The King’s School is an independent Anglican, day and boarding school for boys in North Parramatta in the western suburbs of Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1831, it is Australia’s oldest school and forms one of the nine “Great Public Schools” of New South Wales. Situated within a 300-acre (1.2 km2) site, Gowan Brae, it is widely regarded as one of Australia’s most prestigious private schools. The School is listed in the Macquarie Dictionary.

In the geographical heart of Sydney, the School has about 1,500 students from kindergarten to Year 12[3] and approximately 430 boarders from Years 5 to 12,making it one of the largest boarding schools in Australia. It is also Australia’s oldest boarding school.[2][4]

The school is affiliated with the Headmasters’ and Headmistresses’ Conference,[5] the Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia (AHISA),[6] the Junior School Heads Association of Australia (JSHAA),[7] and the Australian Boarding Schools’ Association (ABSA).[2] It is a G20 School and is a founding member of the Athletic Association of the Great Public Schools of New South Wales (AAGPS).[8]

In 2010 The Age reported that The King’s School ranked equal seventh among Australian schools, based on the number of alumni who had received a top Order of Australia honour.[9]
History

In January 1830, the Archdeacon William Grant Broughton devised a plan for the establishment of grammar schools in New South Wales under the governorship of Sir Ralph Darling. The Duke of Wellington assisted in securing royal patronage, the text of which stated that with the authority of King George IV such schools would be named “The King’s Schools”. It is said, although no documentation exists, that royal sanction was granted by King William IV. Two schools were opened in 1832: the first in Pitt Street, Sydney, the other in George Street, Parramatta, 25 kilometres (16 mi) inland. The former, opened in January, closed eight months later after the death of its first headmaster, while the Parramatta campus remained open under the stewardship of the Reverend Robert Forrest, who was appointed headmaster in 1831.

According to The King’s School 1831–1981, on opening day, Monday 13 February 1832, with a handful of pupils.[10] Forrest was paid a salary of £100 per annum, but it was inclusive of a land and housing grant. From fees of £28 and £8 per annum for boarders and day pupils respectively he was expected to maintain boarders and pay the salaries of his assistants, whose fees were £4 per annum for each pupil taught. According to an article in the Australian Historical Society Journal in 1903, enrolment reached over 100 pupils before the end of the first year.[10]

By 1839, Forrest’s health had deteriorated and he submitted his resignation. Ill-health caused the school t