St Alban’s College has been voted the best private school in Pretoria, founded over 60 years ago and has achieved top matric results.
St Alban’s College was awarded the top private school by the Best of Readers’ Choice Awards compiled by Pretoria Rekord and Caxton local newspapers, which has run for more than 30 years.
The 2025 Choice Awards involves a two-phase process. The first is a public nomination phase followed by a voting phase.
This allows residents to select top local businesses across over 200 categories. Winners are determined solely by the highest number of valid votes.
Only businesses with a physical location in Pretoria can win. A business must receive a nomination to appear on the final voting ballot.
While the awards did not mention why the school was voted as the best, finding reasons is not hard. The school offers top education and sporting facilities.
St Alban’s College in Pretoria is a prestigious Anglican boys’ school founded on 1 February 1963 on Struben Farm, starting with 37 boys.
A small, solitary building stood in the muddy fields of Struben Farm on the school’s first day. The school’s chapel began as a small cowshed nearby.
The idea for an independent boys’ school built on the values of the Anglican church was first conceived by Bishop Robert Selby Taylor, who began to make enquiries about starting the school in the Pretoria area in the 1950s.
The bishop approached Mello MacRobert and Monty Knoll, who became the founders of the school and sent their own children there.
Having expanded in its 60 years of existence, the school now boasts eight boarding houses, 600 pupils, and a waiting list for future entries.
“The school finds itself in the privileged position of being the school of choice for families in Pretoria as well as further afield,” said Headmaster Shane Kidwell on the School’s 60 years of operations.
“It is a good place to be, but only because we continue to attract amazing families, boys and staff from all around the country.”
One of the top-performing private schools
The school remains one of the best-performing private schools in the country, with its Matric Class of 2025 achieving 2.31 distinctions per candidate.
St Alban’s College once again achieved a 100% pass rate, while the Bachelor’s Degree (University Exemption) pass rate was 96.40%. 72% of our boys received 1 or more distinctions.
Some of the school’s best-performing subjects included French, Drama, Business Studies, Physical Science, Information Technology, and Mathematics.
In all of these subjects, more than half of the students achieved distinctions in the subjects, with the only exception being Mathematics at 42%.
St Alban’s College is also notable in other areas such as sports, including Cricket, Rugby, Water Polo, and Hockey.
Interestingly, the school’s first headmaster was South African cricket player Anton Murray. Murray played ten Test matches for South Africa as an all-rounder.
Murray held the post of headmaster at St Albans for 20 years, from 1963 to 1983.
Murray’s legacy continues to live on at St Alban’s, with the school’s heavy focus on holistic education that includes sports, culture and academics.
“We believe that sports participation is more than just fun, more than optional recreation. It helps to build character. It teaches leadership,” said Garth Turvey, the school’s director of sport.
To board your son at St Alban’s College costs R376,580 per year, while a day boy will cost R214,120 in 2026.
St Albans acknowledges, however, that it is now a high-end school, therefore excluding the vast majority of South Africans who cannot afford its fees.
The school offers several scholarships every year, ensuring that any boy who qualifies to study at the school can be admitted, regardless of whether the family can afford the fees.
There are plans to increase the school’s bursary offering in the future, ensuring that, in time, admissions are based on excellence alone and not wealth.
St Albans currently spends R8 million every year on scholarships and bursaries from the school’s own funds.
Photos of St Alban’s College
