Sport is part and parcel of daily life at Oundle and we strive for every pupil to participate and have a positive experience of sport. For some, this will be the experience of being part of a team and representing Oundle or their House in a sport that really matters to them. For others, it will be in reaching an elite level of competition, representing school, club, county, region and country before moving on to a sporting career. 

Oundle crest
“Our aim is to create a motivating and inspiring sporting environment which provides a wide selection of team and individual sporting options for every single Oundelian. This will ensure excellence and enjoyment at the top competitive level across every sport as well as the nurturing of good habits to remain fit, healthy and active across all abilities.”
MR NICK BEASANT, DIRECTOR OF SPORT

Sporting statistics

20+

Sporting disciplines

40+

Qualified coaches

270+

Teams

900+

Fixtures

1500+

Individual performances

We are blessed with the most fantastic sports facilities. Our main Oundle School Sports Centre, with its regard over to the JM Mills Cricket Pavilion and all sports pitches, is the access gateway to all School sports."

David Talbot, Assistant Director of Sport Quote mark

"One of the advantages of being a big School is that every single pupil is able to find their natural level and have the opportunity to represent the School. We pride ourselves in being competitive on the field while demonstrating the right kind of sportsmanship and camaraderie off it."

Nick Beasant, Director of Sport Quote mark

OUR MAIN SPORTING OFFER

Pupils participate in a minimum of three sports afternoons per week and can train up to five or six times per week depending on their playing ability and individual training programmes.

Coaching is led by specific Heads of Sports, many of whom have performed and coached at the highest level, and are assisted by a team of carefully selected talented Resident Assistant Sports Coaches. We also have over 40 qualified coaches who offer the appropriate level of expertise and support for all pupils to develop and flourish. We field a full range of teams across 20+ sporting disciplines and we regularly have pupil representation at regional and national level.

Supporting Excellence

Supporting competitive team sport and individual sportsmen and women along their chosen performance pathway is one of our core responsibilities.

We are proud to have played a role in the development of many talented sportsmen and women who have achieved personal success after leaving Oundle. Rugby players have been selected to join top professional clubs and to play internationally for Scotland and England, including Tom and Ben Curry who represent England. Netball players have joined Super League Clubs such as Loughborough Lightening, Leeds Rhinos and Wasps and have played for England. We have also had athletes compete in England Schools Athletics and been selected to represent GB Modern Pentathlon. We currently support pupils who are part of the GB Equestrian Performance Pathway as well as many more who train with national performance pathways and academies across our main sports.

OUR SPORTING PARTNERSHIPS

We pride ourselves in the pursuit of sporting excellence and in supporting pupils to compete in local, regional and national competitions across a wide range of sports and age groups, both within School and outside it.

We enjoy strong links with Northampton Saints and Leicester Tigers Rugby academies, and we support pupils in the England Hockey Performance Centre Pathway, as well as cricketers at Northants, Norfolk, Hertfordshire and Cambridgeshire. We also serve as a hub for the U17 Loughborough Lightening Netball and the MCC Foundation Cricket Hubs. Our own facilities are supplemented by memberships at the Oundle golf and tennis clubs, as well as Rutland Sailing Club. We also facilitate training opportunities with local athletic and rowing clubs.

SPORT SCHOLARSHIPS

We award Sports Scholarships at both 13+ and 16+ entry and all Scholars follow a specific sporting pathway which includes a bespoke strength and conditioning programme developed by our in-house coaching staff. This develops into an individual training programme tailored for each pupil’s needs and delivered during specific weekly sessions. A sports scholar mentor programme will help cover important issues such as lifestyle management, target setting and maintaining balanced lifestyles. Further technical and analysis sessions as well as selected workshops and talks cover elements such as wellness, time, stress management and resilience. Education workshops on nutrition, leadership and sports psychology are also offered, as is a range of off-site trips and experiences beyond the usual sports tours and fixtures. For dedicated and ambitious sporting scholars, these details can make all the difference to performance at the top level.

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DEDICATED ATHLETE PROGRAMME

For pupils not selected as Sports Scholars, there is also the opportunity to join the Dedicated Athlete Programme. This is aimed at those pupils who show continued sporting promise and development in specific sports during the academic year and offers weekly athletic development sessions and technical group coaching drop-in sessions.

MEDICAL SUPPORT

For all pupils, we offer access to a chartered sports physiotherapist who is available onsite on a weekly basis to assess and treat injuries. This is supplemented by scheduled weekly sessions with a dedicated specialist rehab instructor, where pupils are welcome to come and consult on any issues of rehab and exercise prescription during designated sessions.

Our facilities

In addition to extensive playing fields, Oundle has two sports centres catering for indoor sports, one of which is also open to the public on a carefully programmed basis. Together they offer a brand new, superbly-equipped 70 station fitness suite as well as a performance gym, a rehabilitation studio and a climbing wall. There are five squash courts, four Rugby fives courts, four floodlit Astroturf pitches, three indoor and six designated outdoor netball courts along with fourteen additional outdoor courts, dual use with tennis during the summer, a Tartan athletics track and a 50m swimming pool with a moveable floor and submersible boom. 

Our location also gives us the advantage of two boathouses, one in Oundle beside the North Bridge over the River Nene and one at Tansor, where the river has an almost straight mile which is ideal for training purposes. Sailing is offered as a sporting option and takes place at Rutland Water, one of the best location for dinghy sailing in England. There is an indoor small-bore shooting range within the CCF grounds, as well as an outdoor full-bore range.