The new sixth form centre will be the Zarith Sofiah Centre, the first College building named after a former pupil. Pupils move in from 2027.

Cheltenham Ladies’ College is to name its new sixth form centre after a former pupil: Her Majesty Raja Zarith Sofiah, Queen of Malaysia. It will be called the Zarith Sofiah Centre, and the College expects its first pupils there in 2027.

The College says a “landmark benefaction” is paying the founding contribution towards the building. It has not said how much the gift is, or who made it. (Cheltenham Ladies’ College, 30 September 2026)

It is the first time the College has named a building after one of its own alumnae. The Queen studied there for five years, from 1972 to 1977.

What the building will have

The College describes it as a “university-style hub” for sixth formers. Architects Purcell designed it with the College, and a working group of pupils helped shape the layout. According to the two College announcements, it will include:

  • a debating chamber
  • quiet study areas
  • learning pods for group and independent work
  • a café
  • an employability suite and creative spaces
  • a base for the sixth form staff team and the College’s Professional Guidance Centre
Architect's visualisation of a cream, three-storey Regency-style building with a columned porch and the words Zarith Sofiah Centre above the entrance, with pupils in uniform walking up the steps
How the College expects the Zarith Sofiah Centre to look. This is a visualisation, not a photograph. Image: supplied by Cheltenham Ladies' College

The centre is part of the College’s estates master plan, ahead of its 175th anniversary in 2028.

Work has already started

A construction update the College published on 1 October says work is “well underway”. Internal walls have been demolished and structural alterations made to create the new spaces. (Cheltenham Ladies’ College, 1 October 2026)

Black and white photograph of a stripped-out floor of a building, with bare concrete columns, a ribbed concrete ceiling, rubble bags on the floor and tall windows looking out onto white town houses
Inside the building during the strip-out, photographed by the College in late September. Photo: supplied by Cheltenham Ladies' College

The College says Raja Zarith Sofiah began school in Kuala Kangsar and came to Cheltenham after Raja Perempuan Kalsom Secondary School. From the College she went on to read Chinese Studies at Somerville College, Oxford. In August 2026 the University of Reading gave her an honorary doctorate for her work in education and public service.

Eve Jardine-Young, the College’s Executive Principal, said:

“This gift sets a precedent: it is the only building we have named for one of our alumnae, and we look forward to welcoming its first pupils in 2027.”

Merryl Webster, who chairs the College Council, describes herself as a fellow member of the Class of 1977. She called it a “visionary lead gift”.

What it means for you

For most of Cheltenham, this is a private school building and pupils at the College will be the ones to use it. There is one wider promise in the announcement. The Executive Principal said the College looks forward to “welcoming staff, pupils and speakers from across the Cheltenham Education Partnership into the new facilities in the months ahead”. If your child’s school is part of that partnership, it is worth asking the school whether it plans to use the debating chamber or the careers space.

Families considering the College for sixth form in 2027 can see the plans at its whole school open day on 20 March 2027. The College’s deadline for Year 12 entry in 2027 was 30 September 2026.

For more on schools in the town, see our Gloucestershire school term dates page.