Harrow School

Harrow was founded in 1572, under a royal charter from Queen Elizabeth I, by local landowning farmer John Lyon at Harrow on the Hill in West London. Since then, Harrow has become one of the best-known schools in the world.

Famous Old Harrovians include statesmen such as Sir Robert Peel, Lord Palmerston, Sir Winston Churchill, the first prime minister of India Jawarharlal Nehru, and King Hussein of Jordan; writers including Lord Byron, Richard Brinsley Sheridan, Anthony Trollope and Richard Curtis; social reformer Anthony Ashley-Cooper, the seventh Earl of Shaftesbury; physicist and Nobel Prize-winner Lord Rayleigh; Henry Fox Talbot, the inventor of photography; the archaeologist Sir Arthur Evans; James Bruce the explorer; Admiral Rodney and Field Marshal Alexander; and 19 winners of the Victoria Cross.

A vibrant community

Around 835 boys study and board at Harrow. No two Harrovians are the same: some live in London, others much further afield in the UK or overseas; a number come from established Harrow families, others have no experience of public schooling; many excel in sport or the arts, others are very strong academically. The pupils are supported by approximately 700 staff, and visitors remark on the friendly community atmosphere.

A beautiful environment

Harrow’s 324 acres comprise six conservation areas, a registered park, a nine-hole golf course and even a working farm. Coupled with its buildings of special architectural and historic interest, the School has the quality of a village. Positioned as we are on the Metropolitan tube line, 20 minutes from Baker Street on a fast train, we enjoy the best of both worlds – a spacious boarding community within easy reach of the vibrancy of the capital.

An exciting future

Harrow School is always looking to the future with forward-thinking educational and charitable endeavours. It is the founding member of the Harrow Family of Schools, which also includes John Lyon School and numerous Harrow International Schools, Harrow Innovation Leadership Academies and Harrow Little Lions (Early Years centres) in operation around the world. 

Harrow’s ambitious building investment programme is underway on the Hill, and we are looking forward with excitement to the opening of a new, state-of-the-art science building, updated outdoor spaces and a renovated dining hall, all of which blend the best of 21st-century living with our prized historic buildings.