Address: Overton House, 133 High Street, Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire HP4 2DJ
Website: www.berkhamsted.com
Founded: 1541
Number of Pupils: approx. 2,000
Ages: 3-18
Fees:Day (Rec-Sixth Form): £3,675– £8,425 per term
Boarding (Year 8 – Year 13): Weekly £11,550 – Full £13,770 per term
Head Teacher: Richard Backhouse (Principal), Karen O’Connor (Day Nursery and Pre-Prep, Interim Head of Prep), Emma Watson (Berkhamsted Girls), Tom Hadcroft (Berkhamsted Boys), Martin Walker (Berkhamsted Sixth)
Religious Affiliation: Church of England
Entrance Procedure:
Pre-Prep
– Stepping Stones – Stepping Stones (3+). It is expected that children will have the necessary social and developmental skills to be able to access the Early Years curriculum. This will be assessed during a meeting with the Headteacher
– Reception & Year 1 – we would expect children to have the necessary social and developmental skills to be able to access the curriculum provision for EYFS and early Key Stage One. Informal age appropriate assessments will be arranged if spaces are available. Reference will be made to previous assessments and school reports for children seeking entrance at 5+ (Year 1).
– Year 2 – children will be invited to attend an informal assessment day at the Pre-Prep. The assessment day will be made up as follows: Tests in English and Mathematics which are designed to be appropriate for children working within the National Curriculum programmes of study for Key Stage 1.
– A progress report from your child’s current school will be requested before places are formally allocated.
Prep
– A morning of tests in English and Mathematics, a group interview with the Head and/or Deputy Head. The tests are age-standardised and are appropriate for children working through the National Curriculum programmes of study in Key Stage 2.
– A progress report from your child’s current school will be requested before places are formally allocated.
Changes to Entry Assessment for 2025: We will not require Berkhamsted Prep pupils entering our Senior Schools to take any entrance exams from the 2025 Year 7 entry onwards: this affects pupils in Year 3 in September 2021, and following years.
Senior Boys & Girls (Year 7)
– Pupils will be required to take the Independent Schools Examinations Board (ISEB) Common Pre-Test.
– An interview with the Headteacher/Deputy of Berkhamsted Boys is scheduled ahead of the entry assessment. A reference from the pupil’s current school is also required.
Senior Boys & Girls (Year 9) – girls subject to availability
– 2023 entry
– Verbal Reasoning, Non-Verbal Reasoning, English and Mathematics test. Candidates will also sit a Modern Language papers (if studied), sat at Berkhamsted in Year 8.
– An interview with the Headteacher/Deputy of Berkhamsted Boys is scheduled ahead of the entry assessment. A reference from the pupil’s current school is also required.
– 2024 entry
– An online English, Mathematics, Verbal Reasoning and Non-Verbal Reasoning test to be sat at Berkhamsted in Year 7.
– An interview with the Headteacher/Deputy of Berkhamsted Boys is scheduled ahead of the entry assessment. A reference from the pupil’s current school is also required.
Year 12
– For Berkhamsted Sixth, 43 points are required across the candidate’s best 8 GCSE subjects with a minimum requirement of a Grade 6 in the subjects they wish to study. All students who have taken GCSE/iGCSE will require a minimum of Grade 4 in GCSE Maths and English Language for entry to the school. In addition to this, there are specific admission requirements relating to certain courses.
– Our assessment day is designed to assess a student’s character strengths and academic ability. We know that character is central to students’ wellbeing and outcomes and want to make sure that the students who are offered places will thrive at Berkhamsted Sixth. Therefore, the assessment is comprised of the following:
– A character-strengths-based interview
– A presentation followed by a small-group discussion
– A verbal, non-verbal, spatial and quantitative reasoning test
– A reference from the prospective student’s current school is also required.
Contact: Louise Aspell, Admissions; 01442 358001
Email: admissions@berkhamstedschool.
School Visits: Prospective parents and their children are warmly invited to visit Berkhamsted.
Open Events: Spring and Autumn.
Virtual Open Events: Summer.
Discover more: www.berkhamsted.com/open-events/
Watch the video…
Curriculum
All pupils are supported and encouraged to reach their full potential, with appropriate teaching environments for each age group and a structure that offers the best of both co-educational and single-sex tuition. Up to eleven subjects may be taken for GCSE. In Sixth Form, courses are offered in 28 subjects, alongside an Enrichment Programme with the option to complete an Extended Project Qualification. Pupils are prepared for university entrance, including Oxbridge. Careers guidance and personal tutoring are offered throughout.
Games & The Arts
Key sports for Girls are Lacrosse, Netball and Tennis, and for Boys, Rugby, Football and Cricket. Athletics, Badminton, Cross-Country, Equestrian, Eton Fives, Golf, Hockey, Judo, Rowing, Shooting, Squash and Swimming are also pursued with team games and regional and national squads.
Duke of Edinburgh Awards, CCF, community service, work experience and Young Enterprise are all offered, alongside a wide range of clubs, societies, or courses. Regular school theatre productions, orchestral and choral concerts achieve high standards of performance. The Girls and Boys School come together for a range of these activities.
Pastoral Care
The main social and pastoral units are within the Houses, from the Head of House and House Tutors, providing continuity of support and advice, whilst monitoring each individual pupil’s progress. The Deputy Heads, alongside the Pupil Wellbeing and Personal Development team, support teaching staff across the whole school in implementing a proactive strategy that focuses primarily on keeping pupils well and looking for early signs of potential issues. There is a Medical Centre with qualified staff. The School Medical Officer has special responsibility for boarders. Qualified Counsellors are available to all pupils for confidential counselling. The School also has a full-time Chaplain.
University Places
In 2020, leavers secured themselves places at some of the world’s leading Universities with 7 students going on to Oxbridge. The top 4 University destinations were Birmingham, Nottingham, Durham, and Exeter.
Head Teacher’s Philosophy
Outstanding Characteristics
- A family of Schools with a long history and proud traditions, yet with a firm eye on current best educational practice and offering leading-edge teaching technology
- Excellent academic standards without being academic hothouses
- Extensive co-curricular programme
- House system placing academic progress and pastoral care at the centre of each child’s education
- Offering a ‘Diamond model’ of teaching, with co-educational and single-sex tuition for boys and girls providing the best of both worlds in one family of Schools
- The Berkhamsted family of Schools has all the advantages of access to large school resources with a small school sense of community and individual care
- Wrap Around Care and the option of flexible, weekly, or full boarding, coach routes and holiday camps on offer during the school holidays
- Within easy reach of London by road or public transport
