Solihull School

In 2005, after more than 400 years of single-sex education for boys followed by thirty years of welcoming girls into the Sixth Form, Solihull School became fully co-educational.

Today, Solihull is thriving, with nearly 1,600 pupils from nursery to A level and almost exactly 50% girls and 50% boys. In this article, which appears in the latest edition of Independent Schools Magazine, Headmaster Charles Fillingham explores how Solihull has become such a successful model for coeducation as other independent schools across the UK seek to take the same step.

"It is not a secret recipe," he notes, "it is simply called good education."

"I have been teaching for nearly 30 years and the vast majority of that time has been spent in single-sex schools for boys or for girls. I have enjoyed each of the schools in which I have worked, but it is clear to me that parents appreciate co-education and describe it as more reflective of the “real-world.” 

"Very many of our pupils have been at co-educational schools before joining Solihull and in this sense it is a wholly familiar environment. At Solihull, boys and girls thrive in our co-educational environment – with equally strong examination results for both genders, and a strong culture of understanding, friendship and mutual respect." 

Please click here to read the full article: Independent Schools Magazine