Malvern College opened as an independent boys school in January 1865​, where the town was prominent as a spa, famous for its unpolluted surroundings and spring water. Year on year pupil numbers increased and with it, buildings were erected to facilitate the growth of the acclaimed public school. 

 

During World War II, the college buildings were requisitioned by the Admiralty between 1939 and 1940, and the government's Telecommunications and Research Establishment between 1942 and 1946, while the school temporarily relocated to Blenheim Palace and Harrow respectively. Whilst at Malvern, the TRE developed radar, a vital element to the outcome of the war and the meaning behind Eton’s Waterloo claim, that the Second World War was won on the playing fields of Malvern College.

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From 1946, Malvern College continued to build new facilities adding a Design & Technology building at the end of the century. In 2007 the Carson Centre provided additional classrooms and in 2009, two brand new boarding houses and an impressive Sports Complex were added to the school’s facilities. A year later, the two newly-refurbished rackets courts were opened, followed by the installation of a water-based artificial hockey pitch in 2015, adding to the College's sports provision. Also in 2015, the College opened a newly reconfigured and refurbished Science Centre. Turning heads to the arts, September 2018 saw the extensive redevelopment of the Rogers Theatre completed.

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Since 1992 Malvern College has been a co-educational school, since its merger with Ellerslie Girls' School and Hillstone prep school. The Family of Schools continues to grow, now including The Downs and Abberley Hall, along with six international schools, within its portfolio.