Kew College - any recent recommendations?

[kacy1]

Hi

I am looking at moving my child into Kew College and was wondering if anyone has any recent recommendations?

Thanks in advance!

I have one child there and one who has left and gone to secondary. What do you want to know?

Following as interested in Kew College for my DD

I think they must be really academic and amazing, or at least they think so, because when I was looking to move my DC in Y5 out of a state primary couple years ago and emailed them to enquire about places, they replied: "Unfortunately, we do not have any places available at the moment. In particular, we do not take children into Year 5 or 6, as this is the top of the school and by these years the children are well ahead of the National Curriculum."

(We ended up moving DC to a different school then she got offers & scholarships from SPGS, G&L, LU, so there)

Hi Denmanny67 which school did you end up using? You can pm if you would like. Thanks!

Hi Denmanny67, looks like it was their loss really. Same as Stillookingfor, woudl you mind sharing which shool you sended up sending your DD to?
Thanks a lot

Orchard house. It was the only school that had space at the time. It wasn’t terribly academic and the preparation for 11+ didn’t seem that great. It wasn’t like it was miles ahead of state primary. But it was a fairly relaxed small place and the children were nice and DC was happier. Probably not v helpful to you though... hope you find a good school.

Kacy did you move in the end? How do you find it?

I have one dc there and one who was there, now in secondary school. They have both been very happy there. Is there something particular I can help with?

We are considering it. However not sure how to assess if my child is the type of child that will succeed at Kew College. Obviously it is a school that produces results. But I have heard consistently that there is a natural cull going on starting Y2, Y3 as the workload and pace accelerates, and some children leave as they are not happy. @talksunderwater I wonder if you can shed some light into how this works? I do understand not all schools are for all children, so knowing for instance how many children leave in Y2, Y3 other than for moving out of area, it would be interesting. Looking to understand what really happens rather than an opinion on whether the school is "good" or not.

Hello. The school is non-selective at nursery age so the children have a wide range of abilities. It is a very nurturing school but at the same time it moves at a reasonably fast pace academically (to get the leavers’ results it gets) - by the end of Year 3 the children are at national curriculum end of Y4 level (so a year ahead in their work). So, around Year 1 or 2 if they think a particular child is showing signs of being unlikely to be able to keep up by Year 3 or 4, they tell the parents this because they don’t want the child to feel out of their depth.
My DS1 had one girl in his year group (out of 40 kids) who left at the end of Y1 for this reason. My younger DS2 had one boy in his year group who left for this reason. Other leavers moved out of London. It’s really not something to worry about in my opinion. It sounds to me as though the myth is bigger than the reality! Hope that helps.

Very helpful thank you! I will will PM you with a couple more questions if you do not mind.

Hi,
Sorry to jump on this thread, my question is to those working parents sending their kid to kew College nursery, How are you able to manage the wrap around care? Please share ideas or recommendations of a good nursery/childminder nearby to help with the wrap around care and would also need help with pick ups/drop offs as well.
Many Thanks in advance

Hi ShaoniB, we ended up sending our DD to Kew College. For wrap around care, we have an au pair (for pick ups and drop offs) + half day nursery, which is the nursery she had been going to up till then. I hope this helps

Hi everyone, sorry to jump onto an old thread. We’re thinking about starting at KC and it’s very hard to get a feel for the school during covid as tours are around an empty building. Can I ask, those of you whose children attend or have attended the school, are your children happy and is it a friendly and fun school? The academic results are clearly strong but I can’t tell without having met any parents and children what the atmosphere of the school is like - ie whether the children are nurtured in a happy school or an overly competitive environment.

@Londonmamatoboys

We recently left Kew College. A compact school but a couple of years ago they bought another house next door but one, completely refurbished it and this means it now has space to breath easier!

Has a reputation for working hard whilst being very friendly and down to earth. They certain know what is required to get through the exams to senior school. Our children certainly really enjoyed their time there.We would happily send them again!

Apart from hot food, I don't think you miss out on anything else other prep schools offer. Lots of school visits ,residential school trips, founders day celebrations, plays ,concerts etc. Sport/swimming is off site like most others. Art/music/extra curriculum is all there.

Note the Head is taking retirement this year. Fees in our time were the lowest in the area....it helps they were bequeathed their buildings by the original owner of the school many years ago.

Thanks very much @lamplightnow that’s very insightful and really kind of you to reply. Great to hear that you would send your kids there again. When you were there did they ever offer any holiday schools/camps? And were after school clubs charged on top of fees?

When you visit remember the have two forms, so seeing it empty is very deceptive, it is still very compact and not sure how they managed before without the new building two doors down. The outside space is very restricted, and they have to ration the time children spend outside. They also eat at their desks. Academics are the top priority and obviously that is covered, a few children leave every year because it does not suit them, because they are told they will not be able to follow the class, or because the school is not good at things like dislexia even if mild. So it is a great school for a narrower type of child. People also leave because the more pushy parents try for ST Paul’s and Kings at 7+ too. The parent community is very good and inclusive of a bit pushy academically. So all depends on what your priorities are.

@Londonmamatoboys

No holiday camps at the school.
After school clubs are generally paid for , although some were free.
As said above, we found the parent community very down to earth, friendly and inclusive .Most lived locally with others fairly close ie Chiswick /Richmond.

@Londonmamatoboys
Plenty of holiday camps available in the neighbourhood so that should not be an issue.
Also any cost of clubs at KC will always be reasonable. You need to think what ethos you want from the school you choose. It is really a personal choice and also depends on your child.