It became "Pangbourne College" in 1969 and while conforming to the general lines of a British independent boarding school, retains a distinctly nautical flavour; the pupils wear naval uniform.

At the time of founding the German campaign of unrestricted submarine warfare was at its height, and this was one reason for a nautical training school to be sited inland.

Originally catering to about 200 male "cadets" bound largely for service in the Merchant and Royal Navies, the school now has approximately 400 co-educational pupils, both day and boarding.

It has a Christian ethos,[1] takes a wide range of academic abilities and focuses on the development of the whole person, particularly including "courtesy and self-discipline", "supporting the success of others" and "aiming high".

Recently numbers have expanded to an average complement of around 400, due in part to the college becoming co-educational in 1996 and opening a junior house.

College argot reflects the nautical traditions, with "cabins" instead of study bedrooms, "gunrooms" instead of pupil common rooms, "galleys" instead of kitchens, and so on.

Pangbourne takes students with a range of academic abilities, the majority of whom enter via common entrance at 11 or 13 and a few at sixth form (16+).

Formed originally to provide fifes, drums and bugles to lead parades, it has now developed brass and wind sections as well, and performs outside the college for charity events.

It was largely due to this history that the college was chosen as the site for this national memorial chapel, together with the fact that 45 Old Pangbournians (OP) served in the Falklands conflict.

More than a third of these OPs were either decorated or mentioned in despatches; most publicly known of the OPs taking part at the time were D.H. Scott-Masson (Pangbourne 1944–46) who was captain of Canberra, the P&O liner converted to troop ship and hospital ship for the conflict; and Major (later Lieutenant Colonel) Ewen Southby-Tailyour RM (Pangbourne 1955–59), who was one of the first ashore with the retaking of the islands.

On the south side of the building, there is the World War II memorial window, commemorating more than 200 former cadets who lost their lives in that conflict.

The most recent visit by the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh took place on May 9, 2017, with a service in the chapel, followed by a parade, to help mark the college's centennial year.

The Memorial Chapel – which cost a total of £2.3 million and was opened in March 2000 by Her Majesty The Queen – seats 580 within the ground floor area and gallery; its design, which came about as a result of a nation-wide competition won by Crispin Wride Architectural Design Studio, is reminiscent of the shape of a ship – almond or 'mandorla' shaped – denoting hands 'cupped' in prayer.

Natural light flows down the pale coloured inside walls from clear glass surrounding the curved roof and diffused through its focal feature at the north end – a memorial window with stained glass depicting the Falkland Islands within Christ's Cross surrounded by a lively sea in vibrant shades of blue, green, yellow and grey – designed by John Clark Visitors experience a feeling of calm and comfort within the body of the church and gallery area – created by the soft ash and neutral colours surrounding them.

The chapel was the winner of Private Eye's Sir Hugh Casson Award for the worst new building of the year in 2000, with the magazine's architecture critic, 'Piloti', describing it as ""so very like the Ruskin Library that its 'architects' are obviously shameless".