The Mall School

[newMomLondon]

Any views on how academic this school is? We really liked the school on visiting. So wanted to know from the parents of this school?

It was a great school up until 1989 when corporal punishment was outlawed.

Not so sure nowadays 🤔If Twickenham is your kind of place this century, I expect it is still extremely academic.

So do you think it is worth moving to this location since currently we don't stay here. But will move to a location based on which school my DS goes.

Depends what you want for your son. It is a hothouse, so will focus solely on pushing your child into his next school. In contrast, public schools in the countryside tend to focus on developing the whole child...music, drama, arts, riding, shooting, climbing, surfing, swimming, sports and so on and on...
If your child's school life is almost entirely and solely focused on academic achievement, it may not work out for the best in the long run...it depends what choices you have and where you want to bring up your family. Plenty of great cities in England to choose from, if city living is your preference. Many kids also weekly board at some excellent schools with great facilities, if the chosen school is a bit far for everyday travel.

Thank you so much for your reply. We do stay in London already but looking to change places within London based on DS school. So unfortunately we won't able to move to the countryside. We are also looking at Hornsby House as well in addition to The Mall . So wanted to know which is the better one? Any other suggestions are also welcome.

If you are considering The Mall then Twickenham Preparatory and most of all Hampton Preparatory are great

@newMomLondon , The Mall is a difficult school to ask for feedback on MN because of historical goings on.

It's better to ask about the Twickenham area of which there are several preps: The Mall, Newland House, Hampton Prep and Twickenham Prep (which is based in Hampton) - plus there other options for girls and Radnor Prep that is in a temporary location near Richmond. All the preps in Richmond, Twickenham, Teddington, Surbiton, Claygate, Long Ditton are great plus all the state primaries in the borough of Richmond upon Thames are great too. The secondary schools such as Hampton School take at least 50% of their intake from the state sector at age 11 so you don't need to be in a private prep to get a place at a fantastic private secondary.
It's best to find a good area for your family with the transport links you need plus wrap around care and then look at the prep schools.
As you will know the Mall is taking girls from this September in Reception and it has a nursery so it's going through a period of change too. (It use to go to age 13 but stopped this a few years ago).

@Devon12341
We looked at the time you must have looked. The idea of corporal punishment was so abhorrent we rejected it and settled on state primary and local comprehensive. Ours both went to Cambridge from the local comp and Richmond Tertiary College. I am so relieved that looking round the Mall put us off private/independent education.
Noticed that Twickenham has three of the top ten performing state comps in the country ( Orleans, Grey Court and Waldegrave). All free.

Yes I agree the state secondaries are outstanding too. @newMomLondon , you do choose the Mall you will find a significant percentage of the class are trying for grammar schools at age 11 too (Tiffin and Slough grammars) - this is the same in all prep schools in the area.

My son is currently at the school and we are happy with it as are most of the parents that we know, many of whom have children in different year groups. I don’t think the hothouse description above is accurate and is probably a bit out of date, although it has always had a reputation for being a fairly academic school which gets a decent number of boys into selective schools. There are a good amount of extra curricular activities on offer and it seems to be a nurturing school with happy children.

Three boys at the Mall and we love it. It’s very sporty and musical too. New headmaster sounds amazing. Couldn’t be happier. Good luck with your decision!

Another one who is really happy with the school. Feel free to PM me if you want.

Hopefully, with the outgoing Head leaving in July, things will be on the up for The Mall. Numbers have drastically nose dived over the last decade and staff have complained about having to walk on eggshells at times. Results have remained strong, but not outstanding. Facilities, including both a pool and theatre are better than most other schools and despite a rather tight playground, this school should be able to bounce back.

@WarmPombear Results not outstanding? Disgraceful! What school does your children go to? The Mall has 38 Leavers 2024 in Year 6. 22 Scholarships including City of London and 2 King’s College Wimbledon. I suggest to not be a hater and for your information, the results in 2023 were not impressive because there was only 20 students in that year.

the results in 2023 were not impressive because there was only 20 students in that year.
omg this is a very small school or they must be losing clients.

If there was only 20 students then definitely they should have more focus on each student to reach their full potential

My son has just started reception and so far so good. We spent a lot of time deciding and visiting schools. We are happy with our choice. It’s not a hothouse as described in this post. Best of luck with your choice.

Hello! We live in Hampton wick and trying to find an independent junior school around the area. Why did you end up choosing the Mall? Which other schools did you consider? Thank you so so much

After only two terms it is already evident the new Head is everything that his predecessor sadly lacked. A real amiable people person, a strong communicator, a wise decision maker and not the least bit temperamental! The staff have now got the leadership they deserve. Smiles all round.

The pool is lovely I worked there for a while

Fair enough???

@newMomLondon @Devon12341 @ForLovingFinch @Invinciblemummy @JadeMauve @JustWingItLifeEyelinerEverything @LittleRedHen86 @PapaSheru @Summonedbybees @tennissquare @Tw1mum @WarmPombear @Yumyummyyum Listen here all of you, this chat is a total waste of time. You decide what is best for your sons - we all have different opinions that's okay. That's why some achieve more in life than others. Anyway, talent and effort pays off wherever your son goes. That's why I know some people's sons (at The Mall) are getting 3-4 Scholarships, and my son got 3 scholarships at Top Schools in the country. Look, it's about putting your sons in the right place for them to be nurtured well. It is true you can go to public school and try wing it but your child is not a trial-and-error machine, and then hope you can get into a good secondary private school. But trust me because I have experience, your son will not fit well WHATSOEVER in the secondary school.

@JusticeIsBetter Just to make you aware, in UK the term public school means private school. The schools run by councils , government etc we call state schools.

Your assumption that all private education is better than state is quite naive. It is not black and white - there are excellent state school and mediocre private.

My son joined the Mall this year and has been loving it - he's made such progress in a year both academically and in lessons like sports. The school has been really suportive and helpful. Smiles all round 🙂