Lambrook or Holme Grange

[Menomal]

Hi,

My DD has been offered a place at both Lambrook school (Ascot) and Holme Grange school( Wokingham) for Year3 entry in September 2025.
Lambrook as you know has quite high fees post 20% VAT policy by the government.
My question : Is it worth spending a high amount for Lambrook for primary education?We feel that both the schools are similar in education and facilities but Lambrook has a hype due to royals.
Will there be any benefit for our DD if she graduate from Lambrook at y6 or y8?
We are upper middle class professional parents who won’t be able to afford schools like Marlborough, Cheltenham etc unless our DD gets a scholarship or we succeed in our entrepreneur journey which is still in baby stage.
Any thoughts appreciated!

Thanks

Those are two very different schools with plenty of very happy parents and children at each. Can you elaborate on what apeals to you about each for your particular DD?

The big central difference I think you need to really look at is that Lambrook is a traditional prep school that is focused on getting students in to top-name private schools (often boarding schools) at age 11 or 13. It has a traditional prep curriculum that includes latin. Holme Grange is an all-through school and AFAIK doesn't do dedicated 11+ or common entrance exam prep. Which one of these is better really depends on the student and family... avoiding having all that time/energy/resources/attention sunk into competitive senior school admissions is fantastic if you don't want or need that but a real "well then why am I paying for private?" question mark if that is actually a priority for you.

Sports will be more competitive at Lambrook and centred around the traditional team sports. HG does have competitive sports but aren't as focused on competitive results or all students joining in competitive sports, and I know by Y7 they start allowing students to opt for non-traditional activities (I'm pretty sure yoga is an option) instead of the standard team sports. Again, either of these approaches could be a plus or minus depending on your child.

The parents I know who have chosen HG have really wanted that all-through option and I hear fantastic things once they're there. Pastoral care is highly spoken of and they seem to do a great job of differentiation and stretch for a variety of academic types which is producing strong results. I know a particularly bright but sensitive and non-competitive child who's really come alive there after leaving a more traditional prep.