Together we achieve

Our Prep School

Our Prep school education is more than just preparing your child for their time at senior school. It is a time for challenge, excitement and fun. It is a period of discovery, where your child will determine who they want to be while they are cared for in a safe and secure environment. We are an independent co-educational day and boarding school for children aged 8-13. We’re located in 175 acres of stunning grounds within the South Downs National Park in Liphook, and welcome families from across Hampshire, West Sussex and Surrey.

Prep school is, of course, a time of assessment and exams. This cannot be avoided. However, our exceptional teachers will carefully manage this time. They will ensure your child doesn’t simply focus on this part of their educational journey. It’s important that we work together to ensure that their love of learning remains and their carefully nurtured flame is not extinguished.

The process of self-discovery that your child will go through will also lead them to important points such as senior school applications. Our highly-experienced Senior Leadership Team will guide you through this journey. A Highfield and Brookham education gifts you exceptional choice as we feed more than 30 of the top day and boarding senior schools in the country. This means we can help your child find the right school for them. We have made the progressive decision to move away from the full Common Entrance syllabus but remain with Common Entrance in the core subjects. This has allowed us to create a bespoke curriculum that focuses on the essential skills that we know senior schools and future employers are seeking in young adults. Our promise to you is that your child will leave Year 8 as an adaptable, resilient and independent young person ready for the world ahead.

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An excellent and very broad educational experience, combined with first-class pastoral care, great facilities in a wonderfully inspiring location.

Lessons

Our Prep school timetable is a one-week timetable consisting of eight 45-minute lessons a day. To maximise your child’s learning time the timetable has been curated to ensure they move around our specialist facilities in a logical order meaning precious time is spent in lessons rather than moving from one to the next.

To help your child develop the ability to self-critique in a constructive manner they will attend a weekly study skills lesson. Your child will have the opportunity to carry out this new-found skill by reflecting and commenting on their end-of-term progress reports. We provide many real-life opportunities like this for your child to put all of their knowledge and skills into practice. This helps to consolidate their learning as well as give meaning and context to their education.

Our specialist subject teachers in drama, music, games, PE, modern foreign languages, design technology, art and digital literacy teach all Prep school children. Our specialist facilities provide the perfect learning environment for these subjects. In addition, in Year 5 and Year 6 your child will be taught by a subject specialist in science where lessons are conducted in one of our three science labs. They also have an additional new subject added to their timetable – Latin. Our highly-experienced key stage specialist teachers will provide the core teaching in English and maths. By Year 7 your child will be set in all subjects and taught by a subject specialist in all lessons, including wellbeing, geography and history. This ensures your child has experienced the senior school model of teaching before they reach Year 9.

To allow your child to have a focused conclusion to their learning, the day will end in the same way it began – with their form teacher. This is a crucial cog in our exceptional pastoral wheel. It allows the teacher who knows your child best to touch base with them to ensure the day delivered all it had promised. And it allows them to support your child if things didn’t quite go to plan.

There are 21 Saturdays in the academic year where children in Year 5 and above attend school, with Year 4 attending school on 17 Saturdays. Saturday mornings are filled with enrichment activities which contribute toward your child’s Keys Diploma – our Duke of Edinburgh-style award. This follows a bespoke programme of events from week to week which ensures your child is receiving the complete breadth of education we have to offer. Saturday afternoons follow the traditional structure of sports fixtures which parents are warmly invited to watch every week.

Food

Growing children need wholesome food which is why we commit to having such a brilliant Catering Department. All of your child’s meals are seasonally planned, freshly prepared and cooked on site. Morning break is at 10am – the same time for all children in the school. To ensure your child is fuelled appropriately so they can fully engage with their morning lessons they will be served a carbohydrate-based snack. This will provide them with a slow release of energy to keep them focused until lunch.

Lunch break for our Prep school children is at 12.45pm. Lunch service is staggered to ensure the dining hall feels a welcoming place for your child to eat lunch with their friends. The time your child will be called for lunch rotates throughout the week, so sometimes they will eat first and then enjoy the fresh air and sometimes the other way around. Lunch is canteen style with a wide range of tasty and nutritious food on offer to cater for all tastes. There are always hot and cold options, with plenty of fresh fruit, vegetables and salads. Our bespoke menus operate on a three-week rotation and there is always a vegetarian option for those who choose to go meat free. Our aim is to feed your child but also to educate them about healthy choices and responsible eating. For example, when sweet treats and puddings are available our aim is to use reduced sugar and healthy alternatives.

To give your child that energy boost they need to see them through to the end of the day they are offered a snack during afternoon break at 3.15pm. Our approach to food is to ensure that your child has the correct levels of energy to perform well inside and outside of the classroom throughout the day.

Logistics

The Prep School Day

  • 7.30am breakfast club (optional for day children £)
  • 8am Gates open
  • 8.15am Registration
  • 10am Morning break
  • 12.45pm Lunch break
  • 3.15pm Afternoon break
  • 4.40pm school day ends
  • 4.40pm After school clubs (optional)
  • 5.30pm Clubs end
  • 5.30pm Prep (optional for day children £)
  • 6.30pm Supper (optional for day children £)
  • 7pm Boarders’ evening activities
  • 8pm Bedtime routine

Drop off

The gates at our Prep school open at 8am ready for the children to spill into their classrooms for 8.15am. Every day starts with 15 minutes of precious form time with your child’s class teacher to ensure they are set for the busy day ahead.

Our boarders enjoy a nourishing breakfast in our dining hall before the school day and our day children are invited to join them from 7.30am if they wish. We know how busy mornings can be so this option is valued by many families. Your child will be spoilt for choice for breakfast. There is always a hot option such as eggs on toast as well as cereal, porridge, yoghurt, toast and fresh fruit to kickstart their day.

After school

The school day finishes at 4.40pm but the fun doesn’t stop there. There is a full programme of after-school clubs which we actively encourage all children to take advantage of. There are four categories of clubs: physical, skill development, academic and artistic. We recommend your child tries one club from each group to fully benefit from our broad range of extra-curricular activities. Some of our clubs are run by our teachers who are passionate about a certain hobby, subject or sports and are free of charge. We also invite external professionals to run clubs such as LAMDA, Gymnastics and Golf, which do incur costs.

We offer Homework Club every day free of charge, so if there isn’t a new club your child wants to try and you need care for them after school they can stay with us until 5.30pm.

At 5.30pm our boarders head off to evening prep before heading into the Dining Hall for their homecooked supper at 6.30pm. Day children are invited to join boarders and can be collected as late as 7pm if family circumstances require it.

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What we’re up to…

Such is the extent of our children’s exposure to specialist teaching in the arts that you can visibly see their confidence rising day by day when they take to the stage to perform. And nowhere was this more evident than during our amazing house music competition on Friday, when solo singers, duos, ensembles, instrumental musicians and groups raised the roof and the decibel levels in the school theatre. #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #SpringTerm #Music

That magical moment when you get a wonderful round of applause after bravely performing in front of your peers and parents at a school concert. #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #SpringTerm #Music #Concert #SoloPerformer

Ten gymnasts have done the school proud at the Danes Hill School Gymnastics Festival, with Rosie H delighted to pick up silver medals in her age group for her floor and vault routines. The girls train regularly after school with coach Mrs Ogilvie, who said she was “extremely proud” of the way the team performed. Pictures courtesy of DE Photo. #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #SpringTerm #Gymnastics

We’ve had the most amazing house music competition today, featuring brilliant solo singers, duos, ensembles and instrumentalists, not to mention the all-important ‘shout’ element where all pupils in their respective houses perform a big group hit. And the winner? Agincourt! #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #SpringTerm #Music

Our theatre reverberated to the sensational sounds of Samba and the rocking rhythms of Rio today as the excellent Jo from Dance Days gave our pre-prep children a dancing masterclass. The enthusiastic children learnt a series of key steps and body movements as they created a real carnival atmosphere. #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #SpringTerm #SambaWorkshop

Happy songs and happy children were the order of the day at our informal spring concert in the pre-prep today. #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #SpringTerm #MusicConcert

Do you want to discover why Highfield and Brookham School was recently named ‘best prep school’ by an educational agent during their visit? Then why not join us for our next Open Morning on 15th March? Explore our fantastic grounds, superb facilities and nurturing environment for children aged 2-13. Don’t miss this opportunity to see first hand what makes our school so special. To reserve your place, simply click the link in our bio! #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #OpenMorning #ComeAndSeeUs

We’ve had some fantastic sports action against our friends from Westbourne House School today, with the girls giving their all on the football pitches and the boys playing some great hockey on the astro. The children really do wear the school colours with such pride as they welcome visiting teams on Wednesdays and Saturdays. #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #SpringTerm #SchoolSport #BoysHockey #GirlsFootball

Want to discover why Highfield and Brookham School was recently declared the ‘best prep school’ by an educational agent during their visit? Then join us for our next Open Morning on 15th March! Explore our fantastic grounds, superb facilities and nurturing environment for children aged 2-13. Don’t miss this opportunity to see first-hand what makes our school so special. To reserve your place, visit bit.ly/3wB8kPB #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #OpenMorning #ComeAndSeeUs

Our extra-curricular Drawing Club in the pre-prep has been in full flow this afternoon, with the eager young children adding more imaginative and creative pictures to their ever-growing portfolios. Cool cats, jazzy jeeps and brilliant buildings were among today’s artistic achievements. #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #SpringTerm #Drawing #Art

Our children are a pretty healthy bunch, so they didn’t need asking twice to take on the Great Smoothie Challenge. With team names, logos, ingredients, colourful and informative posters and fruit preparation all done by the the pupils in true entrepreneurial spirit, the acid test was how the smoothies tasted. Well, it looks like they tasted good, very good indeed… #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #SpringTerm #HealthyEating #FruitSmoothies

We’ve rounded off another wonderful season of inter-school swimming galas with a battling win against our friends from @stivesschoolhaslemere, maintaining our proud unbeaten record. Our children have loved swimming home and away against some very strong squads and look forward to crossing swords with them in the pool again next year. #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #SpringTerm #Swimming #InterSchoolGala

Colourful, charismatic and downright fun literary characters were brought to life as our children celebrated last week’s World Book Day in fine style. #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #SpringTerm #WorldBookDay

Not all heroes wear capes, but some do. As today was Break The Rules Day, it seemed very appropriate for Spiderman – aka coach extraordinaire Mr Dilworth – to give our U9 boys a pep talk ahead of their hockey tournament next week! #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #SpringTerm #Hockey @haslemerehockey

The school regulations have been royally flouted today as part of Break The Rules Day, with funds raised going to our cherished Highreach charity which provides holidays for disabled children. Home clothes, jewellery, hats in classes, (fake) tattoos and coloured hair were the order of the day for the children, who also closely inspected Head of Boarding Miss Van den Berg’s uniform. Luckily for Miss van den Berg, her uniform was up to scratch! #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #SpringTerm #BreakTheRulesDay

Happy International Women’s Day to the wonderful ladies who, unstintingly and selflessly, bring so much joy, care, love, laughter and devotion to every aspect of our whole school community. #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #SpringTerm #InternationalWomensDay

We’ve had the most amazing day celebrating World Book Day UK. Dressed as their favourite book characters, the children staged a colourful parade in the sports hall before our pre-prep children were joined by their prep school peers for some quality reading time and a morning of book-themed arts and crafts. #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #SpringTerm #WorldBookDay

Long live the magic of World Book Day. #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #SpringTerm #Books #Literacy

Don’t forget it is our Open Morning on 15th March! Join us and discover why Highfield and Brookham School was declared the ‘best prep school’ by an educational agent during their recent visit. Explore our fantastic grounds, superb facilities and nurturing environment for children aged 2-13. Don’t miss this opportunity to see first-hand what makes our school so special. Head to our website to book. #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #OpenMorning

No matter what your age, there is always something new to discover, to learn, to investigate, something that captures the imagination and inspires us. Our children teach us this every single day. #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #SpringTerm #Learning

Parents and peers of our talented young musicians have been treated to another lovely cushion concert, this time featuring two solo singers, a flautist and a pianist. It’s wonderful to see the children grow in confidence and stature each time they perform. #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #SpringTerm #Music #CushionConcert

Young eco warriors in Year 5 have been getting their hands dirty today planting the first of 400 trees. Having taken receipt of the first batch of hawthorn, blackthorn and silver birch trees as part of a brilliant project run by the The Woodland Trust, with the second batch due in the autumn, the children prepared an area of ground and planted the first saplings on the golf course. #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #SpringTerm #Trees #TreePlanting

Excitement levels in pre-prep have reached fever pitch as the first of Reception’s five fluffy ducklings has hatched. Tweet, named by the children in Bluebells, has been having a wonderful time strutting around in the spotlight as he waits for his friends to join him! #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #SpringTerm #ducklings

Pre-prep children have been exploring their emotions at an after-school club which promotes calmness and wellbeing. Having discussed feelings associated with being happy, sad, angry and excited, the children crafted colourful mindfulness wheels with a moveable top layer which allows them to show how they feel at any given time. And the overriding feeling during the activity? Happy, of course! #TogetherWeGrow #IndependentSchool #PrivateSchool #BoardingSchool #PrepSchool #PrePrepSchool #Nursery #Liphook #Hampshire #Surrey #WestSussex #SpringTerm #Mindfulness

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