Tormead vs priorsfield

[Sunnyside1987]

Anyone else trying to decide between tormead and Priorsfield for year seven entry?

@AndreaKnowsBest
Id be really interested to understand where you received the school numbers from.
Thank you!

Hi there,

ISI inspection reports for most of them (Nb they must be due an inspection soon too). The other numbers come from the DFE schools data site.

The latest DfE census of PF was conducted in April'25 and roll was 365 pupils.

That's down 75 since 2020/21, which is as far back as you can view online.

Thank you for clarifying @AndreaKnowsBest . I think a lot of schools are down but it would be good to see this September’s intake and how many are staying on for sixth form. I had thought there were 40 in total at sixth form - both L6 and U6.

Well I think it depends on the school, I know for a fact that GHS, RGS, Tormead all have full year 7s for this year. StCats I'm not sure about, but I'm pretty sure they have good numbers too.

I think, and wouldn't blame parents for, coalessing around successful, well regarded and financially strong schools right now. After all one's daughter has to be there for many years, and this is no reflection on PF, as I'm sure they'll be just fine, but you'd want some guarantee of longevity

Recent Charity Commision reports should be reviewed when considering the schools mentioned in this post.

Palm21 do you have specific concerns having looked at the charity commission reports?

There's a few sadly: Their latest financial results, posted very recently, show a loss of c.£300k for the last reporting year, income down c.£700k, and they no longer have any free reserves.

Hello everyone, I’m Hayley, Director of Admissions and Marketing at Prior’s Field School. I’ve been made aware of this thread and just wanted to say how fortunate we are to be in an area with such a strong selection of schools, each offering something different to suit the needs of our individual children.
I’ve been part of the Prior’s Field community for 12 years and continue to be incredibly proud of what we offer our girls, a nurturing environment, excellent teaching, and a broad range of opportunities to help them discover their strengths, sometimes in areas they’d never considered before.
While this isn’t the place for detailed questions, I’d be more than happy to speak directly. You’re very welcome to contact me by phone on 01483 813107 or via email at [email protected]. We also offer individual tours at times that work around you.
If you're nearby, we have an Open Afternoon this Friday from 2–4pm. We already have over 100 families signed up, so it’s set to be a great event and a lovely opportunity to see our students in action.
I look forward to hopefully meeting you and your daughter soon.
Many Kind Regards
Hayley

@PFAdmissionsHayley , is this your open day for the 2026 11+? It seems really late, why now?

Genuinely, 100 parents at this time of year is outstanding. By May I'm way over all things school, so you've done a good job with the marketing!!! 👏 genuinely!

What are the plans with the slightly decreasing roll though, just re-format, or does the head have new plans, co-education, joining up with another school? It's a tough market right now, this government has a lot to answer for.

Another school in the same general area always has one this week too and will get an equally good number. Other events earlier this term and some in the Autumn Term.

I am not surprised that the number of pupils has decreased at Priorsfield over the last 5 years. There was a mass exodus each academic year my daughter attended and some were due to serious pastoral care cases that were not dealt with. There were lovely bright girls that had no option but to leave the school.

As a parent whose daughter has attended Prior’s Field for the past five years, I just wanted to offer a different perspective. Our experience has been overwhelmingly positive, and we’ve always found the pastoral care to be supportive and responsive whenever needed.
Of course, no school is perfect, and I don’t want to dismiss anyone’s concerns every child’s situation is unique. However, I’ve seen many girls thrive here academically, socially, and emotionally, and I’ve always felt that the staff genuinely care about the students’ wellbeing.
It’s also worth noting that pupil numbers have fluctuated across many schools recently due to factors outside the independent sector’s control. In fact, numbers have increased this year in the Lower Sixth, which is encouraging.
I just think it’s important to acknowledge that while some families may have had difficult experiences, there are also many of us who have seen our daughters flourish at Prior’s Field.

I’ve been following this thread and it’s gone quite Priorsfield-heavy lately, so thought I’d add a view from the Tormead side 😊

We’re current parents and it’s been a positive experience. The school’s in a really good place right now – popular, great energy, and a down-to-earth community.

Academically, it’s going from strength to strength This year’s results were outstanding – better than pretty much all (except just GHS and RGS) the other local independents at GCSE, and most of them at A level too – but on the pressure side, it somehow manages to feel low-to-manageable. The girls are pushed, but also well supported.

Pastoral care has been top, and the atmosphere’s happy and busy rather than intense, my daughter came from a relatively quiet primary and settled into it well. Sport has been a standout for us, she is doing all sorts (the new sports field is brilliant), and there’s a huge range of clubs. My DD is big into drama and has made friends easily across both the drama and sport commitments.

As I said, DD joined from outside at 11+, and we were a bit worried, but the existing prep girls were very warm and she’s been completely absorbed – friendship circles form naturally through tutor groups, clubs and sport. So might be something to bear in mind when looking around.

Financially - an important aspect for us - Tormead feels secure and well-run. It’s still, by quite a margin, the most affordable independent locally, but by no stretch the least in quality. Facilities are modern and always seem to be being painted. They even kept this year’s fee rise very low to help parents manage the VAT change, which was appreciated. I'm sure they'll have to start going up a bit more now, but there's no where cheaper to jump ship to regardless, so we'll have to suck-up the undesirable financial effects of the governments economic policy sadly.

So, I guess, it’s a school that feels busy, fun and has a city-energy feel. Which may not be your thing - although they do now have a huge sports facilty with views as far as the City of London and Heathrow, just 5 mins from the main campus, to make up for it.

Definitely one to keep firmly in the running if you’re deciding between the two, or others in the area.