Tanglin Trust School Singapore

School Overview: What Is Tanglin Trust School?

Tanglin Trust School was founded in 1925 at the Tanglin Club by Anne Griffith-Jones, a Welshwoman who had come to Singapore to visit her brother and saw a need for local education for expatriate children. It all began with just five students under her guidance; she aimed to educate children who had joined their parents in Singapore, offering an alternative to being sent away to boarding school in England. A century later, that small beginning has grown into something extraordinary.

Now the oldest British international school in Southeast Asia, Tanglin Trust School serves a student body of 2,850 children representing more than 50 nationalities. The school is co-educational and caters to children aged 3 to 18, covering Nursery through to Sixth Form on a single campus at 95 Portsdown Road in western Singapore. As a not-for-profit school, tuition fees are devoted to the provision of an outstanding education. That not-for-profit status is a genuine differentiator: every dollar of revenue is reinvested back into the school, rather than flowing to external shareholders.

Tanglin is the only school in Singapore to be consecutively rated “Outstanding” in every category of the British Schools Overseas (BSO) inspection, most recently in 2025.For the fifth year in a row, Spears has named Tanglin one of the top 100 private schools in the world, and among the top 15 in the Asia Pacific region. For families seeking a British-based education with genuine international breadth, TTS has few peers in the region.

Quick Facts at a Glance

• Founded: 1925
• Location: 95 Portsdown Road, Singapore 139299
• Age range: 3 to 18 (Nursery to Sixth Form)
• Enrolment: Approximately 2,850 students
• Nationalities: 50+
• School type: Independent, co-educational, not-for-profit
• Curriculum: English National Curriculum, IGCSE, A-Level, IB Diploma
• CEO: Craig Considine
• BSO Inspection Rating: Outstanding (2022 and 2025)

Curriculum & Academic Programmes

Tanglin’s academic traditions and teaching approach are firmly grounded in an enhanced and rigorous English National Curriculum, offered with a genuinely international perspective. The school is structured across three main divisions — Infant School, Junior School, and Senior School (including Sixth Form) — each with its own dedicated building and specialist staff, while sharing the same broad campus and community culture.

Infant School (Ages 3–7: Nursery to Year 2)

The youngest learners at TTS follow the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), which provides a structured but play-enriched environment that focuses on building confidence, communication, and early literacy and numeracy skills. Children who have not been enrolled at a pre-school prior to applying for a place in the Infant School will be invited for an age-appropriate, play-based activity to assess their readiness for school. The Infant School is nurturing by design — class sizes are small and structured to give young children the individual attention they need as they transition into formal learning.

Junior School (Ages 8–13: Years 3–8)

Moving into the Junior School, students follow the English National Curriculum with cross-curricular projects that connect subjects in meaningful ways. Inspectors have previously noted the “highly stimulating learning environment” and an “extensive number of cross-curricular topics” — including projects that link geography, science, history, and English. The approach deepens as students progress, with an emphasis on building independent thinking alongside subject knowledge.

Senior School (Years 9–11: IGCSEs)

Students in Years 10 and 11 follow a rigorous (I)GCSE programme, which provides a broad academic foundation and prepares them for the choice between A-Levels or the IB Diploma in Sixth Form.The Upper School also provides a broad academic experience with a wide array of (I)GCSE subjects available from multiple exam boards. This breadth gives students genuine freedom to specialise in areas of strength and interest.

Sixth Form: The Unique Dual Pathway

Tanglin’s most distinctive academic feature is its Sixth Form offering. Tanglin is the only independent school in Singapore to offer both A-Levels and the IB Diploma in Sixth Form, giving students a genuine opportunity to choose the educational pathway that best suits them. This is a major advantage for families who have not yet decided whether their child will apply to UK universities (where A-Levels are typically preferred) or pursue a more internationally portable qualification. Students can make an informed choice at the start of Year 12 based on their learning style, university ambitions, and subject preferences.

The Highlands Programme: Learning Beyond the Classroom

One of the most distinctive elements of the Tanglin experience sits outside the traditional classroom entirely. Tanglin’s commitment to holistic education is exemplified by the Tanglin Gippsland campus in Australia, a 15-acre site that is home to the immersive Year 9 Highlands Programme — a five-week residential experience that is now an established part of the Middle School curriculum.The Highlands Programme is designed as the pinnacle of a Year 9 student’s Middle School education at Tanglin. Students spend five weeks following their core curriculum studies in a low-tech, rural Australian setting while focusing on outdoor challenges, physical fitness, and personal resilience — experiences that are difficult to replicate in an urban Singapore classroom.

Academic Results & University Destinations

Academic outcomes at Tanglin Trust School consistently rank among the strongest of any international school in the world. The data tells a compelling story across all three of the school’s senior examination pathways.

IB Diploma Results

In 2025, Tanglin achieved an average IB score of 39.6, far exceeding the global average of 30.58 and the Singapore average of 35.43. Looking at the most recent results, in 2026 Tanglin delivered a 100% Diploma pass rate and a provisional average score of 39.1 points, with 99% of students scoring 30 points or more, 67% achieving 38 points or higher, and five students achieving the maximum 45-point score.

A-Level Results

In 2025, Tanglin recorded another year of strong A-Level results, with 63% of all grades awarded at A* or A — well above the 28.2% average achieved by students in England. This is a figure that consistently draws families who are planning a return to the UK higher education system and want their children competing at the top of the admissions pool.

(I)GCSE Results

In 2025, 178 students successfully completed their IGCSEs, with an impressive 93% of grades awarded at A*–B. At Tanglin, 79% of grades were A*–A, markedly above the 49.2% achieved by independent schools in England.

University Destinations

Students’ examination results consistently surpass Singapore and global averages, with around 96% of graduates typically receiving their first or second choice university offer. The quality of those university destinations is equally impressive: graduates from the class of 2025 secured places at universities worldwide, including nine offers from Oxford or Cambridge and seven from Ivy League institutions. The Senior School also provides dedicated Careers and University Counselling support to guide students through applications.

Campus, Facilities & School Life

Tanglin Trust School occupies a 4.6-hectare campus in the Portsdown Road area of western Singapore, a quiet, green neighbourhood popular with expatriate families and situated near the one-north tech cluster, Holland Village, and the heritage areas of Rochester Park. There are approximately 2,800 students across the Infant School, Junior School, Senior School, and Sixth Form, with each school having its own building and dedicated facilities within the single campus.

The Centenary Building

Tanglin’s Centenary Building, which opened in 2023, is an impressive addition to the school campus, with aspirational facilities designed to benefit both the school and the wider Tanglin community.The integrated range of top-tier facilities includes a covered 50m Aquatics Centre, an Olympic-standard Gymnastics Centre with spectator galleries, a 15m climbing wall, a high-performance Athletic Gym, and on-site physiotherapy. These anchor the campus’s full-size playing field and multi-purpose halls that support a broad variety of sports across all age groups.

Arts Facilities

Tanglin’s Junior Arts Centre is built for everyday creativity, not just big performances. The spaces include four music classrooms, large rehearsal rooms that can split for small groups, and practice rooms for one-to-one lessons.Students across the school also enjoy the new music department located in the Centenary Building, where Seniors and Juniors can participate in individual and group lessons and ensembles.

Co-Curricular Activities (CCA)

At the heart of Tanglin’s holistic approach is its diverse and expansive Co-Curriculum Programme, which sees 96% of students from Infant School right through to Sixth Form participating in 383 activities across the school year. The programme is genuinely broad: the 2024 school year saw over 400 different clubs and societies on offer, over 20 different sports played by more than 1,000 students, 80 musical performances, and 1,492 students involved in residential trips. From competitive sport to the Duke of Edinburgh International Award, service learning through the Ch@t (Charity @ Tanglin) programme, and community events like International Day, there is something to engage every student.

Tanglin Trust School Fees (2025–2026)

For the 2025–2026 school year, fees range from SGD 34,770 per year for Nursery through to SGD 55,734 per year for Years 12 and 13. These fees are all-inclusive of the Building Fund and GST. Fees are billed in three equal amounts, spread across the three school terms, which many families find easier to manage than a single annual payment. The table below shows the full fee schedule by year group.

Annual Tuition Fees by Year Group

Note: Fees are reviewed annually. Always verify the latest figures directly on the Tanglin Trust School fees page.

One-Time & Additional Fees

Beyond tuition, there are several one-time costs to factor into your budget when enrolling for the first time:

• Application Fee: SGD 1,000 (non-refundable, payable on submission)
• Capital Levy: SGD 4,500 (one-time, non-refundable, paid on enrolment)
• Enrolment Fee: SGD 4,500 (paid on accepting an offer)

Fees are payable termly, and there is an enrolment fee of SGD 4,500 for all successful applications in addition to a non-refundable capital levy of SGD 4,500. It is also worth budgeting for additional costs such as school uniforms, examination fees (IGCSE, A-Level, IB exams are not included in tuition), school trips, and any optional enrichment or learning support programmes your child may require. Tanglin also offers two scholarships — the Centenary Music Scholarship and the General Excellence Scholarship — which may be worth exploring if your child demonstrates exceptional ability in these areas.

Admissions Process: How to Apply

Getting a place at Tanglin Trust School requires planning and early action. As an oversubscribed school, Tanglin uses a Waitpool system rather than a chronological waitlist — this allows for a holistic review of applicants to ensure the best fit for each cohort. In practical terms, this means that simply being first in the queue does not guarantee a place; the school assesses applicants across a range of academic and personal criteria.

Entry Requirements

Before applying, it is important to understand whether your child meets Tanglin’s baseline entry criteria:

• English proficiency:Students applying to Tanglin must demonstrate age-appropriate fluency in English (speaking, reading, writing, and comprehension).
• Residency requirement:Students must be residing with their immediate families in Singapore to attend Tanglin, as the school does not provide boarding facilities.
• At least one English-speaking parent must reside with the student in Singapore on an ongoing basis.
• Singapore Citizens require an MOE exemption to enrol. The school will apply for the MOE exemption on behalf of the applicant before an offer of a place is issued.

Step-by-Step Application Process

1. Apply early — Applications may be submitted up to three years prior to the desired year of entry. Given how oversubscribed the school is, especially in popular year groups, submitting an application as early as possible is strongly advised.
2. Submit online and pay the application fee — Applications are submitted through Tanglin’s OpenApply portal. The non-refundable application fee is S$1,000, payable on submission. Payment can be made via PayNow, credit card, or bank transfer.
3. Provide required documents — You will need to upload copies of the applicant’s passport, birth certificate, and the last two years of school reports.
4. Assessments and interviews — Interviews and assessments may be required on an age-appropriate basis. Assessments are completed throughout the year, and the Admissions team can advise on any assessments your child may need. Interviews may be conducted for students applying to the Junior and Senior Schools.
5. Await an offer — A number of early offers are made in Term 1 at the discretion of the school. Most offers are made from March prior to an August start.
6. Accept and enrol — Once an offer is received, you will need to pay the enrolment fee and capital levy to secure your child’s place, and then complete practical onboarding steps including uniform purchase and orientation scheduling.

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Is Tanglin Trust School Right for Your Child?

Tanglin Trust School is an exceptional institution, but it is not necessarily the right fit for every family. Understanding both the school’s strengths and its particular character will help you make a clear-eyed decision.

Tanglin is likely a strong fit if:

• Your family has strong ties to the UK and you want a British-style education that translates well for university applications in England, Scotland, Wales, or Northern Ireland.
• You value the flexibility of having both A-Level and IB Diploma options available at Sixth Form, particularly if your future plans are not yet fixed.
• Academic outcomes are a top priority — TTS consistently produces some of the highest IB and A-Level results of any international school globally.
• You want a large, vibrant school with extensive co-curricular depth, from competitive sport to performing arts, outdoor education, and service learning.
• Your child benefits from a structured, high-expectation academic environment with strong pastoral support built in.

Points to consider carefully:

• TTS is heavily oversubscribed. Waitlists are common in popular year groups, particularly in the Infant and Junior School. Early application is essential, not optional.
• The school has a distinctly British culture; roughly half the student body holds UK passports. Families seeking a more globally blended environment may find schools like UWCSEA a closer fit.
• Fees sit at the premium end of Singapore’s international school market. The total annual cost — especially when factoring in one-time enrolment fees, exam fees, uniforms, and trips — should be budgeted carefully.
• Individual learning, emotional, and social needs must largely be met within the school’s mainstream provision, so families with children who require significant specialist support should discuss this in detail with the admissions team before applying.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can Singapore Citizens apply to Tanglin Trust School?

If the child is a Singapore Citizen and is of Primary 1 age or above, the family will require a Ministry of Education (MOE) exemption to study at Tanglin Trust School.The school will apply for the MOE exemption on behalf of the applicant before an offer of a place is issued. Families in this situation are encouraged to contact the Admissions team early to understand the process.

How early should I apply?

As Tanglin Trust School is a highly sought-after and oversubscribed institution, the school recommends submitting an application as early as possible.Applications may be submitted up to three years prior to the desired year of entry. For Nursery and popular Junior year groups in particular, earlier is better.

Are there scholarships available?

Tanglin offers two scholarships — the Centenary Music Scholarship and the General Excellence Scholarship. Details and eligibility criteria are available directly from the school’s admissions team.

Does Tanglin offer boarding?

Tanglin does not provide boarding facilities; students must be living in Singapore with their immediate families. It is a day school only.

How are fees paid?

Fees are billed in three equal amounts, corresponding to the three school terms. School fees are billed termly in advance, with invoices issued and payments due before each term begins; for the 2025–2026 academic year, billing occurs in February, June, and November, with payments due in April, August, and December respectively.