Hereward House vs. Notting Hill Prep vs. Heathside

[westheimer]

Hi Mumsnetters,

We are a family relocating to London from the US and are planning to enroll our children in a private school in the Hampstead or Notting Hill areas. We are currently looking into Hereward House, Notting Hill Prep, and Heathside. Do you have any thoughts about how these schools compare with each other? We heard that the head and director of admissions at NHP are leaving and are wondering if this signals an issue.

Hello! Fellow American abroad here... I visited NHP and seriously considered Hereward House, but landed on St. Anthony's nearby instead. NHP is undergoing a head change and has a reputation of being more artsy / liberal. It is non selective. We did not like it and did not continue in the process after our tour as that was the not the vibe we were going for. It is not in the easiest location commute wise, but if you live nearby and you like the location, you might also consider Chepstow House which is across the street, co-ed, and seems to get better results and has great facilities. We really liked Chepstow House.
Hereward House (school for boys only) seems in a different league and if you have a spot, that is great! It is single form (one class per grade) and has a headmaster with a really great reputation. They get amazing results and also are considered non-selective, though the interview of the parents is very important. They want to make sure you are in for the long-haul and will not leave. This is from what I hear! No direct experience.
We did not consider Heathside as the reputation we gathered from conversations with consultants and mumsnet scouring did not sound so appealing to the other options in the neighborhood!
Would definitely recommend visiting the schools if you can - you really do get that "gut feeling"

What do you mean hereward is in a different league ?

just an expression! Not an actual league.
I feel Hereward House reputation is much better out of the 3 schools listed. Feel free to share your thoughts! I am no expert.

Thanks so much -- this is very helpful!

Have friends at Hereward house and they are exceptionally happy. If you have a spot there grab it.

Agree - Hereward House is superb - good luck :)

Hi. I just thought I'd follow-up as a very happy parent of a Year 4 boy at Heathside School. He joined in Year 3 and it's been brilliant for him. It's a very nurturing school. We're pleased with the academic side, but there's also a lot of focus away from that - they go to the heath once or twice a week (more often when younger) and the arts side is important (music, drama etc.) The class sizes are smaller than other schools we looked at which is good for our son. We've seen great progress whilst he's been there - he's had a lot of support.

On the academic side, they had a great batch of 11+ results this year.