St Leonards School

St Andrews, Fife KY16 9QJ

Hold on to your hats: new head, new exam system, new prep school, new lease of life for St Leonards. Wow. This small but smashing school has Scotland’s only all-IB sixth form – no messing around with A-levels and Highers here. In 2008 one girl attained the maximum possible 45 points, putting her in the top 0.14 per cent of IB students worldwide. Wow again. Head Dr Michael Carslaw emphasises the international nature of St Leonards: while most pupils are Scottish, 15 other nationalities are represented on the school roll, and 2008 leavers headed for universities in Hamburg, New York and Hong Kong. The school was founded in 1877 in a stunning setting surrounded by the breathtaking beaches of St Andrews, and is said to have been the inspiration for Enid Blyton’s Malory Towers. Unsurprisingly, given its location, golf is big here: about a third of pupils play, and the school has its own director of golf and offers golf scholarships. ‘St Leonards fosters big achievements and has big ambition and a big heart,’ says Dr Carslaw.