Tormead School - Current opinions?

[Green321]

I’m looking to gather some views on Tormead school in Guildford. Both the prep school and senior school. How academic is it? How well are the prep girls prepared for senior school? Are the children happy? Are the teachers inspirational? Thanks so much.

I’d also be interested in hearing from anyone. Particularly interested in seniors.

Tormead parent of a number of years x 2 DD, and local resident. Tormead has been wonderful for my girls, in the Prep and in the Senior School. Prep school has a lovely family feeling, parents get on well, there is a good community spirit and the girls are all enabled to forge positive relationships with both each other and the staff. The teaching and learning has been great for us, and a number of friends (and parents who had DDs at other schools) moved their daughters to Tormead and rave about the chalk and cheese difference it has made - with Tormead being an overwhelmingly positive move for them.

We have a few years in the seniors too and my DD is happy and doing well. No talk of any school issues from her, our friends or in our whatsapp groups - just basic, normal day-to-day 'all part of growing up' stuff. Parents on the whole very happy with school's direction of travel. School is slowly growing, but not at the sacrifice of teaching, class sizes or space, with a clear investment in new teaching staff, facilities, etc. Excellent parent communications has been noticeable since the new Head arrived, which keeps parents in the loop - with a focus on academics (school does very well) whilst not losing sight of pastoral care, development/investment in educational facilities/sport and an enjoyable, well rounded school experience.

Only niggle is that the physical site space is smaller compared to other schools around, no rolling hills or castles, given its city centre location, and drop off can be busy with cars. But with it being in Guildford, most senior girls will use the buses, train, walk etc., with friends anyway and as they get into sixth form it gives them a chance to be more independent. Older (Sixth Form) girls also seems to be spending more time collaborating with RGS as well, which parents see as positive for those upper year groups.

Fundamentally we chose because of the happy, down to earth kids, not a hot house, but academics certainly not forgotten (but not GHS, if that's your aim). This is still the case as far as we can tell.

Hope that helps! Obviously we're happy campers, but most parents do, on the whole, seem to be. Any questions do PM me.

^post above edited as I deleted a whole paragraph off somehow and made a hilarious autocorrect typo - sorry if you saw it!

Parent of both Prep and Senior school through to sixth form (DD literally just started uni). School was a great choice for my DD, she had a large friendship group and as such we had a wide community of parent friends, a decent number still there. No specific issues during our time at Tormead, and under new Head the school is changing and moving in what most see as a positive direction. Chat amongst parents doesn't flag any concerns worthy of note. Lots of old fashioned ways of thinking (and seemingly some of the old head's mangers!) have moved on and there has certainly been a renewed, fresh focus on supporting girls academics, whilst not loosing sight of their wellbeing. Theres a good number of sports, dram, music and extra curricular options if thats your thing, and the physical spaces on the relatively compact site seem to always be getting a spruce-up these days. Some mumbles about the school getting larger in numbers (victim of success?) and what that means for the girls quality of education, but we were always kept informed about the schools plans and what they meant, which meant rumours didn't get a chance to surface at all and everyone seems adequately reassured (we were at least) that class sizes are protected, new facilities would be brought online with more teaching staff, etc., if needs be.

Overall a school (still) on the up, direction of travel looks good now, hopefully it will carry on being good. Also a strong draw for some friends I know considering Tormead is that it is financially in a pretty strong position (you can view all private school accounts online if you want), which with potential VAT on the way, etc., is a real strength when comparing schools - I've heard some schools locally don't have a lot to fall back on.

Good luck.

Academics have always bobbed around the 'strong' end of the spectrum. Some years better than others, but always respectable. Their results are on the website I guess, but, for example, 2023 ALevels were (excluding GHS and RGS) pretty much top of the area.

Girls generally happy - they're known locally as being a 'friendly, down to earth' bunch.

School isn't a pressure pot, so results don't top GHS or some of the academic boarding schools (with decent numbers of overseas students) or some of the London Girls schools. Differingly they (tormead) cite that girls do join yr7 with a wider ability range than (as a local example) GHS would (who tend to cream the best of the top to start with) but the girls do then leave Tormead having done well or having at least improved significantly from where they started.

If you're local, on a bus route, train route, etc. then Tormead is definitely one to consider amongst your other options.

Just signed up, as I've been watching this one too, thanks to the PPs. We're looking at Tormead for DD in September year 7, it's our top option at the moment. We know others who go and the vibe is good for us, we think for our DD who is above average academically, but quite sporty too, it's just right. She's also a 'normal kid' and doesn't function well in high pressure environments and enjoys clubs and activities alongside learning, Tormead seems to offer this and its what we took away from open day. DD also raved about the activity day they ran, she went with mates from her primary, and they all preferred it to two others they'd been to. She 'got on well' with the other applicants from other junior schools and the tormead girls helping, which for us was reassuring.

What I wanted to know though, is what's happening with their new sport facilities, DD loves hockey and we're concerned they are not going to be at Surrey Sport Park any more and their own project hasn't even started? It was addressed at the open morning, but wondered if any current parents have more, less 'open morning' info on it.

Also, does anyone know how many internal applicants they have from their prep school this year?

Hi @FabulousFlamingos , following the thread, feel free to PM me if you want to chat about anything offline. But as far as I know:

1 - the urnfield (that's what the new sports ground is called) is progressing well. Its been in a WhatsApp group I'm still in recently and someone who attended a sport evening a few weeks back said that it is due to be finished for September 2024. There have been epic interventions from a local pressure group who are against it and the council have, fundamentally, been scared of them, so signing stuff off has been taking ages. You only need to Google 'Guildford planning' to read about how terrible they are at the moment. Anyway, apparently the last outstanding thing relates to badger setts, and the school are doing a comprehensive plan to manage and protect their presence, but it means nothing can start until outside of badger breeding season in July 24. Until then, the Sports Park is still and will be used until urnfield is ready - so plenty of hockey.

2 - I think yr 6 is quite a large year group, people have started flocking to the Prep as it's both very good and it also skips the 11+ for the Senior School. I think they have 3 year 6 classes this year, but don't quote me. Doesn't mean they all stay though, some go to GHS, but usually just a few. TBH you're absolutely in the running like everyone else, I think year 7s have been around the 100 mark in recent years.

Best wishes

@Green321 &@Velvet3 , what year groups are you looking for. Are you joining at a normal entrance point or looking to jump ship? Where are you living?

Guildford has an abundance of girls' schools and I have no idea how they all continue to exist! Are birth rates for girls up?

These schools all have their own pros and cons and depending oh where you live, might be convenient or not.

Local schools include:

• St Cats. Country feel, head has been there longer than I've been alive, a bit 'rah', excellent academic results, sporty but perhaps comes across as overly competitive, perhaps due to a strong belief in advocating women in society, big time. Epic country feel.

• GHS. Academic, renowned hot house, but head has recently moved position and new head (old deputy?) now in charge of seniors. City centre, slightly up themselves but getting better. If you fancy oxbridge, they guarantee to get you in. To be fair, great facilities and good colabs with RGS. As popular as ever I would guess.

• Tormead. Always seen as number 3 to St.cats and GHS. But fundamentally not sure why, guess academically? Girls seem straight forward and normal.. and very happy. Site a bit small though, if you want grass, you won't find much here. In recent years holding its own on grades big time. Seems very popular, probably due to happy kids.

• St Theresa's. No idea what's going on, basically becoming a co-ed school. Likely doing OK, but didn't publish results much this year. Only reason (admittedly in my mind) to go full co-ed and merge three times over, is to survive.

• Priors field. Kind, caring and open to all applicants. Girls seem to enjoy a non selective approach. Facilities tired and school small. Finances don't look great.

Anyway, give us your location and I'll continue to spout! 😜

@FruityLoopie any thoughts on sir William Perkins?

@FruityLoopie wow

Are your kids at any of these schools?

@JETsetters , yes, St.cats. not sure it was the best choice, but dd did OK in the end.

@drowningfrowning , don't know enough people to comment with certainty. But heard from a few colleagues and from reading online that its lost its way a bit, academics ok, but fundamentally feels like a grammar school you have to pay for, decent results, but not very inspiring. Some behaviour issues flagged on here (MN) in other threads... New head though?

@FruityLoopie why didn't you like st cats? We have applied there. Thanks

Also, T had a massive influx this Sept due to halstead girls school in woking closing / merging so people who wanted a girls school naturally moved their girls there.

I think there was 12 girls join from halstead year 6 plus lots of siblings / other children too join this Sept in different year groups.

It was an easy access to get into the senior school without the 11 plus and a guaranteed place

Tormead did take quite a few girls from Halstead when it merged, they had to pass the entrance test into the Prep School, like any other would, but being Halstead girls, they were always going to be of a strong standard anyway. I have a friend who stayed in Halstead year 4 (now year 5) and moved over to the new Halstead St Andrews (as its now known), and applications to Tormead for year 7 still good, as the standard teething problems with a merger are still kicking about (they say), they might even start attracting more.

As a parent of the (Tormead) Prep there seems to a focus on filling year groups, reducing class sizes by splitting them, with additional teachers, and expanding more physical space - they've just started the renovation of the large house they own next door and a lovely new music room as been opened this year. I guess a strong prep school helps feed the senior school, and this year with year 6 being large, they might need less externals?

As per the OPs questions, as a Tormead parent I can highly recommend it for Prep, and we are keen to stay for Secondary too. You get good value for money also, girls are happy and learning is excellent - it's also still the cheapest Independent in the area, by quite a margin, which helps the pocket! 💸

Whenever someone asks about Tormead, there is always an influx of similarly worded very positive reviews . Just saying.

We live locally but have boys at RGS and then DD boards further afield as she got a dance scholarship. Anyway, it seems to be ticking along. Lots of investment in image and it has got its numbers up- which is important in tricky times. When we looked for DD we liked the ethos and thought it was a very nice school. Our issue was we felt the value added at sixth form was lacking compared to other schools. Fees aren't cheap anywhere so we wanted more for our money- to be completely honest. The prep always seemed lovely.

Haha, the reviews on here always do seem nice, what's funny though is that even yours @PeaPingu was just as nice in the end, its true that even when pointing out negatives, the positives always seem to outweigh! 🙉We're miles off for sixth form as just looking for yr7, but we thought the results were pretty good at A-Level overall, last year were very high. I guess a lot can change between now and then, so not too fussed about basing our decision on sixth forms yet, easy enough to chop and change.

Definitely had an image overhaul, but I guess that's to ensure popularity remains strong, it's really competitive locally. Most independent schools these days have a much stronger commerical aspect to them than even just 5 years ago, you sometimes have to look past and around it.

Yeah @PeaPingu , it does has a bit of a cult following. Good for it I say. Other schools would kill for these types of 'review happy' parents. I'm sure there are other views out there, no school is 100% perfect for everyone.

It's mega competitive out there these days. With tax changes and charity status on the horizon, cost of living, etc. Plus even the RGS prep I've heard is finding recruitment hard, due to a fundamentally smaller pool of kids in the UK these days. Schools need to do all they can to attract. Tormead seems to be doing well at it, decent product, well advertised. But its all courses for horses and DDs should look around to find the fit for them.

We are also considering Tormead, amongst others. For those with daughters already there, is there a culture of high expectations and are the girls themselves motivated to do well academically?

I meant there is always an influx of suspiciously similar worded reviews. There just aren't that many parents who all rush on to comment about schools when any other school is mentioned on here. I have a feeling one, key person at the school enjoys coming on the post as a bit of marketing for their school......

@PeaPingu , sorry to disappoint, but as one of the 'two' people who have put entirely positive reviews on this thread of 19 posts, I can assure I don't work for the school! 😂i used mumsnet to help inform my decision on school choices and it is my pleasure to try and help others by providing feedback on how it going for us.
It's a shame people can't be positive about something on mumsnet these days without someone crying 'suspicion'! Its pretty depressing that only bad news should be believed.

Hi @Libit I would say 'yes', there is a culture of high expectarions, but its spans across all aspects of school life. During our time and at present, the general ethos is that girls are expected to aspire to do well academically, but they must also aspire to be better citizens and young women. The Prep for example seems to focus on a high expectation of kindness, confidence and resilience, whilst still being academically minded. These are the things we take away from parent/teacher meetings, communications and what our youngest DD tells us anyway.

The senior school isn't a hot house which is why we picked it, but the teachers are great at motivating and our daughter seems to genuinely want to do well, but never seems to be stressed or in competition with her peers. I would say if anything the school could focus more on academic rigure/matters in some areas tbh, but I've heard the pressure does start to mount slowly but surely into the exam years.

Ps. Also don't work there. Happy to chat any time if you want to PM me. Also, plenty of parents about tormead who would be happy to chat to prospective parents, we had a few invited along by a friend to a parent coffee morning the other week in Guildford, they found it useful.

Thanks for all these replies. So helpful and I really appreciate your time.
can anyone tell me what the class sizes are like in seniors? How many go into Y7? I saw that they were putting in an extra Y7 class but what does that mean in terms of students? Also, what’s the staff turnover like? It seems they are recruiting quite a few staff at the moment

@Velvet3 , staff turnover is low, there was another thread a few months back when someone clarified who had moved on and why, in response to a similar question you can search for it. To precis: the school is getting larger, so to maintain teaching standards, more staff have to be recruited. Alongside that a few people had/are moving on for purely personal/logistical reasons or indeed promotion.

Class sizes are capped at 23 in secondary and are usually half that in reality, depending on speciality taught - plus I've heard it's usually 5-10ish for a sixth form class, I believe. I've just messaged a mum there about the year 7 as she has registered for the 11+ and made a similar enquiry about extra classes. She says that she was told that as "the school has become popular and there is a large internal year 6 group it means the school might put on an extra class. Teacher recruitment reflects an investment in ensuring the class size cap and quality of education remains high, even with increased numbers".

Ps. Year 7 has been around the 100 mark for the last few years. Using ISI data you can see that's clearly up from when the last head was there.. I guess this might explain what feels likes lots of recruitment in recent years, as teacher lead in times can vary, whilst not many moving on?

Just looked at website, as @Velvet3 your comment panicked me into thinking theres something I've clearly missed! But all I see is a math teacher job, physics and a Director of science. I'm pretty certain most schools have a perma-advert up for maths and physics, given the government's woeful attempts to train and retain them into teaching. I've heard the director of science is moving out of teaching and had been there ages, he's the biology teacher being advertised too I would guess, nice chap - so thats one out and two in - not bad..... Unless I've missed an email, no physics and maths teachers have left, so turnover seems legit?

The head has probably, like any new head (my DH used to be one, admittedly in the state) spent the last few years to date sorting out who rates, who he is keen to 'encourage' to move on and who he likes. So some change to be expected.

There's probably just one I'd defo fire if I was him, but wont get specific here 😎