The Royal Hospital School (RHS) was founded in London in  1712 by the Royal Naval Crown charity, Greenwich Hospital, to educate the children of the Hospital’s pensioners and prepare them for a life at sea. Many went on to become famous admirals, explorers and pioneers. The school is still owned by Greenwich Hospital, whose sole Trustee is the Secretary of State for Defence on behalf of the Crown. We are immensely proud of our historic, royal and naval links, and discovery, exploration and challenge continue to shape our ethos. The traditional values of loyalty, commitment, courage, respect, service and integrity have underpinned the school’s core aims and philosophy from the very beginning. Three hundred years later, they are as relevant to the education provided now as they were then.

Divisions remains one of the school’s historic traditions, and pupils parade in a whole school event on a small number of occasions each year, complete with guard of honour and marching band. The sense of teamwork, camaraderie, and being part of something bigger than oneself instils feelings of pride and belonging to the whole school community. 

RHS inspires pupils to have the courage to be ambitious for their futures and the commitment to pursue whichever path they choose. We challenge pupils of all academic abilities, steering them to look beyond the moment and beyond the confines of the classroom, and to approach life with an open and receptive mind. It is through thinking creatively and taking the initiative that they discover their influence, strengths and ambitions and establish the skills they need to pursue purposeful and fulfilling lives.

Sport is a key feature of the RHS co-curricular programme, with pupils gaining success in an increasingly diverse range of sports. As well as high degrees of pupil performance in the main team sports, RHS is renowned for its sailing. All Year 7 pupils learn how to sail and our Sailing Academy attracts sailors from around the world, and consequently the school community contains many pupils who are world and national leaders in their class and age group.