Holyport College, established by Eton College, and Harris Westminster Sixth Form (HWSF), a co-venture between Westminster School and Harris Federation, both opened their doors to pupils in 2014. The schools have been visited by reviewers from the long-running parents’ education guide and are included in its pages for the first time.

Holyport, unlike its partner school, is academically non-selective and accepts boys and girls aged 11 to 19. It offers a limited number of boarding places, for which there is a fee. The guide reports that it teaches ‘a traditional, fairly narrow, Ebacc-centred, academic curriculum’, and calls the most recent GCSE results ‘superb’.

The teaching of Latin and single sciences, as well as a school day which finishes at 5.30pm, points to its public school origins. The school’s first set of A-level results are due in August.

Harris Westminster Sixth Form, a selective school where a third of pupils are eligible for free school meals, made headlines in January when it announced that 37 pupils had been offered places at the universities of Oxford and Cambridge.

Characterised in The Good Schools Guide review as ‘highly academic’, the school’s timetable is closely aligned to Westminster School, including Saturday morning classes; those pupils studying classics, history of art, drama and German attend lessons there. The guide describes it as ‘a genuinely stimulating and scholarly environment in which to study’, and ‘students feel fortunate to be there, staff feel privileged to teach them, a stunning combination’.

Editor, Ralph Lucas, speaking ahead of the launch of the 22nd edition of the guide, believes the run of successful partnerships between the state and private sector is excellent news for our education system. “It’s a pleasure to see relatively new state schools providing a high standard of education so early on – it is challenging to get a new school right; having a strong and supportive partner makes a big difference. Much comes from a determination by some independent schools to find opportunities in the state sector and to involve time, facilities and staff to make sure they get it right. Our previous edition featured London Academy of Excellence, because its relationship with Brighton College and other independents blazed a trail for such free school projects – we can see that this winning combination was not a one off.

“The key, to my mind, is that the state school, and in particular its head, should take the lead. Independent schools have a great deal to offer – high expectations, excellent teaching, facilities and budgets – but their role is putting their shoulder to the wheel and working up a sweat, not to be in the driving seat.”

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Ralph Lucas said prep schools are falling behind because independent senior schools had changed the way they recruit students and were more focused on recruiting the highest achieving children.

“State primaries are getting much better, and independent secondary schools are getting much better at recruiting their pupils from there. Tutoring has become a really professional business with highly qualified tutors supporting children for entrance tests. It makes more sense economically for parents to send children to their local primary and get a tutor,” Lucas told The Times.

As a result of this competition, the traditional links between preparatory and senior schools were being “cast aside”, according to Lucas.

Ofsted now considers 87% of state primaries to be either good or outstanding. Figures from the Department for Education show that in the past year the number of children aged five to 10 attending private schools fell from 197,551 to 196,000.

The Independent Schools Council’s 2019 census, which collected data from over 600 junior schools, showed a 0.9% decline in the number of students enrolled at prep schools.

Many independent senior schools have changed their admissions with most students now enrolling in year seven at the age of 11. This aligns them with the state system rather than preparatory schools which traditionally tutor students until the age of 13.

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Hosted in partnership with leading co-educational independent school, Wellington College, the conference will examine in depth the application process and content of the Degree Apprenticeship (DA) programme.

Attendees at the one-day conference, entitled ‘The Third Way: Exploring The Best Degree Apprenticeships’ and being held on May 11th at Dentons in Fleet Place, London, can also expect to hear from current Degree Apprentices describing their own experiences.

Lord Lucas, Owner of The Good Schools Guide, will address attendees with a speech: ‘How to know if a Degree Apprenticeship is right for a student?’ and will also be introducing The Good School Guide’s Best Practice awards.

Other speeches on the day include: ‘Myth busters – demystifying a number of often confused statements about DAs’, to be delivered by Julian Thomas, Master of Wellington College, and Annmarie McNaneny, Headmistress of Chesham High School.

Jonathan Mitchell, from the Institute for Apprentices, will explain the background to the Apprenticeship Levy and share his expertise about the standards, qualifications and required accreditation of DAs. Additionally, a number of advocates for the DA programme will explain how the scheme has benefited their businesses.

Copies of the Apprentices Anthology 2018, unveiled on April 6 and published by The Good Schools Guide and Queen Mary University London, will be on sale.

Lord Lucas said: “Good degree apprenticeships are an extraordinary opportunity for the right pupil – a free degree, a job and a salary – but what is good and who is it right for? Come to our conference and find out.”

Full details for the event and tickets are available via Eventbrite. 

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Despite record numbers of pupils at independent schools, Lord Lucas believes there is change in perception amongst parents who were previously likely to choose private education, which could lead to roll reductions and even closures.

Lucas’ remarks are based on comments from parents who use the Good Schools Guide service. The first edition of the guide in 1986 contained 10 state schools, compared to 300 in the 2016 edition – making up almost a quarter.

The change in preference would put pressure on the private sector, Lucas said: “If we carry on as we are, there will be a much smaller independent sector. I think it will just happen slowly but the option of having all that money to spend on something else is very attractive.”

Barnaby Lenon, chairman of the Independent Schools Council (ISC), said growing pupil numbers show that a ‘decline’ of private schools is not likely. He said: “Our own data does not support that statement: numbers grew last year. Of course things are tough for many schools but we are successful because we work hard, employ good staff and do the right things. We also have advantages in terms of per pupil spending and freedoms from government.” He also emphasises that independent schools lead the way in exam results, top degrees, career prospects and provision for specialist interests and special educational needs.

Chris King, chair of Headmasters’ and Headmistresses’ Conference (HMC), said: “The best state schools are getting better but these are a relatively small number of predominantly grammar and free schools. When we look at the overall picture it tells us something very different, with hundreds of failing schools and areas of the UK where it is difficult to find a good school to send your child.

“Parents and pupils deserve consistency and leading independent schools produce reliably outstanding results on a far bigger scale than the relatively small number of free schools.” 

Despite this, King says it’s positive to see standards rising in the state sector: “HMC heads are always delighted to see standards in state school rising; this is not the Football League and everyone can win.”

Have you say – send your news and comment to the Editor here.

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Mr Ewout Van-Manen, school leader, said: “We are absolutely delighted to be acknowledged in this way for our excellence in Art & Design. This is a very proud moment for Canterbury Steiner School and the hard working teaching staff. We are sure it will inspire and encourage our pupils who are working towards their GCSEs.” 

Ralph Lucas, Editor of The Good Schools Guide, comments: “Our annual awards scheme is designed to recognise and reward excellence in teaching in every subject area at both GCSE and A level or equivalent. Our awards give individual teachers and departments where teaching is at its very best the recognition they deserve.”

The Good Schools Guide Awards are based on a series of calculations that take into account relative popularity and performance of the subject, absolute performance, and percentage of pupils taking the subject. 

www.goodschoolsguide.co.uk    

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The annual awards, which are in their eighth year, are based on a detailed analysis of the most recent examination results, and are designed to highlight consistently good teaching.

Headmaster, Ian Davies, said: ‘We are absolutely delighted to be acknowledged in this way for our excellence in the teaching of Religious Education. I am confident this success will inspire and encourage all pupils who are working towards their A Levels or International Baccalaureate Diploma.”

Head of Religious Education, Mr Bruce Clements, said: “I am very pleased and flattered that the hard work and dedication of the whole department has been recognised and acknowledged in this way. The experiences and knowledge gained through the study of Religious Education permeate throughout the entire curriculum and in later life.” 

Ralph Lucas, Editor of The Good Schools Guide, added: “Our annual awards scheme is designed to recognise and reward excellence in teaching in every subject area at both GCSE and A Level or equivalent. Our awards give individual teachers and departments where teaching is at its very best the recognition they deserve”.

The Good Schools Guide Awards are based on a series of calculations that take into account relative popularity and performance of the subject, absolute performance, and percentage of pupils taking the subject. The Good Schools Guide is the largest independent guide to UK schools.

www.brentwoodschool.co.uk    

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