Prep schools Cheshire or Manchester

[FrodisCapering]

I have a boy who will enter Reception in Sept 2023 and a girl in the year below.

My son is currently at a prep for kindergarten, but we are considering moving him.

So far we are thinking about: Clarendon Cottage, Hale Prep, St Ambrose and Stella Maris.

We are based in Didsbury but distance is not really a consideration. We travel much further than any of these at the moment.

We are looking for a school to push the children to achieve, good sports, strong emphasis on manners and a focus on 11+prep (we will probably move ina few years to Trafford).

If anyone has any experience of any of these schools, I would really appreciate your comments.

If you are going to head to Trafford then a Trafford prep. Mad to do otherwise. Kids need local mates as well as a pushy school

If you are targeting plus, then Hale prep or APS. St A maybe If you are RC and targeting St A for high school. My info might be out of date as DS is 24, but i do have friends with children of that age.

Ladybarn House prob ticks your boxes. Except transition to Trafford Grammars. Please do think about local friends tho and the value of local community to children

Ladybarn is too expensive, or we would go for that.

Not at ln others about it being local, as thy have lots of friends around here. I went to schools a long way from home and it was fine.

I don't want single sex because that would get too complicated with drop offs.

Have you looked into if there are places available in the suggested schools? Hale prep deposits usually need to be paid as soon as you realise you are pregnant.
Hale prep is great for prepping for the 11+ but it is very showy so does pressure children into the more materialistic parts of life from a younger age.
st Ambrose is still very boy heavy as it only recently started accepting girls.
Bowdon prep (for girls) and APS (boys) are good and round the corner from each other.
Have you looked at forest school in altrincham?

www.forestschool.co.uk

Thanks for replies.

We've looked at Forest and Forest Park.
We are just looking at the schools I mentioned.

Hale Prep is full at the moment, but we are looking round this week. The Head has said things aren't firmed up yet. It may be an option to move them there later if we are really impressed. Interesting about the showy lifestyle. We are looking for academic but not materialistic. That's quite off-putting for us, so thanks for that information.

We aren't RC so hadn't initially considered At Ambrose but we were impressed by what they offer.

Clarendon Cottage is also successful in prepping for Trafford exams, and is a lot less expensive than the others!

Stella Maris has tiny classes, only about 7 pupils per year so I don't know if their sport would be particularly good. If you live in Didsbury have you looked at Moor Allerton prep? Good facilities and gets children in to Trafford grammars. The local schools in Didsbury are good too especially Cavendish, West Dids CofE and St Paul's CofE in Withington. Neither CofE school requires church attendance for admission so they are very mixed and they set children so the most able are stretched while others get the help they need. You can prep children for 11plus with a tutor nearer the time

@kaffkooks thanks for your reply. I didn't realise Stella Maris was quite so small. I'll be interested to have a look round it.

We don't like Moor Allerton, so that's off the table. We've been to look around and it's not for us.

Not keen on the state primaries.

Manchester High School for Girls is my choice.

@Dames I've got a boy and a girl so did t want a single sex school.

Our circumstances have just changed so we've gone for Lady Barn House. I am really happy with the choice.

Good choice - we didn’t like Manchester High School for Girls at all!

A good choice. Unfortunately, I have now heard that MHSG has changed in recent years and not for the better. Another new head of Prep, excellent Prep staff have left, resulting in a decline in academic standards and poor behaviour. What was it that you didn’t like about the school?

I'd either go prep school for the senior school I like or ladybarn. They produce such confident, able kids.

What about Abbotsford Prep in Trafford?