Old Edwardians, King Edward's School, Bath

18/09/2026

09/09/2026

A big thank you to all the recent OEs who returned to KES yesterday to share their experiences with Year 13 pupils as they prepare for life beyond Sixth Form.

17/07/2026

Old Edwardian returns to Bath Forum with the Blue Light Symphony Orchestra

Old Edwardian Seb Valentine will return to the Bath Forum on Saturday 15 August to conduct the Blue Light Symphony Orchestra in a concert of emotionally charged music performed by an orchestra of around 70 musicians.

Seb left King Edward’s School in 2000 to study at the Royal College of Music, before subsequently joining the police service. Drawing together his musical and policing careers, he founded the Blue Light Symphony Orchestra in 2015 to support the wellbeing of people working across the emergency services, NHS and the military through shared music-making.

The concert will be a particularly special homecoming for Seb. He remembers performing Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture at the Forum with the King Edward’s School orchestra around 25 years ago. It was the last time he performed on the Forum stage, and he is delighted to be returning to conduct his own orchestra there.

The programme opens with Vaughan Williams’s meditative Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis, followed by Elgar’s deeply expressive Cello Concerto, with soloist Yoanna Prodanova. The concert concludes with Dvořák’s much-loved Symphony No. 9, “From the New World”.

Seb said:
“It is very special to be returning to the Forum, where I remember playing with the school orchestra around 25 years ago. King Edward’s gave me so many of the musical opportunities that eventually led me to the Royal College of Music and, many years later, to founding and conducting the Blue Light Symphony Orchestra.

I am enormously excited to bring an orchestra of 70 players to Bath for this concert, and I very much hope that members of the current and wider King Edward’s community will join us.”

The concert takes place at 5.30pm on Saturday 15 August 2026 at The Forum, Bath, with doors opening at 4.30pm.

Tickets are priced at £22, with 15% off using the discount code BLSOMUSIC.

Proceeds will support the Blue Light Symphony Orchestra’s charitable work, including outreach projects and the development of music therapy specifically tailored to emergency services personnel.

Tickets are available from Bath Box Office:
https://www.bathboxoffice.org.uk/whats-on/blue-light-symphony-orchestra-q1fx

30/06/2026

Transforming lives through education starts with opportunity.

Hear from our Headmaster, Martin Boden, as he shares the vision behind our new Transforming Lives Through Education campaign.

To find out more and to donate, please visit: https://lnkd.in/eF2KT5AG

22/05/2026

Welcoming Old Edwardians from the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s back to KES!

It was wonderful to welcome OEs from the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s back to KES in recent weeks for the Spring Reunion. Along with familiar faces, it was a pleasure to see OEs returning for the first time in many years to reconnect and revisit the School. The day was full of lively conversations about everyone’s school days and their lives after KES, with recollections sparked by the Headmaster’s tour of the school site, with the opportunity for OEs to see the growth of new facilities and developments as well as stepping back in time to see old haunts and former classrooms.

This special day included a fascinating talk about the history of King Edward’s – from its Tudor foundations through to the present day – by the School’s archivist, Suzanne Keyte. In looking back over the last 474 years, she explained how the School’s story is woven into the wider history of the city of Bath, along with intriguing insights into its buildings, influential former Headmasters, and the achievements of distinguished past pupils, such as Major General John Gaspard Le Marchant, Thomas De Quincey and Rear Admiral Sir Edward Parry.

Many thanks to all the OEs who joined us for this event, and we look forward to gathering you together at future reunions!

If you have lost touch with KES and your old school friends, please contact us at [email protected] to join the OE mailing list and receive future event invitations and news from the OE and KES community.

20/05/2026

Launching Transforming Lives Through Education 🌟

Today, we are proud to launch King Edward’s School, Bath’s Transforming Lives Through Education bursary campaign and to share our new film, bringing to life the transformative impact of a KES education.

The new campaign builds on our existing bursary commitment, with over £1.3 million in means-tested support already supporting more than 100 pupils each year, and a recognition that too many talented young people are still unable to take up places at KES due to financial barriers.

The campaign launch culminates this evening at the House of Commons, kindly hosted by The Rt Hon John Glen MP, with thanks to our event sponsors, Camella Estate Agents, QCC Global Ltd and M.J.Church, for their support in bringing this important moment to life.

Our ambition for the future:

- Raise £2m by 2030 to grow our means-tested bursary programme

- Thereafter raise a further £500k annually to support bursaries

- In doing so, we aim to support the equivalent of 25 additional pupils each year

At the time of launching the new Transforming Lives Through Education bursary campaign we are delighted to say that we have raised over £600,000 in pledges and donations, £185,000 of which is already supporting pupils this year, delivering immediate impact.

Expanding access through partnership

Alongside the bursary campaign, KES is also introducing two new initiatives designed to strengthen its outreach programme and enhance support for bursary pupils. A new partnership with the Royal National Children’s SpringBoard Foundation, will help to connect more local children with opportunities at KES, whilst the appointment of a new Bursary Support & Educational Partnerships Lead, funded through philanthropy, will focus on supporting bursary families and strengthen ties with local primary schools, youth organisations and local authorities.

Commenting on the new fundraising campaign, Martin Boden, Headmaster, said: “Widening access to a KES education is central to who we are. We see every year the transformative impact it can have on a young person’s life. This campaign is about ensuring that opportunity is never out of reach for those with the potential to thrive here.”

👉 To learn more about the campaign and to donate, visit:
https://lnkd.in/eF2KT5AG

📄 Read the full press release: https://www.kesbath.com/transforming-lives-bursary-campaign

06/05/2026

Former member of staff, Phil McComish, is taking part in the ‘Swim 10k Challenge in May’ with regular morning swims, to raise money to help fund life-saving cancer research for Cancer Research UK.

To track Phil’s progress throughout this month and to support his fundraising efforts, please visit: https://fundraise.cancerresearchuk.org/page/phils-giving-page-9815

To find out more information about the Swim 10k Challenge in May, please visit:
https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/get-involved/find-an-event/swim-10k-challenge-may

01/05/2026

Celebrating with Old Edwardians at the 2026 Anniversary Reunion!

There were smiles all round and much happy reminiscing amongst OEs and staff at the Anniversary Reunion held at North Road in glorious sunshine last Saturday. This event brought together OEs who left the School in 2016, 2006, 1996, 1986 and 1976 to celebrate their 10th, 20th, 30th, 40th and 50th leaving anniversaries.

It was fantastic to welcome OEs back to KES, with many returning for the first time since leaving, and to see former pupils from across the generations rekindling old friendships and meeting up with their former teachers to share news about their career paths and lives since leaving KES.

We next look forward to the Spring Reunion for Old Edwardians who left KES in the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s being held on 9th May. For more information and to book tickets for this event, please visit:
https://www.ticketsource.com/king-edwards-school-bath/spring-reunion/e-admmao

To stay up-to-date with the latest OE news and to receive event invitations direct to your inbox, please contact us at [email protected] to join the OE mailing list.

30/04/2026

✨Transforming Lives Through Education✨

We are delighted to invite Old Edwardians, KES parents and friends of the School to two launch events for our Transforming Lives Through Education campaign:

📍 14 May 18:30-20:30 at King Edward’s School, Bath
🔗 https://lnkd.in/evpzyEju

📍 20 May 18:30-20:30 in the Churchill Room, House of Commons, London
🔗 https://lnkd.in/ejCw5w2v

These events mark both the launch of our bursary fundraising campaign and the formal introduction of the 1552 Foundation, the new charitable home for all philanthropic support at KES.

You’ll hear about our vision to significantly expand means‑tested bursaries, creating life‑changing opportunities for more young people, alongside reflections on the impact of bursary support and the vital role of philanthropy.

🥂 Drinks and canapés will be served.

With thanks to our generous supporters, including The Rt Hon John Glen MP, QCC Global, Camella Estate Agents and M.J. Church.

02/04/2026

📜 From the Archives - This Month in KES History – April

As we step into April, we look back at the remarkable stories from the KES Archives that have shaped the King Edward’s School community across nearly five centuries.

🧭29 April 1829 – 197 years ago Old Edwardian Sir William Edward Parry received his knighthood from King George IV following his fifth Arctic expedition. Although his attempts to reach the North Pole were unsuccessful, Parry made extraordinary contributions to European understanding of the Arctic and remains one of Britain’s most important polar explorers.

🎖 21 April 1916 – 110 years ago OE George Fyson, aged just 21, was killed in Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq). His brother, Geoffrey Fyson, also a former KES pupil, wrote a moving poem in his memory for The Edwardian. Geoffrey would go on to become one of the most widely published and best-loved English poets of the post-war period.

💥25–27 April 1942 – 84 years ago Bath endured devastating Luftwaffe bombing during the Baedeker Raids. The start of the Summer Term was delayed, and while KES suffered only minor damage, much of the city was destroyed and over 400 lives were lost. One pupil, Rex Carless, was injured and his home destroyed. Long-serving Governor Edmund Bagshawe J.P., who had supported the school for over half a century, was also tragically killed.

🎓April 1997 – 29 years ago. A landmark in KES history: Elizabeth C., aged 17, became the first female Head Prefect - just eleven years after girls were first admitted to the Sixth Form.