Located four kilometres from the heart of Sydney, Cranbrook inspires every boy to realise his full potential and develop his strengths whether academic, sporting or within the arts. The school values critical thinking and strives to build self-belief in all students. “Cranbrook encourages boys to be creative, diligent, self-disciplined and actively involved in all that they undertake, preparing them to voyage out with courage and confidence,” says headmaster Nicholas Sampson. Cranbrook is committed to intellectual growth, discovery and a well-rounded education. An academically strong school, Cranbrook was placed in the top four nonselective independent boys’ schools in NSW in 2013. Cranbrook’s state-of-the-art Year 12 college provides the most senior boys with a dedicated, tutorial-inspired space instilling the essential study skills, not only to win places at leading universities, but to flourish there.
At Cranbrook, each boy is acknowledged as an individual and given the opportunity to develop his personal strengths and talents. The school’s co-curricular program is broad, holistic and distinctive, and the school sports program is one of inclusiveness, opportunity and competition. While Cranbrook believes in the qualities of school sports, the performing and creative arts form a valuable part of school life and the qualities of cooperation, as much as contest, are truly apparent within the school.
Cranbrook in the Field, the outdoor education program, equips boys with teamwork, responsibility, respect, self-belief and generosity of spirit. Cranbrook’s House system is one of the school’s greatest strengths and is designed to promote an environment in which students feel known, valued and purposeful. The newly renovated boarding facilities promote a strong supportive home in an educational environment, teaching young men independence, teamwork, communication and social skills.
Facilities: In January 2011, Kindergarten to Year 2 students started at their new school in a park. In July 2011, the whole of the Junior School, Kindergarten to Year 6, joined together on one site in new, exciting, purpose-built educational facilities, which include a library, art rooms, a music centre, IT and science laboratories, a double gymnasium for Kindergarten to Year 12, tennis courts and traffic drop-off and pick-up areas. The Senior School is housed in modern classroom blocks, has 21st-century IT resources and sporting fields, an indoor swimming pool, a gymnasium and a strength and conditioning centre.
IB Primary Years Programme (PYP): Cranbrook’s Junior School for students in Kindergarten to Year 6, is an International Baccalaureate World School authorised to teach the organisation’s International Baccalaureate’s Primary Years Programme (PYP). The program is international, inquirybased and trans-disciplinary, designed to foster the development of the whole child, not just in the classroom, but also through other means of learning. The PYP focuses on the total growth of the developing child, encompassing social, physical, emotional and cultural needs, in addition to academic welfare.
Electives Years 7 to 10: Commerce, Drama, Design & Technology, French, History Elective, Industrial Technology (Timber), Japanese, Latin, Music, Physical Activity and Sports Studies, Visual Arts, Visual Design.
Electives Years 11 and 12: Ancient History, Biology, Business Studies, Ceramics, Chemistry, Design & Technology, Drama, Earth & Environmental Science, Economics, French, Geography, Information Processes & Technology, Japanese, Latin, Legal Studies, Mathematics, Modern History, Music, PDHPE, Photography, Physics, Visual Arts, Visual Design.
Sport: All boys take part in physical education as part of the school curriculum. Weekend competitions are arranged with other schools in most major sports, including basketball, cricket, cross-country, football, rowing, rugby union, sailing, skiing, swimming and tennis.
Co-curricular activities: AV Club, bands, ceramics, chess, choir, Crusaders, debating, drama and music productions, Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Scheme, ensembles, lunchtime concerts, Open Day hosting, orchestras, outdoor education programs, Photography Club, production crew, public speaking, robotics, SCUBA Club, Student Representative Council, theatre sports, Travel and Explorers’ Club, weekly magazine editing. All boys in Years 7 to 12 are encouraged to involve themselves in community service.
Pastoral care program: The program recognises that the promotion of student wellbeing and a safe and secure learning environment that challenges, encourages and supports all students is fundamental to the achievement of the school’s aims. It promotes a whole-school approach and supports other initiatives to create an environment in which students feel safe, valued, engaged and purposeful.
Special features:
From the school: At Cranbrook, we strive to ensure that when boys leave school, they will have four things that we believe are essential:
At Cranbrook, we know boys will be boys. So we’ve taken on the challenge and adapted our methods to suit the way boys learn. Cranbrook’s unique “Teaching and Learning Framework” is designed to take boys’ learning above all expectations and beyond the traditional, not just for the years they spend at Cranbrook, but for their entire lives.
Principal: Mr Nicholas Sampson.