A sketch of The Blue Coat School's Viney building.

Independent private school in Birmingham

Limitless Learning
For Tomorrow’s Achievers

The Blue Coat School is an independent preparatory school in Edgbaston, Birmingham, for children aged 3 to 11. It has 15 acres of gardens and playing fields. Founded in 1722 by the Church of England.

About Us

Two boys looking up at a birdhouse in Forest School.

Limitless Opportunities

At The Blue Coat School, our mission is to nurture a spirit of fun, adventure and curiosity in a supportive and caring Christian community. By providing exceptional learning opportunities for every child through innovative and dynamic teaching, we champion versatile, creative risk-takers prepared for a changing world.

School Life

Girl in a lab coat smiles at the camera as she enjoys her science lesson.

7+ Entrance Assessment

Saturday 1 February 2025

Applications are open to join The Blue Coat School in Year 3 (age 7) September 2025.

 

Year 3 is a wonderful time to join BCS as your child will benefit from our specialist facilities for sport, science, computing, music and art. We also provide exceptional learning opportunities for every child through innovative teaching which produces outstanding senior school results.

FINDING OUT MORE ABOUT THE 7+

Map of The Blue Coat School

*Click to enlarge map

Explore
our SCHOOL

The Blue Coat School is lucky to have 15 acres of School grounds. This expansive campus offers a full range of facilities from classrooms, to Forest School, extensive sports facilities, a swimming pool, large playgrounds and much more.

Facilities

AcademiC SUCCESS

Every aspect of a child’s learning is valued here at The Blue Coat School Birmingham, from academia to values and behaviour. Our bespoke e-learning platform, The BCS Blue, was created to accurately and holistically assess a well-rounded education which has proven success with year-on-year increases in Year 6 pupils achieving offers and scholarships to Grammar and private schools.

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Nursery
3-4 Years

Life at Blue Coat begins in our Pre-Prep Nursery. In the Early Years Foundation Stage, learning is through play and exploration in the classroom, the playground and Forest School with a focus on supporting the children with their spoken language, personal and physical development.

Nursery

A boy looking through a microscope at a toy frog.

PRE-PREP
4-7 YEARS

Pre-Prep is an exciting time for children. Their communication, physical and social development is exponential and they discover the joys of a limitless learning experience. As children progress through Pre-Prep, learning becomes more structured and subjects such as science and creative arts are introduced as well as Music, Games and PE taught by specialist teachers.

Pre-Prep

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Prep
7-11 Years

The transition from Pre-Prep to Prep is a significant landmark for pupils. They are assigned to one of the six Houses, they begin to move around the campus for lessons in specialist facilities, Modern Languages is introduced to the curriculum and Games lessons offer competitive matches against other schools. The quality of a Blue Coat education provides your child with an excellent foundation for the transition to senior school.

Prep

ADMISSIONS

We welcome children from the age of 3 years to our Nursery. This is the main entry point for the School. There is an additional intake at age 7 (for Year 3).

Academic and Music Scholarships are offered to pupils from Year 3 and means-tested bursaries are available to internal and external candidates for entry to Year 3 each September.

Visit the Admissions section of the website to discover more about our admissions process.

Admissions

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Bursaries

The Blue Coat School, Birmingham, was founded as a Charity School in 1722.

To this day we continue to financially support children to attend The Blue Coat School with Bursaries of up to 100% of school fees. These are awarded each year to children entering Year 3 in September.

FIND OUT MORE ABOUT BURSARIES

PREP Houses

Pupils in Prep are assigned to one of our six Houses which they will represent in a range of competitions and events. The House system has been a significant part of Blue Coat’s history, dating back to the boarding house days, so there is a lot of pride associated with House competitions!

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Birmingham House
879 POINTS

Three girls walking away from the camera with their arms around each other.

Lichfield House
866 POINTS

Three girls walking away from the camera with their arms around each other.

CATHEDRAL HOUSE
851 POINTS

Three girls walking away from the camera with their arms around each other.

School House
839 POINTS

Three girls walking away from the camera with their arms around each other.

Grace House
828 POINTS

House points are calculated weekly. Pupils can earn them for displaying the BCS Values and competitions.