Looking for pre-prep advice in Kensington/Notting Hill area

[pinkypig]

Hello,

I am trying to get hold of some opinions on the following pre-preps (ie which people like and why):

• Bassett House
• Hill House (am worried about the move to so many different sites at pre-prep level)
• Norland Place

At this stage with our eldest I think he would benefit from a fairly academic/pushy school. Not sure about our second but that is an issue for another day...!

We are moving from France and will live somewhere around the Notting Hill Gate tube area.

Thanks
PP

Bump. Anyone?

Sorry it wouldn't be a place I would want to live with and educate small children, each to their own - I'm a Londoner and have spent most of life here growing up in West London. How about Chiswick further west. Read the Good Schools Guide and visit the schools, you need to go and see them yourself.

If you are looking for an academic/pushy school, have you looked into Wetherby?

SofaQueen (or anyone else), can you tell me anything about Wetherby School, the fees are quite a bit higher than some of the other pre-preps, is it worth it? Is the school friendly as well as academic?

Thanks

St Nicholas (near Royal Albert Hall) does teach CNED so if you want to keep up the 'French Connection'! Very nice school too.

Wetherby is a very "prestigious" pre-prep, with a prep school now attached. It has a very good reputation, is very academic, and great results. I didn't choose it as it is quite traditional in its' approach, and a bit too formal for my tastes. The variety of boys in attendance is fairly narrow, as you might guess by the location and the fees. That being said, the couple of boys I know who go there are happy and love their school.

So whicn did you go for Sofaqueen? Thanks for your insight.

Love it!

My husband asked me about the type of mums on mumsnet last night. I shall post him the title of this thread by way of response. (And looking down the list, the bulk do seem to centered upon the 7% who use private schools).

PP - have you ever watched Harry & Paul (Harry Enfield and Paul Whitehouse) comedy series from a few years ago? Blondes of a certain age / boho antique shop on Portobello road.

BTW, has anyone got any views on whether Eton is as good as it thinks it is? I live up the road from the place in a castle and thinking about it for my great grandchildren?

Harry Enfield is nobody to sneer - he fairly recently sold his house - one of the very best in prime Notting Hill - for £10m or so.

Wetherby is a super school - if you can get in. May be advisable to send them to Rolfe's or one of the Alpha plus nurseries in the area (depending on age) before as I think it can help with school admissions.

I used to live on top of Norland - lovely school, very happy children.

Should also have mentioned that little Archie Enfield attends Notting Hill Prep, which is another lovely and hard to get into prep that you could consider... have colleagues with kids there who love it but don't have first hand knowledge.

pinkypig, I chose a school in Chiswick - also academic, but with a wider mix of people, and which is more laid back ( the parents, the administration and boys). This suits both my DS1 and me better.

thanks SQ

I'm looking for a good nursery for my daughter (3 next year) in Notting Hill/ Ladbroke Grove - any advice?

Hello Melanie,
I actually started this old thread!

We ended up sending our eldest to Bassett House School which is in W10. Thy have a nursery section. Our second son is attending Ladbroke Square Montessori and will continue on to Bassett House.
Other nurseries I am aware of in W11 are Rolfe's, Strawberry Fields, Miss Delaney's, Denbeigh Under 5's, (all these are private, I am not so hot knowledge wise on the non-private ones but you can visit the rbkc website for this). They all have fairly long waiting lists but you will get a place somewhere if you are super-keen and persistent ;) There is also Kids Unlimited W11, Holland Park Pre-Prep.

Hi! After a big dilemma, we decided to send our little one to Bassett House as well.

Pinkypig, could you share your experience? Is it good from an academic point of view? What are the good things and bad things about this school?

Thanks in advance!

Wondering if anyone has more recent comments about Bassett House especially for early years? Looking for a smallish nurturing school (as opposed to overly academic) in the Nottinghill, Holland Park area primarily, but will go a bit further west as well.

Some of these schools will have required registration at birth (or close to it) to have any chance of getting in. In particular, I think Wetherby probably fits that. That is one reason why Hill House is popular as it has so many places. It is also slightly cheaper but recently suffered from an unsatisfactory Ofsted which has upset many parents. You could also look at Knightsbridge School.

Pinky,

Out of those three schools you mentioned, I would choose Norland Place. It's right in Notting Hill/Kensington area, it has a good rep and a good uniform. Other schools to look at are Thomas' (Kensington) and Lycee (South Kensington). Also Wetherbys which has already been mentioned. Hope this helps :-).