Benenden School

At Benenden, we put sustainability at the heart of what we do; it is central to the way we run our school and to our curriculum. From July 2025, we will be bringing the best of our sustainability projects together in an innovative two-week residential summer programme.

Sustainability is, without a doubt, the key challenge facing today’s world; it will be a primary concern for the next generation of leaders, thinkers, lawyers, architects and entrepreneurs. This course will gather the ambitious young people who will take on those roles and give them the tools they need to come up with solutions to the issues that the businesses, governments and societies of tomorrow will face.

Making use of Benenden’s enquiry-based model, the course offers a project-driven learning experience in which students will be given the tools and opportunity to pursue their own interests and showcase their talents.

Workshops, lectures and independent study sessions throughout the two weeks will supply students with the skills, ideas and knowledge they need to complete an individual and a group project.

The course will make the most of Benenden’s unique position in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty at the heart of the Wealden Kent countryside. Workshops will take place both on site and off site, with visits to nearby locations such as the Rye Harbour Nature Reserve and Bedgebury Pinetum.

On-site workshops will take full advantage of Benenden’s 250 acres of stunning Wealden landscape and existing sustainability projects, which include a vegetable garden, bee hives, eco classroom, wildlife cameras and a recently revived orchard.

Students will engage in a full programme of social and sporting activities to complement and provide down-time from their academic pursuits. Our on-site facilities, to which students will have access, include a swimming pool, tennis courts, playing fields and sports hall.
There will also be three full-day excursions. These will, provisionally, be to Brighton, Oxford and Thorpe Park.

Students will stay in Benenden’s Medway and Marshall houses where they will experience the camaraderie and fun of Benenden boarding, as well as experienced pastoral support.
Breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks are all included, with a variety of options available at each meal. Packed lunches will be provided on excursion days. Specific dietary requirements can be catered for, provided we are made aware of them during the booking process.