The Lower School

The Lower School has five classrooms where the LS1 pupils have most of their lessons, except when they need to access specialist facilities such as in science, drama, music or art. The LS2 pupils have some of their lessons in the Lower School building, but, wherever possible, they have their lessons in the Main School departments to help the transition to Main School life in Year 9 (Removes). 

We hope that the pupils enjoy spending time in the Lower School, build strong connections between one another and make use of their free time to have fun with their friends. The Lower School building has two spacious common rooms, one equipped with a number of game tables, a covered astroturf for use only by Lower School pupils and several outdoor table tennis tables.

The Lower School is an inclusive and welcoming environment to ensure that everyone has a smooth transition to their senior school. I hope that the pupils enjoy spending time in the Lower School and can move into Removes with an outstanding academic grounding as well as developing some strong connections with their peers and staff which will act as a strong support network throughout their time at the School.

George Seccombe, Head of Lower School

Over the course of the year, the Lower School runs a number of trips and events, in addition to those run by academic departments. Each term, the pupils have a Lower School outing and to end their time in Lower School, the pupils have a formal ball, followed by a week-long residential trip. The Lower School also has House Nights which gives further opportunities for pupils to spend time cultivating their friendships with one another. 

Parents are very much part of our community and the partnership between home and school is vital to ensuring the best outcomes for every pupil. There are a number of events which are run for parents and these vary from formal events, such as the new parents dinner which all new LS1 parents are invited to, to more informal ones such as coffee mornings to catch up with members of the Lower School team. Parents are welcome to any sports fixtures, concerts, or performances which their child is involved in. 

 Meet the Head of Lower School

George Seccombe, Head of Lower School from September 2024, was previously Housemaster of Trevelyan for five and a half years.

George joined Haileybury as Head of Geography in September 2014 having previously taught at The London Oratory School in Fulham and then at Shiplake College near Henley-on-Thames where he was Head of Geography for four years. George has run several geography field trips in the past, including the annual Fifths GCSE geography to Iceland.

Away from Lower School and teaching, George is fully involved in the CCF as an Officer in the Army Section and is a rugby and football referee, as well as a cricket coach.

George is married to Helen, a professional golfer, and they have two sons, Harry and Charlie, and two spaniels called Reggie and Fudge. The Seccombes enjoy spending their holidays at the family holiday home on the west Welsh coast where the dogs can run wild on the beach, the children can build sandcastles to their hearts’ content and George and Helen can do battle on the golf course.