Tonbridge School that would come together to form the Headmasters’ Conference (HMC) as the first association of the heads of Britain’s Public Schools. In its very early years, the heads of many of the Clarendon schools were invited to join the Headmasters’ Conference. As the HMC continued to expand, eventually swelling to several hundred members with various educational philosophies and pedagogies, the early members began to establish their own networking associations preserving their traditional character and commonalities. The Eton Group and the Rugby Group being the most prestigious groupings, with the Rugby Group inviting only boarding school members and the Eton Group being open to both boarding and day schools of a certain standing. These schools all work closely with one another, regarding themselves as a peer group. They maintain similar charitable foundations and are often regarded as the archetypical examples of the English Public School tradition. As such, these schools are often heavily oversubscribed with applicants from across the world. Whilst they are often portrayed as bastions of privilege and wealth, all these schools maintain significant charitable activities, offering substantial scholarship and full bursary places to high performing pupils of lesser means. Similarly, they also often support state schools and academies, offering access to their campus facilities and amenities, faculty and resources or even sponsoring the establishment of entire schools in the non-fee-paying sector. Many also have established overseas satellite branches.

The Eton Group is one of a number of exclusive groups of public schools in England that collaborate to ensure that their specific interests are represented at a national level, including within the various trade associations of which the participating schools are also members. In addition to the Eton Group and the Rugby Group, there is the Canford Group, Haileybury Group, Monmouth Group, and, at the preparatory school level, the Oxford Group. These groups represent the most exclusive and competitive independent schools in the United Kingdom, indeed many being amongst the best in the world (albeit that the Canford Group, Haileybury Group and Monmouth Group are more akin to regional associations similar to the AJIS). They may be considered to be peers of similar schools such as the Eight Schools Association or Ten Schools Admission Organization (or the informal groupings such as the Elite Eight, GLADCHEMMS, HADES, St. Grottlesex or Select 16).

The group, similar to those listed above, has been accused of operating as a cartel with allegations of price-fixing with respect to school fees, however these allegations have been refuted and, indeed, some group members were not considered part of the Sevenoaks Group during the Office of Fair Trading investigation in the early 2000s.

The Eton Group includes, in addition to Eton: Bryanston School; Dulwich College; Highgate School; King’s College School; The King’s School, Canterbury; Marlborough College; St Paul’s School; Sherborne School; Tonbridge School; University College School; and Westminster School.

The Eton Group has a reputation for prestige and exclusivity. Do you agree that these are the top independent schools in the country? Perhaps you went to one of these schools and would like to share your experiences with us in the comments section. Maybe you worked at one of these schools and have attended Eton Group events or engaged in projects on behalf of the consortium, please do feel free to share any details with our community.

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MEMBERS AND ASSOCIATES

CHOOSE LIST VIEW FOR A SIMPLE LIST OF ALL LISTED SCHOOLS. ALTERNATIVELY, YOU CAN SELECT SCHOOLS USING THE MAP BELOW.

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