London Prep to Edinburgh School

[JinnyTun]

Any experiences of your child moving from a London Prep to one of the Edinburgh private schools.

My DC is in Y3 in a coed Prep of 300 children, its a very nurturing environment, with small classes, lots of fun learning and teachers know the children quite well.

We are moving to Edinburgh and looking at a private schools, it has to be co ed. We are thinking of George Herriots, George Watsons, Stewart Melvil ( merging into ESMS) as we like the diamond model, and Edinburgh Academy. We will be coming to look at all of them next month.

We are a little worried about the size of the schools, they seem so big.

Please give me your experiences, of size, how many sets there are, atmosphere, teaching, similarities or differences ESP if you have moved from a London Prep. Happy to get a private message if you prefer.

Thank you 😊 🙏🏼

ESMS is about to drop the diamond model and go fully coed. It’s a pity imo, the diamond gave the best of both worlds. They will have the junior school on the Mary Erskine site and seniors at Stewart’s Melville. I’m not sure exactly when the change is happening (my DDs heard it through the FP grapevine).

It's not one you've mentioned, but have you considered Cargilfield? It's around the same size as your DC's current school, has small class sizes etc. It goes up to age 13. They have strong ties to lots of senior schools (inc. ones you have mentioned).
Cargilfield Prep School | Independent Boarding & Day School, Edinburgh | Cargilfield

Because it's a big move, leaving behind all his friends, football club etc etc we are looking for an all through school for stability, so he can build long term friendship pools. But not sure if that's the right way to look at things, open to suggestions.

We've done a similar move and did opt for a school that was similar to what my DC were used to, mainly due to the fact that we took them to look around the all through schools and they found them overwhelmingly big.
I found that DC adapt so quickly whilst they are young, thankfully. We got them started in similar clubs that they were doing back home, but especially if your dc is in year 3, by the time they get to S2 they'll (hopefully!) be fully adjusted, and by that age mine were ready for the change. I think it helps that a lot of their friends were going to the same secondary schools so they got the change they were ready for (bigger school, bigger facilities etc) with some familiar faces.
Best way to judge IMO is to take dc to have a look around both if you can, and see which one they seem to prefer. Mine just seemed more settled/less daunted at the prep.

I was about to suggest Cargilfield too! I'm not sure how big these schools are compared to where you're coming from but maybe they seem bigger because they go right through from nursery to secondary? EA might feel smaller as the junior school and nursery are on a completely separate site to the senior school. I think Fettes is 2 form entry in the prep school but in terms of making friends for life they probably get more transient pupils due to the boarding and they have a fair percentage of overseas students.
There's people who will tell you the pros and cons of all of them so I'd wait until you visit and get a feel first hand. Also bear in mind where you're going to live as the north side of the city to Watsons isn't a commute I'd want to do daily!

Are you looking to move in-year, or join P4?

Only because it may impact the availability of places. Heriots often doesn't have spaces before P4

The Edinburgh day school are quite large, particularly Watsons.
It might be worth looking at Edinburgh Academy as it is a bit smaller and as PP has said the junior school is on a different site.

They all have their own character but tbh there's very little difference in terms of results and facilities etc.
People usually choose based on geography, unless they're particular looking for something different like a smaller school

Heriots is very nurturing. It has a real family feel and does not feel large. My children are very happy there.

You might also want to consider which exam system they use; Scottish or English.

It may be worth considering Clifton Hall

Clifton Hall

The bigger changes are due to start August 2025 and then I think it's due for full completion/integration in August 2026.

Watson's is big but separates out kids for lower primary (P1-3) & upper primary & senior school (separate buildings) so doesn't really feel that huge. Lower primary is lovely, classes under 20 & good at assessing/adding extra support as needed. So far we've found it relaxed and supportive. Teachers know the kids and communicate well with parents. Advantage of larger school is loads of possible pals. Kids come from all over but a lot do live nearby which helps with playdates. I've heard Heriots is very supportive/ lovely atmosphere but no first hand experience. Can't compare to English prep though- I suspect your kid may be a bit ahead for their age?

As others have said, you'll get a feel when you visit them. Everyone loves 'their' school but what is right for one child isn't for another. We visited all the day schools last year and our preference was ESMS. But DS much preferred the assessment experience at Watsons and seemed to latch on to it more so we decided to go with it. He has so many friends and doesn't view it as a huge school. They do a great job of making a big school feel small. And I have a lot of time for the new principal. Her communication style is spot on.