Why 13+ at Homefield Prep?
“School leavers consistently achieve high examination grades in entrance exams and at Common Entrance.”
ISI Inspection Report, December 2021
Homefield Prep is one of the few preparatory schools in the area with a Year 7 and Year 8 provision. Whilst students in Year 7 and 8 in some senior schools can lack focus and direction, with time spent trying to ‘catch up’ and ‘fill gaps’, at Homefield Prep our academic standards are driven by purposeful and enriching learning delivered by subject specialist teachers. Due to smaller class sizes our teachers know our boys very well and get to know new joiners quickly.
At Homefield Prep, we pride ourselves in ensuring that our boys are not only prepared for the challenges of the Common Entrance examinations but also achieve great success across an extensive range of curricular and co-curricular activities. We recognise that boys are not always ready to move on to their senior school at the end of Year 6 and staying with us until the end of year 8 allows them time to mature, develop leadership capacity and confidence through various roles and responsibilities such as Head Boy, Prefect and Senior Librarian.
Homefield Prep chooses to prepare boys for Common Entrance through Years 7 and 8 because we believe it is a gold standard of study which stimulates and challenges our boys. Common Entrance is strongly supported by many of the top independent senior schools in the UK. Its rigorous syllabuses and breadth of subjects provide a strong academic focus for our boys in Year 7 and 8. Our ambitious, challenging and highly successful curriculum (underpinned by the ISEB Common Entrance) accelerates progress rapidly to GCSE level work.
Year 8 boys 2022 Common Entrance results:
- 62% Grades A* and A in English, Maths and Science
- 90% Grades A* to B in English, Maths and Science
- 100% pass rate at Common for over 15 years
“We had two of our boys go through Homefield all the way to 13+. Both had offers to join at 11+ from local grammar schools and the choice private schools in the area. We are glad to have resisted the temptation to jump early in hindsight. The smaller class sizes with established friendship groups and teachers they had known since 3 years old gave our boys the stability to turn into the confident, mature young men they are today. For boys just stepping into teenagerhood, this continuity is fundamental and often overlooked. The older one is well on his way to one of the best universities, with his brother following his example. The solid emotional foundation that Homefield’s nurturing had built in them means that we don’t really need to guide them much after 13... they are self-driven and secure in their own abilities. Thank you, Homefield!“
Homefield Parent, 2022
At Homefield Prep we see great value in providing a breadth of curriculum subjects. Beyond the required subjects of Common Entrance, our boys build character and confidence through a mix of exciting activities including the arts, sport and technology. Our stimulating curriculum, driven by our experienced teaching staff, motivates and inspires our boys. In line with our School Aims, boys develop ‘the head, the heart and the hand’.
“Pupils are keenly aware of the support available from a strong pastoral network of form tutors and heads of year. They fully appreciate the emotional support from which they can draw in a variety of well-being initiatives, including My Space, where there are opportunities to reflect and talk openly.”
ISI Inspection Report, December 2021
When it is time to move on from Homefield Prep, we work closely with parents to find the 'best fit' school where boys will continue to thrive. Over many years our boys have embraced and thrived on the challenges afforded to them, reaping the great rewards of a full and exciting programme of study in Years 7 and 8, many going on to the best independent schools in the country. Our boys always go on to a school of their choice with the top destination school at 13+, for the over the past 10 years, being King's College in Wimbledon.
Our external scholarship total runs to 122 for Academic merit, Music, Sport and Art over the past seven years:
With fees for senior independent day schools in London reaching up to £25,000.00 per year, Homefield Prep offers incredible value at around £15,000.00 per year.
“Year 8 pupils show excellent understanding of technical vocabulary as demonstrated when discussing personification, assonance, and enjambment….”
ISI Inspection Report, December 2021
