Merchant Taylors Prep

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RP214 · 21/11/2021 07:21

Hi, did you get any feedback? My son has also been offered a place at MTP

Original poster

wondermom2019 · 21/11/2021 08:13

Not yet. Just the GSG review
Have you accepted? Which year is he starting?

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rebcartw563 · 21/11/2021 08:30

@wondermom2019

Hello,

Can someome provide some feedback on Merchant Taylor Prep? Can any parents with children there shed share some info?

DS has an offer to start there and we need to make a decision soon. Whilst there is a lot of info on the senior school. Cant find much on the prep school?

My son goes there. What do you want to know?

RP214 · 21/11/2021 08:48

He's been offered a place a nursery. We haven't accepted yet. The school is a 20/30min drive away so it will be tough doing drop off and pick up whilst working. We also have a little girl so in the long run we will be doing two school runs. However the school seems great and worried my son will miss out on a good opportunity. Very confused

Original poster

wondermom2019 · 21/11/2021 08:49

@rebcartw563 just generally how are you and your son finding the school. Do you feel it provides opportunities for all round development?
When we visited, the academic rigour was evident and the child who showed us talked a lot about cricket. Couldnt figure out much about music or other sports.

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Original poster

wondermom2019 · 21/11/2021 08:52

@RP214

He's been offered a place a nursery. We haven't accepted yet. The school is a 20/30min drive away so it will be tough doing drop off and pick up whilst working. We also have a little girl so in the long run we will be doing two school runs. However the school seems great and worried my son will miss out on a good opportunity. Very confused

We are in the same boat as you, we live 30 mins away but feels like such a good opportunity to let go. Not a lot of time to decide as well

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rebcartw563 · 21/11/2021 09:11

My DS has been there since nursery. Most people are in the relatively local area, so 30 minutes sounds a bit far! Saying that with traffic in the morning, where it usually takes people 10 minutes, it can be about 30 minutes during the school rush. As with the other local preps, there is of course different offerings for sport and music, but it can be highly competitive and a lot of parents feel if their children aren't in the top teams the school isn't the best at being inclusive. It is an academic school and other preps are probably better at all round development. There's an increasing amount of pressure on the kids and it can be difficult for those that can't keep up with the pace. It really depends on what you're looking for from a school and on your DS

Original poster

wondermom2019 · 21/11/2021 09:53

@rebcartw563 thanks for the inputs.
How does the transition/collaboration to/with the senior school work? For y7 and y8 do they follow common curriculum and share teachers/facilities etc?

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rebcartw563 · 21/11/2021 19:40

I'm not sure if you know, but the prep continues to year 8 but the secondary starts at year 7. Offers to MTS come out in year 6, but controversially not all boys get an offer. This can be really hard for some of the boys not going with their friends. The boys from the prep stay at the prep site and have separate form teachers. There's always talk from parents who think those joining MT from year 7 getting an advantage but the boys do move up together so helps with the transition.

Experience with DD's school was really different and my DS hasn't always been very happy in MTp. DH and I have talked many times over the years about moving schools but there is an expectation to stay and we were worried about disruption of a move. DD goes to an excellent prep and we've felt she's got a much less single dimensional education. The head of MT prep is trying to balance this with the music and drama but not everyone really wants it to move in that direction.

Peng32Lew · 21/11/2021 20:24

Hi there! So glad I caught this thread. We are in a similar position with an offer from MTP and very little time left to confirm our decision. Our concern is although the opportunity is amazing, will they be pushed too hard and ultimately, will they be happy there? Rebcartw563 mentioned it’s like a single-dimensional education… does that mean MTP is purely academic and not well-rounded? Do kids ultimately get kicked out if they fall behind? Does anyone have any experience with York House or St Martin’s as comparisons that they could share please?

rebcartw563 · 21/11/2021 21:13

@Peng32Lew

Hi there! So glad I caught this thread. We are in a similar position with an offer from MTP and very little time left to confirm our decision. Our concern is although the opportunity is amazing, will they be pushed too hard and ultimately, will they be happy there? Rebcartw563 mentioned it’s like a single-dimensional education… does that mean MTP is purely academic and not well-rounded? Do kids ultimately get kicked out if they fall behind? Does anyone have any experience with York House or St Martin’s as comparisons that they could share please?

The school is very academic and the boys have a lot of pressure to keep up. We have lots of friends in the area whose kids go/went to York House and St Martin's and they're really highly regarded but everyone I've heard thinks of them as really nice and nurturing. DH's nephews go to St Martin's and absolutely love it. Their parents say it doesn't feel pressurising but the school is still brilliant academically. They love the music and sports there

Original poster

wondermom2019 · 21/11/2021 21:15

@rebcartw563 thanks very much. Really insightful.

You mentioned about expectation to stay and i also read the same in the website but nothing in the contract says that we cant move.
So what happens if someone wants to move out? Do they intervene and not provide good recommendations/report etc?

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rebcartw563 · 21/11/2021 21:18

@Peng32Lew

Hi there! So glad I caught this thread. We are in a similar position with an offer from MTP and very little time left to confirm our decision. Our concern is although the opportunity is amazing, will they be pushed too hard and ultimately, will they be happy there? Rebcartw563 mentioned it’s like a single-dimensional education… does that mean MTP is purely academic and not well-rounded? Do kids ultimately get kicked out if they fall behind? Does anyone have any experience with York House or St Martin’s as comparisons that they could share please?

Not all pupils get an offer to MT from the prep. Also it can be quite competitive with many working towards scholarships and almost everyone gets tutoring!

rebcartw563 · 21/11/2021 21:23

[quote wondermom2019]@rebcartw563 thanks very much. Really insightful.

You mentioned about expectation to stay and i also read the same in the website but nothing in the contract says that we cant move.
So what happens if someone wants to move out? Do they intervene and not provide good recommendations/report etc?[/quote]
No personal experience of this but have heard that, at least for other preps, there are conversations that go on between some of the schools off the record. We know of one person a couple of years ago who had issues with the school and not sure exactly what went on but they found the whole thing really stressful.

Mumsy858 · 21/11/2021 21:38

Just came across this thread. My DS goes to the prep but has really struggled. The school have been supportive but it’s been really tough on DS. Would agree with rebcartw563 that it’s not the most rounded school- heavily focuses on academics. Lots of homework and DS loved music but was put off by the competitiveness. He settled down after a few years but honestly would’ve picked one of the other preps if I could go back

Peng32Lew · 21/11/2021 21:45

Thanks very much - really appreciate the speedy response and insightful feedback.

Peng32Lew · 21/11/2021 21:47

Thanks so much for sharing your experience with us.

Daisychainforever · 21/11/2021 22:02

York House is amazing! So nurturing, pastoral care and the teaching staff are all great. My DS is thriving there and loves it.

Have friends whose kids go to St Martin’s and Merchant Taylors’ prep. Only heard positive things about St Martin’s. Merchant Taylors’ has been mixed in recent years with a number of parents unhappy with some of the years. Had friends who have left the prep and weren’t very happy. Saw a post a while back that said since it became Merchant Taylors’ prep the environment has become a bit of a pressure cooker. Not sure if you’ve seen it? Have heard the school is trying to undo the image though

Daisychainforever · 21/11/2021 22:12

@RP214

He's been offered a place a nursery. We haven't accepted yet. The school is a 20/30min drive away so it will be tough doing drop off and pick up whilst working. We also have a little girl so in the long run we will be doing two school runs. However the school seems great and worried my son will miss out on a good opportunity. Very confused

Would you be looking to move closer to the school? When we started we lived about 20 minutes away the journey at school times often turned into 40 minutes and for the younger ones it was too much. And they both went to the same school!

Snoopsnoggysnog · 21/11/2021 22:15

Interesting thread - my DS is at St Martin’s in the upper years. He had an offer from MTP at the time and I always sort of regretted not taking it due to the process for getting into MTS changing. Reading this thread I’m quite glad we chose STM. My DS is extremely happy there and has absolutely thrived in music, sports and other activities. He’s a above average academically but not the very top and it’s a good place for him.

Original poster

wondermom2019 · 21/11/2021 22:43

Thank you everyone for your timely inputs. Really useful

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JanjanBanana · 21/11/2021 22:43

Very interesting thread! DS that went there for a few years before we moved out of the area. It’s interesting to see other people have had similar experiences because at the time DH and I felt like we were the only ones who didn’t think it was as great. Only when we left did we hear some other families felt the same but most people join in the hopes of getting into MTS.

DS is not the most academic but is brilliant at sports and I would say still better than average academically. The school is all about results and doesn’t take into consideration that not everyone is going to be a maths genius. Since moving schools DS is extremely happy and is a different person- he’s confident and much more rounded, and as a result actually enjoys going to school and learning.

Heard nothing but good things about York House and St Martin’s. Depending on location, there are lots of good independents around that are both academic and offer more in terms of art, sport, music etc

Peng32Lew · 21/11/2021 22:46

Thanks for your feedback! No we haven’t seen that post, will try to find it.

Peng32Lew · 21/11/2021 22:49

This is really useful to know - thank you! I’m really glad to hear that your DS is happy now.

Original poster

wondermom2019 · 21/11/2021 22:56

@JanjanBanana : Glad to know he is really happy now.
Did you have any issues moving out of the school?

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