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Stroud, King Edward VI Preparatory SchoolHighwood House, Highwood Lane, Romsey, SO51 9ZH, Hampshire01794 513231 |
registrar@stroud-kes.org.ukstroud.kes.school |
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| School type |
Co-educational Day Preparatory & Nursery |
| Founded | 1926 |
| Headmistress | Mrs Rebecca Smith |
| Co-ed Age Range | 3-11 years |
| Day fees per annum | £4,060 - £6,525 per term |
| Average Class Size | 16-18 |
| Associations | IAPS, ISC |
Stroud School is an exciting, independent preparatory school where boys and girls aged 3 to 11 thrive in its unique family environment. With an ISI Excellent rating, it is the preparatory school for King Edward VI School, Southampton.
Highwood House is an impressive Victorian building standing in 22 acres of beautiful rural countryside. With only six former heads since its foundation in 1926, Stroud has always been a school that values the family ethos. It is a school with a strong academic record, fantastic sports facilities and links to strong academic secondary schools. Stroud's curriculum achieves the highest academic standard without compromising the key skills its children need to be successful in the workplace and generally in life.
The school ethos and curriculum is centred around the Stroud Spirit values, which provide pupils with a strong sense of community; this character curriculum not only fosters creativity and curiosity, but it equips its children with empathy, celebrates individuality and encourages its children to live up to the school motto, in aeternum intrepidus - Forever Undaunted - every day.
Specialist teaching begins in Nursery with specialist sport, music, languages and computing, and this develops along with the children, until they receive a curriculum that is entirely specialist taught from the beginning of Year 6. With small classes, dedicated teachers and an exciting extra-curricular clubs and activities programme, children are exposed to many activities which will hopefully ignite their passions. Additionally, there's an outdoor pool, huge sports hall, riding paddock, dance studio, music practice rooms, a science lab, dedicated ICT suites for both KS1 and KS2/3 plus a brand new Masterchef-style food tech kitchen and a newly-expanded Wellbeing centre.
Stroud has always been a school that believes in children thriving when they are happy and have plenty of access to the great outdoors. In a world where education is increasingly digitised, Stroud wants its children to flourish outside, whether that's during Forest School sessions in the woods, conducting science experiments down by the ponds or caring for the school farm animals. Its farm is home to chickens (fed by the little ones), beehives and pygmy goats, which live alongside three ponies. There are large ponds used for pond dipping and ecology studies, and a newly-built bird hide nestled into their woodland to allow children to get closer to nature. Veg boxes sit just outside the classrooms and the school has held an Eco School Green Flag for more than 10 years, recognising our commitment to sustainability.
Sport assumes an inclusive approach at Stroud and the school regularly uses the pitches at its Wellington Sports Ground, its Outward Bound Centre in the Dartmoor National Park, and facilities at its senior school King Edward VI. Traditional sports are part of school life: boys play rugby, football, hockey and cricket, while girls take on netball, hockey and cricket.
Stroud was, in fact, one of the first schools to offer cricket to all boys and girls from Year 3 upwards, suggesting a willingness to embrace new ideas. Certainly, alternative sports play a big part in the curriculum, such as handball, ultimate Frisbee and lacrosse, alongside athletics and swimming in the Summer Term.
Several new initiatives over the last two years have been demonstrative of how well Stroud is moving forward. And further planned developments allow for new facilities that will keep pace with a 21st Century educational need. What has not changed at Stroud, however, is the opportunities that it provides for its pupils.