Chepstow vs Newton Prep

[goldensophie]

Hi there, we are relocating to London and have to decide on school for our now Year 3 son. So we gonna try occasional places for Year 4 starting this September but would like to know beforehand if those schools are right choices.

What we want are :

Solid academics (excellent teachers)
Good extracurricular activities (facilities matter)
Diverse mix of families as we are an international
Better be within London with good transportation

Because my boy is a bit shy I wouldn't like too big (he could be overwhelmed) or too small (would be hard to find a right match). So basically we are looking for a lovely well-rounded school that has great teaching staffs and clubs. In that wise which school is better? And I would greatly appreciate it if there is any school you could think of other than those two. Thanks a million in advance!

Where do you want to live? Chepstow, presuming you mean Chepstow House, is in Notting Hill. Newton Prep is Battersea. They’re nowhere near each other. The journey between them at school run time would take 45 minutes ish in a car, more on public transport. So potentially a lot of travel for him after a busy school day, and for you as well since he’s too young to go on his own and if you’re not close to school it might also be struggle socially as you’re not easily going to be able to do playdates.

In the Battersea area, so near Newton, have you looked at Eaton House and Thomas’? Also have you given any thought to secondary and whether you want/need an 11+ or 13+ prep?

Which school he gets will decide where we live, and either NH or Battersea is fine for us. For sure we gonna get a housing very near to us. For secondary, we have no concrete idea, but likely we will shoot for more academic schools. For now I would like him to have diverse experiences in sports and etc. Do you think Chepstow House and Newton Prep is nice fit? Thank you for your opinion!

I know a few families at Newton and they’re very happy with it- seems like it would tick all your boxes. I don’t live near Chepstow so no clue there, sorry. Very different vibe living in NH vs Battersea though! Based on your criteria I think Eaton House The Manor may also suit, if you don’t mind that the girls and the boys are taught separately.

Re secondary I meant more that if you are considering boarding you’ll want a prep that goes to 13, because the boys and coed boarding schools typically start at Y9. So I’d rule out anywhere that only goes to 11 if that’s what you’re thinking next. If you want a day school next then that would usually be leaving at 11, so if you’re going for a school that goes to 13 have a good look at the leavers destinations to check they’re not predominantly boarding schools and ask how much they support 11+ exit and prep.
Does that make sense?

Wow, this is a huge advice and also very reassuring to hear about Newton Prep. We are not sure about how long will we be in London actually (3 years definitely though) And we've always thought of sending our son to a boarding school in the US, but in case our stay in London gets longer, boarding schools in the UK will also come on our list. No strong preference for boarding over day schools though. We are very new to this complex UK school system but it sounds like Newton and Chepstow seem nice choices give they run until 13 years old. For exit result I will dig more as advised. Thanks so so much, great points to think about! 🙏👍

NP ticks all your boxes I think, and certainly on standards and international mix of parent. We have two kids there who are thriving. It is a big school though (to Year 7 at least, when things thin out a bit with some 11 plus departures). I don't think that should rule out a shy child - one of the things with bigger schools is you get the full range of personality types, and a lot of what they do is within their class of 20 so it makes less difference how many other sets there are in a year than you might think. But if that matters to you a smaller school may suit (eg Eaton House though it's a bit more formal - blazers etc - and I think a hit more sports focused, and is also in Clapham so a bit further out). Don't know Chepstow at all I'm afraid!

Thank you so much Hughh, this is very helpful! I got couple emails including NP and Eaton that they havs places for my kid. And now I am wondering if I can do school tours before formally registering my kid for the process so that we can avoid unnecessary tests and fees. Except NP every school has asked to register before tour. Indeed NP looks great in many aspect! :) Thanks again, unless we get Latymer I think we will have to decide between NP or Eaton, which I am quite happy!

We were at Newton and loved it. It goes to 13 which is good. The head is really lovely and facilities are great for a London school.

It’s one stop on the train out of Victoria. Play dates were ok - had to be organised but the kids are scattered so I don’t think we were worse off than most (we are north of the river).

I agree, NP seems far better than most of the preps that I have searched. We are coming from an international school overseas and to be honest quite shocked by the lack of facilities, even playground, of many "prestigious" preps. If it is not the top all through schools NP will likely our best choice for now at the least. The school indeed looks lovely and well run in every aspect. Thanks HoneyButterPopcorn, your comment is reassuring! :)

You have to remember that on central London you won’t get schools with large outdoor areas or their own swimming pools - it’s very much a space issue!

NP had a decent sports pitch, a theatre, music auditorium, dance studios, practice rooms, great library… when we were there (about 7 years back now) it wasn’t full of gender/trendy theory nonsense - focus on teaching and ‘other’ activities (visit by Dali llama, chat with astronauts, music, drama, clubs, plays, recitals, sports fixtures etc).

They didn’t make the kids lives miserable with drilling to ‘pass exams or else’ but DS and his cohorts all seemed to get good destination schools.

One other nice thing was that the pupils weren’t as transient as other schools. He was at a school before that and the turnover was crazy - kids staying for a year, or even a term as the majority were international families at the mercies of companies or embassies.

Their facilities sound already good enough for me and the fact that it is not as transient as some others is also appealing. As far as I know the demographic is quite diverse, maybe there are somehow international familes that have kind of settled there for some fixed years. Thanks so much, it is now the top choice for us now, followed by Eaton the Manor... a bit different and we will see both of them in May. Thanks so much, really appreciated!

Those are 2 excellent schools to be choosing between and even better that you get to see them in person before making your final decision. Good luck with the move!

If you're going to look at Newton Prep and Eaton House might just be worth a quick look at the other 2 preps in the same area so Thomas's Clapham (part of the Thomas's group but a bit smaller than the Battersea site and usually spoken of as more nurturing) and Broomwood . There isn't that much difference in leavers destinations so t mght boil down to the feel of the various schools but its probably worth looking at all 4.

I have worked in prep schools - definately corks and go with your gut. Walk past at drop off and home time and see how the children act (are the skipping happy into school or being dragged by their ears by a texting nanny?).

Meet the teachers and head (I got horrible vibes from one teacher and school but we went because of location and the school was just horrible).

Broomwood is another good call! I’d say less international/diverse than EH or NP but could tick a lot of your other boxes. Same parent company as EH, similar set up with the girls school separate but they get together for joint stuff frequently. If you’re in the area touring the others then I would see about adding it to your list, along with Thomas’ if they have space, if for no other reason than so you have a good point of comparison.

The parking round Eaton House The Manor is dreadful, and so only consider it if you are going to live within walking distance or on a good bus route (possibly tube plus walk)

The site itself is very over-developed. They have little remaining outdoors space, so lots of games lessons and outdoors playtime is on the Common (loads of space; but other users, dog shit, loose dogs aren't for everyone)

@InTheRainOnATrain : Thank you very much! Now I like the kind of modern feel that NP has and am hoping my boy can pass their assessments which look quite extensive 😬

Thank you, I'll also take a look at those schools. Broomwood seems nice and well round at a glance, which I'm looking for :)

Thank you for the comment! I am already more towards NP and parking/site is also important... I'll take a close look when I visit Eaton.

Hi, @goldensophie I was wondering if you saw all the schools other mentioned and if you don’t mind sharing impressions? We will be looking for a school in the same area for reception next year