Hampton Court House School

Fair points Poisonwoodlife though I can definitely say that standards are very high at HCH now, no difficult children in my DD’s class. It’s always wise to do a lot of research before making that commitment thankfully I did as I was also considering another independent with a good past history only to find that now things have changed considerably which I experienced by actually visiting the school, speaking to parents and by reading the forum :)

It's infancy predated Radnor by a few years, and it was actually founded by refugees from Harrodian's infancy, and that school has adapted it's approach to be more conventionally academic. Radnor was never anything but aiming to be conventionally academic, just with an aim to develop a USP through emphasis on strong pastoral care and better communication with parents. So I think comparing HCH with those two schools is not comparing like with like at all.

It already has some history, and part of that history has been that pupils tended to end up there after other schools had not worked for them for some reason, either socially or academically. Some were difficult characters. A tutor I knew had a high proportion of business amongst those who then dropped out of HCH as well. However some pupils have also gone on to good sixth forms and universities, albeit accepting it was a unique environment with some unique characters .

However if you buy into the ethos, current parents are happy, then I have no reason to suppose it doesn't do what it says on the tin.

Hello all! I was initially looking at a few good schools around the West London area for my DD and saw quite a variety, some were the typical pushy independents whereas others were a more relaxed. Initially I had some reservations but reading experiences from other people I decided to arrange a private tour of the school via the website and I was glad I did because the teachers and the school in general really impressed me. I looked in on some lessons and saw that children genuinely enjoy what they are studying they seemed to have an enthusiasm that I had not seen in other schools. My DD had a trial day which she really enjoyed and she started this September, so far so good, classes are small enough for children to receive the attention they need and teachers are really very good at addressing the needs of the child (unlike her previous school), ballet is part of the curriculum and the arts (music, theatre, dance and the like are very much encouraged) she has made some really nice friends of both genders. My DD has benefited so much from the past couple of months at the school. I was worried about the bilingual aspects but to my surprise she coped very well and the language has not been an issue at all for her despite only having some very basic French before. I hope that helps!

I would also be grateful to receive any feedback on this school as we are just completing the enrolment process for our son and our daughter. We visited the school and it looked lovely but I am not used to choosing a school based on a visit. At the moment the children go to their local school so we had all the local knowledge before enrolling them. We really need them to maintain their level of French for a future move back to France so any views on the standard of French teaching in the lower years would be really helpful.

I must admit I loved the general feel of the school. My daughter is going to have a trial day soon so will be able to decide thereafter. Are there any existing parents out there whose DC's go to the school? So few people have heard of the school so first hand experience would be most welcome.

Yes it was this school, though the cynic in me says the lunchtime start and very late finish for a new 6th form probably has more to do with limited space than anything else.
HSH is not mainstream, it's offering something different and if that's what will suit your DCs go for it. Just don't go and expect a mini LEH/Hampton and then moan because that isn't what you get. I know a few parents who have moved children from HCH because it wasn't what they expected/wanted although the things they complain about are probably the reasons other parents have chosen it. Never was the phrase "horses for courses" so apt.

Was it this school that recently announced a radical change of school hours - to reflect teenage desires to sleep in till mid morning?

Hi I am also considering for my DD for Year 4 in September. Any views would be most welcome. Thanks