Belmont School in Surrey - anyone know anything good or bad?

[AlwaysFriday]

I am moving to Holmbury St Mary and have been and looked round Belmont for my 4yr old (starting reception in Sept)and my nearly 3yr old and thought the school seemed very nice. However, (isn't there always a "However...") I have heard some negative stuff (from Head at Reigate Grammer). I am trying to decide between this school - which has 65 acres, nice atmosphere and recent Good Schools Guide reveiws are pretty good - says "on the up" and the place we have at Lanesborough - great school, great reputation, very academic, but city school, not country ideal that we are moving out of London for.
Can anyone tell me anthing about Belmont? I would be very grateful for any comments. Or any comments on choosing a school which is perhaps acedemically not so good but perhaps offers more to the all rounder - how can you know if your child would suit an acedemic school when they are not yet 5!

Hmm - difficult one. I have a colleague whose son is there, and she is not very happy with it, but she's been a bit vague about exactly why..

Does it cater especially for dyslexia or other special needs? I got the impression that the 'not very academic tag' may be a cover for something.

Would you look further afield? A friend (who lives in Holmbury St Mary travels to Reigate every day for her children to go to school.)

Also check its financial status (if it's set up as a charitable trust you shoudl be able to see details on the Charities Commission website). If it has lots of land then it could be a good target for a developer etc.

(I haven't heard anything about it being up for sale, by the way, but middle-ranking schools with falling numbers and good assets/ land are prime candidated IMHO).

Had a quick look at the Belmont website, and I have to admit it looks lovely!

It seems that the specialist dyslexia bit is a semi-separate part of the school called Moon Hall, which integrates for some subjects.

Thanks Reigate Mum, would be very interested to know why your colleague is not happy with it if you can squeeze that out! As you say, Moon Hall is completely separate for education though they mix them in for sport and meal times, school trips, that sort of thing.
They own all the land, but it is mainly wooded, area of outstanding natural beauty etc and developers are not allowed near it, so that is not a concern.
I think I have pretty much made up my mind to send the boys there, they can always move when they are 7 if it is not challenging enough but for the moment it looks like lovely wide spaces and what moving to the country is all about!

I have direct knowledge of little Belmont (for 2-4 yr olds) and it is outstanding. The staff are wonderful, lovely facilities indoor and out and the children are very happy and confident. There is a lovely nurturing atmosphere. All the children love playing in the woods at lunchtime. They have the option of weekly swimming and other trips are arranged using the school minibuses in the summer term. I think the foundation stage is very good academically. I know people with children in the pre-prep (5-7) who seem happy with the academic standards, and whose children seem happy at the school.

The Mums are friendly and you do not need to dress up for the school run!

I doubt there is much risk of development due to it being in a conservation area (I think).

If you are moving locally I would give it a go for the pre-prep.

I wonder what the Head of Reigate Grammar said? Maybe be he was trying to push Reigate St Marys?!

Susan - yes - that's a good point about Reigate St. Mary's! He probably WAS just slagging off a competitor, as RStM now calls itself the 'junior school' of Reigate Grammar (but still can't guarantee that your child will get into the Grammar school!)

Belmont does look lovely - I think you're making the right decision AF....

Thank you so much, deciding about schools is a nightmare!
Susan, it is so helpful to hear positive things from someone there. I am pleased I wont have to dress up for the school run as we will probably be able to walk - although up hill, so I will be a sweaty mess!

I was very interested to see this post as my son currently attends the nursery at Belmont and will start in pre-reception in September. There is much debate among the nursery mums on whether they will continue into Belmont Pre-Prep or go elsewhere. First of all, I have to say that the nursery is absolutely wonderful. The staff are fantastic and really caring and the children are all really happy and spend lots of time outdoors. Ditto pre-reception, where they all seem to worship the teacher. Several parents seem to want to move after that although they seem to be vague about why this is. I think largely because the school has previously had a reputation for being very happy but not very academic. However, since the new headmistress arrived (2, maybe 3 years ago?) I think there are moves being put in place to change this, so these fears may soon be out of date. On the other hand there are plenty of parents who love the school. We will definitely stay for pre-reception and hopefully then into the pre-prep as well; I think we will try to visit the main school next year and try to look at it as if we are new parents and compare it to others locally, notably Duke of Kent although we have heard similar mixed reports about that as well. The school grounds at Belmont are certainly fantastic and I think the overall feeling off the school is a happy and healthy one. Not sure how well they do sports-wise - something my husband is keen to check on, so interested if anyone has any views on that, or indeed on comparisons with Duke of Kent?
Good luck with your choice; I'm sure you will be happy with Belmont for the first few years at least. Hope that's sort of helpful!

On the other hand...if you already have a place a Lanesborough and a potentially academic child you might regret giving it up. Despite the lovely grounds at Belmont a certain amount of time will be spent in the classroom anyway (beyond nursery/reception perhaps.
It might be harder to secure a Lanesborough place at 8, should you decide you wanted one. Not trying to put a spanner in the works!!

Oh, just noticed. This is old so has probably all been decided now anyway.

Although this is now an old post there is not much that comes up if you are searching for Belmont, so I thought I ought to complete my story in case this is of any use to any one else in the future! We did choose Belmont, we now have 3 boys there and a little girl who will start there in a couple of years. The school is amazing, what is most impotant to me at this stage (my eldest is in Yr2 so nearly 7 yrs old, next one in Yr 1, thrid in Pre-reception aged 3) is that they are happy to go to school - they absolutely love their school. I do have to shove them out of bed in the morning (hmm I'll be doing that for years wont I!) but they are keen to go to school, they are keen to do their homework, they want to impress their teachers and they love learning. This is not down to me at all, completely down to the school.

I recently went to the main school prize giving and listened to all the prizes they had won, and scholarships they were moving onto and was suitably impressed, but what impressed me the most was the kids. Every single one of them made eye contact with the prizegiver, smiled and oozed confidence. The children that this school turn out are exactly what I hope my children will be. I am completely happy with my choice and we are definitely not moving schools for yr 3.

Also on acedemics, this year, every leaver went to their choice of school, that is actually quite an achievement - and they were really good schools!

Brilliant school, fabulous teachers, happy kids and lovely parents - what more could you want!

I know this thread has not been posted on for a while but we're considering Belmont or Reigate St Mary's and just wondering what the current opinions were? DC is currently 3 so it is very difficult to know whether the feeder prep to RGS is going to be the right environment from the word go! Thank you!

DN is just finishing Year 8 at Belmont and has had a truly happy, well-rounded experience. Has thrived academically - passed various entrance exams with flying colours and will be moving in September to a top independent. The pastoral care at Belmont has also been above and beyond

I know this post is at least 9 years old but thought it would be interesting to find out how things went in the long run Alwaysfriday? (and anyone else who has an opinion?) We are moving onto the area and looking to send the kids to Belmont as we absolutely loved it when we visited. However, I would love to hear about it's current academic results and can't seem to find the info anywhere. Any insider info? Thanks

Children go on to the top schools after Belmont. Truly it is an inspirational school with a wonderful astute headmistress, Mrs Skrine. My daughter will be starting there next year and she can't wait!
It is more like a family home. The children there are very happy and very polite. Belmont Prep is a gem in the Surrey Hills

Hi. Just seen your message on here. We are seriously considering Belmont as loved it when I looked around and impressed by Mrs Skrine. Did you end up going to Belmont? How have you found it? We would need to move House if we went so would love to hear any information from a current parent. Many thanks.

It's definitely not a popular school locally. There are a lot of better options if you wish to move to the area for private school.

Hello, would like to hear more about your recent experience with Belmont. We will also be in a position to seek funding via bursaries and scholarships so if anyone has had to do this, would hope to hear if it worked out. Have an academically bright child, hope to give her the best possible for the future and wondering what the academic experience and results are at Belmont, as well as everything else. Thank you.

Belmont in Surrey is an absolutely fantastic school. The headmistress, Mrs Skrine, is passionately dedicated to making the children achieve their highest potential by having a nurturing, supportive and caring environment, home-from-home and at the same time each child is guided into their academic best. Parents are wonderful, very inclusive, lots of invitations even if you can't make them you will be informed of them. My daughter is in her second year there and I cannot find a single negative thing to say about the school.

Hi this is such an old post but I’d be interested to know people’s views if the academics at Belmont - I’ve heard some mixed reviews if the head.