The Academy Hampstead

[MumTwoSons]

Hi there, I just joined Mumsnet so that I could reach out to anyone with children at the Academy School in Hamsptead. We are considering moving our Y4 son there from a brilliant state school, he is very happy at his school and quite sporty and ‘alpha’, and I’m wondering if The Academy is the right school for him this respect. We felt the teaching was incredible, compared to the other prep schools that offer more sport but operate more as businesses. We are quite an arty theatrical family so we are drawn to it, but from the posts it sounds as if the children there are all quite quirky and individual, which is wonderful, but would you say if our son is sporty, outgoing and thrives off socialising in a playground we’d be doing him a disservice?

We are local but don’t have DC at the Academy. I do, however, know parents and former staff there. Never heard a negative thing about it. I agree that the teaching is reputed to be excellent.

It wouldn’t have been right for us, though - our sporty DS thrives with lots of outdoor time and space to run around in. I suppose the question is what you are seeking to achieve by moving schools, and does this one fit the bill. Are you looking to improve his prospects at 11+?

Similarly, I’ve heard only positive things, so that’s encouraging. Yes, we are after a nurturing but rigorous teaching, but not in an exam factory way. 11+ attainment / leavers destinations seem to be brilliant there, and yet a relaxed atmosphere. But the running around outside bit is a big part of his personality too, that would be my only reservation. They go to the Heath, and he has a lot of sport outside of school. Hmmmm. Thanks for responding. So grateful to those who have taken the time, in private messaging too.

I have a child there. I don’t think the quirky label is very informative. We’ve found nice children and families - a mix of Brits and international. Some simply like the school. I know a few families that moved children there because they weren’t thriving elsewhere - us included.

We like lots of individual attention, an emphasis on children being happy and excellent teaching. The one pastoral is our DC faced was dealt with fantastically well.

If sport is important, I suspect there are other preps that are better from that perspective - My DC has PE every day and often plays on the Heath, but not organised teams matches.

Not sure if your son has done a trial day. The school are very honest about whether a child is a good fit with the class they’d join, and doesn’t accept everyone. My DC came out of the trial really buzzing and certain that he wanted to move to the Academy, which made it a very easy decision for us.

Should say pastoral issue our DC faced

Hello MumTwoSons - we are also considering for our Y4 daughter. I have PMed you. Thank you to all the replies on here. V helpful.

I just thought I would add to here in case anyone is still considering The Academy…I have two children at the school- very different personalities and they both adore the school (both moved from very conventional prep schools). The teaching is brilliant and both my children have made really lovely friends

@Riomama @Atishooatishoowe Hello.
Sorry to revive
this old thread. Considering the Academy for next September for my DD. I have a couple of questions: how much homework is there? My impression from a lot of the other schools I’ve visited is that the latest research shows homework isn’t hugely beneficial academically and that the more forward looking schools are starting to phase it out. Any idea where the Academy stands on that one?

Also how long is the regular school day? My DD would be looking to enter Y3. Thanks so much to anyone who can help give me a general impression of the school as it is at the moment. I got a really good feeling from it. But want to confirm that it would be a good fit for our family

@MumTwoSons What did you decide in the end?

Hi there, there is homework and it’s been a big adjustment for my son, having come from a no homework school. In fact he had to give up some extra curricular clubs during the week to be able to handle the new rhythm. In Y4 it’s 25 min a night (as opposed to finishing the whole task) per subject and usually two subjects. It took him less time than this, and he’s not the fastest reader, so I’m reality it was less. Y5 however it steps up. As with the large majority of private schools they are geared towards 11+ (or 13+) and getting into top schools and The Academy, although not traditional in feel, and lateral thinking in many ways, is no exception. I can’t speak highly enough of the teaching and atmosphere. However, they are made to stay in at break to finish homework from Y4 upwards. It’s been an interesting change for our son, we are so glad he experienced this school, it has pushed him and encouraged him. However, due to my older son’s secondhand school choice being a different area of London we have taken our son out of Academy so he did only two terms there. We loved it.

Secondary school choice, not secondhand! ☺️

Hi! I have one DC in year two and one DC in year four- both have become used to quite a lot of home. My elder had honework every day of the week- usually maths and English. The onus is on the child to remember the homework and complete it- so there is almost no communication from the school. I found it great: my DD is a scatter brain and she has learned to be much more organised and takes responsibility for her own work. It works for us, and most parents say that their children become quick and efficient at completing the homework when they get home from school- my DC come home, get it out of the way quickly, and then have time for other things- no complaining or moaning about the need to get it done.

I agree, the homework was straightforward and my son got good at managing it, and it is direct reinforcing of what they learnt that day so didn’t require me to explain anything to him. It has been excellent for him to acquire that skill. As mentioned it is a very child centric school, no posturing for the sake of the parents, no PTA either, so if you’re into that don’t expect that. Really unique place in that respect. Maths & English standard v high and rigorous. If there’s one thing I found lacking is the children didn’t seem to have assemblies about current world issues or cross cultural celebrations. The children there come from many different cultural and religious backgrounds and I’d loved to have heard my son talk about assemblies where these were all acknowledged, even Pride month went by without a mention, some missed opportunities there considering their diversity of pupils and inclusive atmosphere.

Thank you all that is incredibly helpful to hear. It sounds like the homework is manageable and that it does teach the children some skills around self organisation and motivation. I just hope that mine can manage that!

And @MumTwoSons thank you that’s also a very interesting observation. Thankfully we do quite a lot of talking about cultural and religious differences at home, so it’s not something I necessarily need a school to take care of. But I absolutely see your point. I hope that we end up coming. It sounds like a wonderful school

@MumTwoSons @Riomama so sorry final question- what time is regular drop off and pick up lower down the school?

Mornings drop off is 7.45-8am. The gates close at 8am ready for lessons. Pick up for younger years is 3.20pm. There are after school clubs which you can sign up to- which then run until 4.45pm

If you decide to join let me know- my son will be in year three in September!

@riomama thank you so much! Extremely grateful for the insight. And yes absolutely will PM you if we end up joining. It will depend on my work (I’m finding out exactly where I’m going to be based pretty imminently). But I very much hope that we end up coming. Sounds lovely.

Oh — so pleased to have found this thread. My son is starting in Year 2 in September. We are moving him from an outstanding state primary and I have found this whole process so stressful. It is so reassuring to see that others really rate the school!

A big disappointment. We were looking for a welcoming and nurturing environment for our child but found that pastoral care was very poor and communication with the family almost non-existent. They mishandled a conflict between children, first by ignoring it and allowing our daughter to be isolated and bullied in class, then by punishing her very harshly when she reacted (verbally). They didn't inform us about what was going on and our daughter ended up suffering because of all this. We realised that they didn't know her at all, that they had neglected her wellbeing in a serious way and had kept us in the dark about important information that any family would want to know. We withdrew our daughter after only 6 months.

I know of the Academy well. We sent our son to the school and quite simply it changed his and our lives entirely. This is not an overstatement. He was at another Hampstead school, that we had thought was nurturing but turned out to be anything but. After scoring zero in a maths test aged 5, and being sent home with an “unhappy face” emoji on his work next to a big zero, we were told he was likely special needs and to get used to the idea that he would not get to University. We were urged to move him to a “different type of school.” A very dear friend recommended the Academy as a place which doesn’t judge and is all about nurturing the child towards confidence and success. As others above have observed, it does look “quirky” from the outside, but on the inside it’s anything but. Chloe and Garth took our son in and from that very first day, their method and their incredible teachers including Sarah and Jos changed everything. By grouping initially on capability rather than age, our son found an oasis of sympatico compatriots through which he was able to grow in confidence. Encouragement and learning through inspirational teaching rather than just test after test led to the seeds of self-belief, and from this growing belief came success both academically and socially through blossoming friendships. Everything changed within a year. Just to see him bouncing to school excited about the day ahead, rather than refusing to go was a blessing beyond all measure. By the time he left this incredible school he was truly ready for senior school. Last year, our son left school with 3 As at A-level and is now at Bristol University, he has his own business on the side and has developed his own art installations which was the legacy of the love of both maths and art, developed and nurtured at the Academy School. Simply put they allowed him to realise that his dyslexia is a polymathic blessing, not a curse. If you feel your child has not yet been discovered or is being judged by a Victorian education system, I thoroughly recommend this very special school.

Our daughter was at a local state primary, aged 7. When covid hit, the care and coverage from this school was virtually non-existent; It was implied that the parents should be shouldering much of the teaching responsibility. I work in the NHS and my husband’s work demands much of him time. After a couple of months of inactivity by that school, our daughter was becoming visibly frustrated and terribly anxious. We decided to take action. We spoken to a number of schools in the area, but the only one who seemed to empathise was the Academy. We spoke to Andrew who was incredibly gracious and then to Chloe and Garth. We felt so totally bathed in their kindness and supportive attitude. We took a leap of faith and moved our daughter to the Academy mid-year. What happened next felt like a bit of a miracle in a very bleak time. We were sent a list of numbers to pump into Zoom. It was a technology we were becoming used to ourselves. The numbers were a list of different teachers and classes throughout the school day for our daughter. Starting at 8am with some social “getting to know you” time, then lessons following a complete day’s curriculum, including cooking at lunch time, to help the family out, as well as exercise/PE. We were completely amazed to see how our daughter blossomed and even made friends that she started to connect with outside of school hours. The most special moment was her birthday, when the school helped us set up a trip where we visited all of our daughter’s new friends, as we drove round to drop off a cake and a party bag. The Academy normalised that incredibly strange time and more than that, as the previous reviewer noted, they gave our daughter back her confidence and her education. We occasionally sat near the door to hear Sarah’s wonderful teaching and Joss’s remote science experiments! The kids were loving it. When school reopened properly a few months later, our daughter couldn’t wait. Last summer, our daughter was feeling a nervous about her impending move to “the big school”. We spoke to Chloe who suggested she might like to try out for a bigger part in the school play. I’d like to speak about this experience... Our daughter is shy and doesn’t like to be the centre of attention. We thought it might trigger further anxiety but we trusted Chloe's experience. She and Maddy worked with our daughter, instilling her with confidence. When the day of the play came, and our daughter took centre stage we couldn't believe it. She bellowed out a song with such pride in her expression, myself and my husband found ourselves wiping away the tears. We turned to Garth and saw the same thing!!! When he came to make the speech afterwards, to congratulate the children and thank Chloe for all her incredible efforts in giving up so much of her time to create such a special opportunity for the children, it was so clear to see why the school is what it is. They’ve been at this for a good many years now and yet the joy and pride in both Garth and Chloe’s faces was palpable, like it was their first. We’re so incredibly grateful to them and to the school for what they’ve done for our daughter.

These two posts are highly suspicious. I don't know anything about this school, but literally posted in two threads on twitter separate days but each post basically at the same time as the other. Odd...