Prep schools

St Leonards, Scotland St Leonards is a coeducational day and boarding school for pupils aged four to 18 in the heart of St Andrews. It is Scotland’s only school to offer the full International Baccalaureate continuum, taking pupils from the primary years programme through to the diploma. The results are impressive. This year, 88 per cent of higher-level grades were awarded at 7-5, equivalent to A*-B at A-level, while pupils achieved an average diploma score of 35 points – roughly equivalent to three As. Headmaster Simon Brian says pupils leave not only with strong results but ‘the skills and attributes needed to genuinely flourish at university and in life beyond’. Fees start at £7,466 per term for day pupils and £14,933 for boarders.

Lancing College, West Sussex Lancing is a public boarding school for children aged 13 to 18 in West Sussex. Set within the South Downs National Park, it offers an open-air theatre, a state-of-the-art music school, an equestrian centre and even the tallest school chapel in the world. As impressive as its facilities, though, are its alumni: Evelyn Waugh, Sir David Hare and Lord (Stephen) Green to name but a few. Nowadays, many students at the college – where fees start from £12,602 – come from its sister preparatory schools in Hove and Worthing. Also arriving this month is a new headteacher, Dr Scott Crawford, who will replace Dominic Oliver after 11 years.

Ludgrove, Berkshire Ludgrove, which was founded in 1892 by the footballer Arthur Dunn, is a boarding prep school in Berkshire and has 130 acres for its pupils to learn, run around and play in. The school is one of the last preps to provide full boarding (which is fortnightly). At weekends, boys can use 11 football pitches, four tennis courts, two squash courts and a nine-hole golf course. It’s not just Prince William’s alma mater: other old boys include Alec Douglas--Home, Simon Sebag Montefiore and Bear Grylls (who opened the new Exploration Centre in June 2021). Most of the boys go on to Eton, Harrow, Radley or Winchester.

Elstree, Berkshire Elstree – which educates boys and girls from three to 13 – is nestled in 150 acres of stunning countryside near Newbury in Berkshire. The school, which celebrated its 175th anniversary last year, says that its aim is two-fold: ‘to find out how a child is intelligent rather than how intelligent a child is’ and to teach pupils that ‘effort is king’. From Year 4 onwards, children can choose to flexi or weekly board and from Year 5 pupils are taught by individual specialists in all subjects from Year 5, compared with the usual Year 7. Although Elstree is non-selective, school-leavers have received scholarships to – among others – Eton, Harrow, Radley, Marlborough and Winchester.

Queen Ethelburga’s, York Set in 220 acres of beautiful countryside between Harrogate and York, Queen Ethelburga’s College is an award-winning day and boarding school that welcomes girls and boys aged from three months to 19 years and boarders from Year 3. It is known for its high-ranking academic performance. College, one of its two senior schools, placed second nationally last year for A-levels and 18th for all-round academic performance. The other senior school, Faculty, which offers more ‘creative and vocational subjects’, climbed several places to third in the north for A-levels and seventh for overall performance. The college places emphasis on growing pupils into resilient, caring and confident adults.

Colville Primary School Based just off Notting Hill’s Portobello Road, Colville Primary School occupies a Victorian Grade II-listed building that was once a laundry. Today, it accommodates pupils up to the age of 11 who are taught under the school’s ‘three key values’: respect, aspiration and perseverance. Colville also says it believes in the British values of democracy, individual liberty and tolerance. The school’s performance has shot up over the past decade: three years ago, it was rated ‘Outstanding’ by Ofsted. Despite its setting in the heart of London, there’s plenty of area for play — the playground facilities are new, and there’s also a large ball court and running track.

St Edward’s School, Oxford St Edward’s School has featured in these pages before, because of its North Wall performing arts centre which attracts (in ‘normal’ times) more than 20,000 public visitors a year to its exhibitions and performances. St Edward’s sets great store by being part of Oxford as a whole. ‘Beyond Teddies’ is the school’s community outreach programme, encompassing a community farm on school grounds where young people with learning disabilities and autism explore basic outdoor skills, marshalling the Oxford Half Marathon and visiting local care homes. Academically, the co-ed boarding and day school also thinks outside the box, with its pioneering ‘Pathways and Perspectives’ courses.

I spent my formative years at an all-boys’ Catholic prep school in rural New England. It was a magical, Bridesheadian sorts of place, where everyone’s only pretending to be gay (probably) and women exist as a kind of theory or abstraction – like Persians, as Maistre would say. Our library was endowed by, and named for, John J. Studzinski: the distinguished-looking gentleman you see seated behind Donald Trump (and in front of Maria Bartiromo) at the infamous 2016 Al Smith Dinner. Other alumni include comedian Bo Burnham, who is, predictably, a prick. So, with more than a little skin in the game, I must ask: why do progressives have it in for Catholic prep schools? First it was Georgetown Prep, which is both Brett Kavanaugh and Neil Gorsuch’s alma mater.