Charlotte House, Heatherton or Chesham prep

[KonfusedLondoner]

Confused selecting between the above three for my DD. She is academic but also loves sports & extra curricular activities. All three are within a 15 mins drive. Does anyone have a child that goes to any of these schools? if so, what has been your experience?? Would be great to have your feedback.

I have a DD at Heatherton. It is a lovely school with a family atmosphere. Academically it gets good results, it isn't selective so has a range of abilities but the 11+ pass rate is high (I think 77% last year if I remember correctly) Destination schools are a mix of the grammars, Berkhamsted, RMS, Pipers Corner and others. The school is part of the Berkhamsted group, so benefits from using their facilities and systems but the vibe is very different to Berkhamsted prep. Sport they do three times a week including swimming, plus extra curricular (gymnastics,ballet, netball, lacrosse among others) The prep age girls now do sport afternoons to allow more in depth lessons and increased participation time. Music and drama well catered for, singing, instrument lessons and ensembles, lambda etc.

In some year groups Heatherton does not have enough girls to make a sports team. They do have games lessons but you never see them playing against other schools. Whilst small class sizes are excellent in some respects they do have serious downsides. If your daughter is sporty I would avoid for that reason.

Charlotte House is slightly bigger but still has a small school vibe. They aren’t known for their sport either.

Chesham Prep is a much larger school and has amazing sports facilities. A bit of an 11+ grammar crammer school but nice kids.

Another three I would consider which are still a sensible distance from your area are York House, Maltmans Green and Westbrook Hay.

Thanks a lot wapphighwood & Zodlebud...
@Zodlebud Does that mean Chesham prep is a tad more academic amongst the lot.

Not necessarily as they are also very good at supporting those children who need a little extra help too. They are just a much bigger school with a real push towards the Bucks 11+ too so it can come across that way.

Also don’t forget that some of the very brightest children may well perform better being in a very small and nurturing environment like Heatherton or Charlotte House. There’s a real misnomer that schools like that are not “academic”. They would all do a good job at making sure a child reaches their potential.

Chesham just has SIGNIFICANTLY better sport than the other two and as it’s bigger, more extra curricular.

If you want academics and sport then look at Maltmans Green.

Berkhamsted is also worth a look. All through school so no pressure at 11. They do frequently ask children to leave if they are not making the grade though. Also no prep for the 11+ as they assume you will stay on. Sport, extra curricular and academics are excellent. Some find it a bit marmite though.

@Zodlebud Thanks you very much again.. Will explore Maltmans Green too.. Any Charlotte House Mums??

These reviews are usually spot on if you haven’t discovered them already.

herts.muddystilettos.co.uk/kids/school-reviews/charlotte-house-prep-rickmansworth/

bucksoxon.muddystilettos.co.uk/kids/school-reviews/heatherton-amersham-school-review/

bucksoxon.muddystilettos.co.uk/kids/school-reviews/chesham-prep/

bucksoxon.muddystilettos.co.uk/kids/school-reviews/maltmans-green-school/

That is not correct @Zodlebud regarding not enough children to make sports teams at Heatherton. I have a DD there. Most years are full so there are more than enough girls to fill teams. Whilst the facilities might not match Chesham Prep, they have a very busy sports department and regularly compete against other local schools in netball, swimming etc and they use some of the facilities at Berkamsted. They have recently had girls competing in swimming at National level and running at County level and they are fostering a lot of sporting talent. Yesterday their girls did very well at the Chiltern sporting League x country.

@Northfield15 my close relative just moved her daughter from Heatherton as it went down to just five girls in her year group class. That’s first hand experience and I’m sure you will know which year group it is.

The team sport provision is nothing like that available at other schools and whilst swimming and cross country are not to be sniffed at, the only other sport they compete in is netball. And all matches are pretty much against Berkhamsted - which is in the same group of schools.

Compare and contrast to other schools where girls have fixtures against numerous schools for football, cricket, netball, hockey, lacrosse (in older years), swimming, cross country and athletics on a regular basis.

I am not bashing the school in any way as I personally think it’s lovely, but pointing out that the sport offering is poor in comparison to other schools. The OP has pointed out that sport is important to her daughter.

This is not correct information @zodlebud. The year group is the only smaller one in the school and was only ever as low as 8 and has now had an influx of new joiners. This is a pre-prep group, who don’t compete at fixtures at this level. Every yes in prep is full or almost full. It’s not very fair to comment on a public forum with second hand and incorrect information.
I’m sure the OP can visit schools and make her own choice and/or be reassured about class numbers.

Every year

We shall beg to differ on the size of the class. For a short time it went down to five. Those girls may well have been replaced very quickly. You cannot learn to play netball with five girls, the basics of which start to be learned in Year one / two at other schools.

A public forum attracts public comment. I have posted factual information obtained first hand.

At no point have I said anything derogatory about the school. You will see that I am actually quite supportive. Apart from their sport offering which, if it is important to prospective parents, I have highlighted is weak.

To add that the children I know who went there were incredibly happy with the school other than the tiny class size which was not working for their daughter. People chose and reject schools for a whole raft of reasons. It’s a very personal and, at times, quite emotive subject.

Apologies if you have been offended by anything I have written, but to pretend Heatherton has a great reputation for sport would be misleading. Which is the whole point of my responses.

Previous poster is correct, only one smaller pre prep year group and that has increased over the summer to 11. All prep classes are full or v nearly, with waiting lists for full classes. I know the prep girls have fixtures one against lots of local independent and state school in swimming and netball. Swimming league and cross country competitions.

My post was stating north field was correct. It has never been down to 5. I have a child in that class

@KonfusedLondoner Another vote for Heatherton! It is a lovely, nurturing school. They have excellent provision for sport, with a very enthusiastic PE team. The teaching is also excellent and, being a small school, the girls individual interested can be incorporated into the curriculum.
One year group is small (currently with 11, but has never dropped below 8 @Zodlebud maybe you should check your information).
Girls from the current year 3 will be able to apply to Berkhampsted without sitting the entrance exam. The school also has brilliant 11+ results.
There is an open morning being held on 2nd October. It's well worth a visit.

Heatherton has some very supportive and passionate parents!!! Please nobody take offence - I am not out to bash a school full of very happy children and parents that does very well for its girls.

Just highlighting that the sport provision is much better elsewhere.

Thanks all for your feedback.

I visited Charlotte house for their open day and my initial observation seem to be that they are very nurturing.. Their leavers destination based on their website seem to be heavily tilted towards private secondary (RMS in particular). But for 2 or 3 who have got offers from Watford Grammar school dont see much Grammar school offers. Hence would be keen to hear from existing parents if possible, regarding their 11+ preparations..Its about having the choice of both Grammar and Private secondary.. Like i said earlier, my DD is academic but also have interests in extra - curriculars like LAMDA, Cricket, Netball etc.

I have also registered for the open day for both Heatherton and CPS school.

@KonfusedLondoner

Thanks all for your feedback.

I visited Charlotte house for their open day and my initial observation seem to be that they are very nurturing.. Their leavers destination based on their website seem to be heavily tilted towards private secondary (RMS in particular). But for 2 or 3 who have got offers from Watford Grammar school dont see much Grammar school offers. Hence would be keen to hear from existing parents if possible, regarding their 11+ preparations..Its about having the choice of both Grammar and Private secondary.. Like i said earlier, my DD is academic but also have interests in extra - curriculars like LAMDA, Cricket, Netball etc.

I have also registered for the open day for both Heatherton and CPS school.

I've just seen this post, and thought I'd reply as a current Heatherton parent. Choosing a school for your child is a very personal decision and visiting all those you have selected is the right thing to do. What is right for one child, might not be right for another. I thought I would add that the numbers in year group discussed above are lower, not just in Heatherton but across the board at this age due to it being a low birth year. That said, in my experience spaces available at the school at year 3 level are usually quickly taken and I would anticipate this will happen in this case too. @Northfield15 is correct in her evaluation of the school numbers.

Our daughter is the third child we have put through the private school system (but 1st at Heatherton) and personally I can not sing their praises highly enough. The school is nurturing, but with high standards and achievements for the girls which is a hard thing for a school to perfect together in my experience. The sports curriculum is increased as the girls progress through the school which is tailored to age groups, as you would expect. They have regular opportunities for all and matches against a number of other schools in the area (with no school featuring more that others on the fixtures list). The sports teacher is very enthusiastic and the children absolutely adore her !
The ethos of the school is outstanding and genuine.
I hope this helps, but do let me know if you have any further questions you think I could help you with.

Thanks 2step2. I have registered to view the school during the next open day.

Visited CPS this week.. Shown the tour of the school by 2 students..They looked happy.. The school has large open area for sports and PE.. Have their own swimming pool which is huge plus. Good faciities.. Have more kids per form in comparison to the other schools obviously given their size.. Though i see a sizable number of students do take the Grammer school route and state compehensive post 11+, i dont think the school itself does much towards preparing them for it.

Having said that i do understand and appreciate that some of you might have a different view on kids being prepped for Grammar school exams. I am purely recoding my personal observations so that it can help someone who is my stituation in the future.. Again, these are just my observations from a quick tour around the school and i am more than happy to be corrected.

Any Charlotte House mums in the group?? Just to have a more balanced observation on this thread..

Hi there, my daughter will be going to Heatherton next year. A few of my cousins went to the school and were very happy there. I didn’t really consider Charlotte prep or Chesham prep because the logistics don’t really work for me as I have a son at the beacon. Personally I feel heatherton is more geared towards an equal split of getting kids into private secondary and grammars which I really liked and their pass rate for the grammar is v high. I’m confident I’ve made the right choice for my daughter and I’m excited about her starting there x

Thanks @Bellini239.. We went to the open day today.. I did feel the same as what you mentioned. As suspected by 2step2, they are full for the form we are after for this year.. So no hope for this year.. So, even if we were to choose it over the others, we would need to enlist on the waiting list and hope it moves sooner.. Something to ponder over the weekend with the other half..

Hi @KonfusedLondoner we were at the pen day today too! What did you think of it? What year are they full for already? I heard the demand for the nursery places are at heatherton are extremely high, praying my daughter gets a place! Xx

@KonfusedLondoner one thing I wanted to ask was where are you based exactly? I would say do not underestimate the importance of logistics in this decision - traffic can be a nightmare xx

I think the years 2-4 are full unless i misunderstood.. I am awaiting response on this to confirm.. I could not meet the headteacher since we had to rush back for another appointment.. We are live in Amersham.. so, this is the closest of the lot..

@KonfusedLondoner I know there are definitely places in the current year 2. Which year are you looking to join?

Good luck @KonfusedLondoner! I hope you manage to get a place :)