History

• There has been a school in the precincts of Exeter Cathedral for over eight centuries.
• The first recorded Headmaster was appointed in 1159.
• The School was originally set up for the education of Cathedral Choristers only, sent here by their families to be educated for a vocation in the Church, as priests or musicians, or both. 
• The first pupils left home at the age of eight or nine and, in many cases, did not see their parents again until they were young men.  The curriculum at the time consisted of two subjects only: Latin and Music!
• In 1856 for the first time all the functions of what we would recognise as a boarding school were brought together in one place, on the southern side of Bedford Street.  This housed the Cathedral School for over 80 years until the night of 23 April 1942, when it was totally destroyed in an air raid.  Fortunately the boys were on holiday at the time.  The pupils were accommodated for the rest of the war at Holy Shute House in Honiton, and commuted daily to Exeter.
• Since 1945 the headquarters of the School has been in the Chantry in Palace Gate.
• A Pre-Prep department was opened in 1993 and is now home to over 70 boys and girls from the age of 2½ years.
• Girls made their first appearance at ECS in 1994 and the School now has almost an equal number of boys and girls.
• Exeter Cathedral School is now a modern, thriving prep-school, offering the full range of both academic and non-academic opportunities to approximately 200 boys and girls between the ages of 2½ and 13.
• Not many people know that only 36 out of our nearly 200 pupils are Cathedral Choristers!  While ECS offers exceptional musical opportunities to choristers and non-choristers alike who have a love and interest in the subject, there are also outstanding opportunities for our non-musician pupils in the form of drama, art, sport and the technologies.