About us

Location	Cambridge, United Kingdom	Funding Type	Private
No of Students	2700	Establishment	HE Institution / College
Founded In	1973	Estimated Cost of Living	9207 GBP
Address	M P W Cambridge, 3-4 Brookside, Cambridge CB2 1JE, United Kingdom

Founded in London in 1973 by three Cambridge University graduates, the MPW Group is one of the best known and well respected independent college brands in the UK.  It comprises three fifth- and sixth-form colleges in London, Birmingham, and Cambridge, providing highly attractive and modern learning environments located in close proximity to prestigious university campuses.  

MPW teaches 1,200 students on roll each year, of which approximately two-thirds are British, one-third international.  An additional 1,500 mostly UK-based students enroll each year on Easter Revision courses.

Quality assurance within the MPW Group is driven by a common governance model and a common set of principles and operational methods to which each college adheres.

MPW’s reputation is based on its student-centered, hands-on, and exam-focused programs, its broad and highly flexible curriculum, small class sizes, strong pastoral support, and renowned university placement assistance. Each college within the MPW Group employs a common methodology that underpins our approach to teaching and learning:

• There is an absolute guarantee of fewer than 10 students in each class
• Tutors are highly qualified to first or doctoral level and many are A level or GCSE examiners for the subjects that they teach
• MPW produces its own printed course materials for all major subjects

 
There is a broad range of over 40 subjects from which to choose.  These may be studied over durations ranging from one term to two years in any combination to suit the individual student
 
All courses are underpinned by a strong exam practice component from the outset.  There are monthly revision tests taken in all subjects at every level.  And, in the final year during which examinations are sat, there are additional weekly timed assignments - all taken under supervised exam conditions
 
At MPW there is unusually detailed progress reporting to parents.  Test and homework results are available throughout a student’s course on the parent intranet, and as well as regular parent evenings there are detailed written reports on each subject five times per year
 
Central to MPW’s methodology is respect for students as young adults.  We insist on strict punctuality in the attendance of lessons and the submission of assignments but are otherwise free of many of the traditional school rules which teenagers often find restrictive. Tutors and students are on first name terms and we aspire to create an enjoyable, socially relaxed atmosphere in which students enjoy coming to college and working hard.

The proprietor of each of the colleges in the MPW Group is Mander Portman Woodward Ltd, whose principal and registered office is 90-92 Queen’s Gate, London SW7 5AB (telephone: 020 7835 1355). The Chairman of Governors, Dr. Nigel Stout, may be contacted at this address and telephone number.

Governance is administered through a management board comprising both executives and non-executives of MPW. The full board meets formally no less than nine times annually.

The officers of the board are:

Nigel Stout MA, DPhil is the Chairman of MPW. He read PPP at The University of Oxford where he also took his doctorate. After a short research career at the university during which he taught both Statistics and Experimental Psychology, he left Oxford to embark upon a career in the secondary education sector. He joined MPW in 1987 to set up MPW Cambridge as one of its founding Principals, founded MPW Bristol in 1990, and was the Principal of MPW London between 1992 and 1998. He has been a director of MPW Ltd since 1988.

Spencer Coles BA is MPW’s, Chief Executive Officer. He read Business and Information Systems and prior to joining MPW in July 2013 as Commercial Director was the Chief Operating Officer for Regent’s University London. He held several board-level roles at Regents for 11 years. He has extensive previous marketing, international education, and business development experience gained at both Regent’s University and Holborn College.

Martin McInroy MA, FCCA read Natural Sciences at The University of Cambridge. Following a career in finance at companies such as Lonrho, De La Rue, and Reed International, he held the post of Financial Director in several medium-sized companies, most recently at Brooks & Bentley Ltd, before being appointed as Head of Finance of MPW in August 2009.

Steven Boyes BA, MSc, PGCE read Geography at Lancaster University and went on to postgraduate research in Employment Law at Durham University. He is a former Chairman of CIFE, the professional association for independent sixth-form colleges, an inspector for the Independent Schools Inspectorate, and a former governor of an independent school in Sussex. He was also a senior examiner for Edexcel for 10 years. Specific area of responsibility: safeguarding.

John Southworth MSc is the Principal of MPW London. He read Engineering at the University of Leicester and subsequently gained an MSc in Defence Technology from the Cranfield Institute of Technology. Prior to joining MPW as a Vice Principal in 2014, he was a Major in the army, Director of Co-curriculum at The Perse School, and, most recently, Principal of Lansdowne College. John is a Director of the ISA (Independent Schools Association) Executive Council and Chair of its Finance Committee.

Markus Bernhardt MSc, PhD is the Principal of MPW Cambridge. He read Physics and completed his Ph.D. at the University of Bonn. He first joined MPW in 2009 and, prior to his most recent appointment, was Headmaster of Sherradswood School in Hertfordshire.

Mark Shingleton BA, PGCE is the Principal of MPW Birmingham. He read International Business and French at the Univeristy of Westminster. Before joining MPW he held a number of senior posts including Pastoral Director at Saint Charles Sixth Form College in London and most recently Head of Sixth Form at Cokethorpe School in Oxfordshire.

Note:- The cost of living depends on City you chose to live in