The Good Schools Guide

What The Good Schools Guide says

Head

Since April 2024, Sarah Brownsdon, previously senior deputy head of Dulwich Prep, London. It felt like ‘coming home’, she says of returning to her childhood locale, having been educated at Walthamstow Hall just around the corner. She studied French at the University of Southampton before completing her master’s and PGCE at Cambridge and Université Stendhal in Grenoble.

Parents are impressed by the initiatives she has introduced and feel confident that her experience is ‘spot on’ for the school. ‘She knows what she’s doing’, ‘is highly accomplished’ ‘smart’ and ‘emotionally intelligent’. ‘She gets the ethos of the school,’ added one. We found her open and welcoming – passionate about the school and the areas she has developed, especially pastoral tracking and counselling. Parents also appreciate her introduction of a free extended day offer until 5pm.

Her office is welcoming with large windows overlooking the stunning grounds. A nice touch are her hidden Lego figures, which pupils like to try to spot – though they surely can’t miss the large bunch of Lego flowers!

Lives locally with her husband and sons – her ‘pride and joy’ and whom she loves supporting on the touchline and in concerts. In her free time, she plays piano, loves a long walk and always has a book on the go.

Entrance

Nursery from 3+. Main entry points in reception and year 3 via admissions tests in reading, reasoning and maths. School is non-selective academically in early years, but looks ‘to understand the candidate better’ assessing for potential and attitude towards learning in later years.

Exit

About three-quarters move to Tonbridge School at 13+, with which the school merged in 2021. But it ‘isn’t an automatic progression’, cautions school, as Tonbridge remains highly selective and pupils must jump through the same hoops as other candidates. Candid conversations start early to find the right school for each child. ‘They know our children sometimes better than we do,’ one parent told us. Caterham, Sevenoaks, King’s Canterbury, Sutton Valance and Eton are other recent destinations – plus a handful to grammar schools (around three-quarters of year 6s sit the 11-plus altogether, with 100 per cent pass rate). Around 50 per cent gain scholarships to senior schools, over half are academic – 14 in 2024.

Our view

Pupils’ handmade ‘No idling!’ posters signpost the one-way drive that weaves around the school – an initiative by pupils to help stop global warming with unnecessary petrol fumes. The words also happen to neatly encapsulate life at New Beacon where the boys are kept as busy as the bees in the school hives (yes, you can buy the honey too). The pond (beyond which the new nursery is nestled) catches the eye – complete with a bridge and teaming with life including ducklings. Serengeti springs to mind more than west Kent, especially with the life-size driftwood giraffe and lion. The rest of the school comprises the main building and beautiful chapel, plus a collection of more recent ones – all with a lively atmosphere. Parents talk of an ‘emotional response’ when visiting the school, ‘even on gloomy days when there are no daffodils’.

Pre-prep is a relaxed environment with a central, light-filled atrium that lifts the soul. The large outdoor area gives these tinies lots of room to use the scooters, football, climbing wall etc. ‘There’s so much to choose from,’ raved our guides. The year 1 teacher told us it’s common to throw the doors open when boys are getting restless to allow them to explore the woodland. Inside, the classrooms continue these seasonal, nature-inspired themes. We liked the hedgehog stories displayed and work from the nature club with its latest focus on bats. Engagement is a focus – children told us about lessons by torchlight and trips to the toy museum in Brighton to bring topics to life.

Class sizes are small – appreciated by parents, along with the fast pace of learning. Homework ‘keeps us on our toes’, say pupils, but they like that it is often cross-curricular and fun – recently creating a planet, then presenting on it in front of a green screen to sell trips there. French starts in reception, with German and Spanish introduced in the senior school. Latin in year 6, and classical Greek is offered as a club for seniors. Science is impressive – we saw a year 6 chemical equations experiment in action, the set-up reflective of a senior school. Boys studiously made notes before the dramatic action of igniting liquid fuel in a bottle. Notable science displays too, including one on best copper sulphate crystals.

Learning steps up a gear in year 5, when there is greater focus on preparation for exams and setting is introduced in certain subjects. In year 8, pupils undertake the nationally recognised EPQ, extended project qualification, working around music, DT and ICT – this might include animation or making podcasts. ICT is popular and hosts a popular coding club. We saw pupils working on a PowerPoint game trying to escape a maze.

Parents praise the proactive approach to SEN support, led by a full-time SENDCo and two part-time specialists, plus TAs in every class. Twelve per cent of pupils are on the SEN register, the majority for dyslexia and ADHD, but also autism, dyspraxia and speech and language conditions. Two EHCPs when we visited. In-class support is usually enough, but the school also offers one-to-one and group sessions (included in fees) plus visiting occupational therapist and educational psychologist (at an additional cost). Parents can also participate in parenting courses on, eg early years behaviour and play. ‘They see the individual, adapt and try out strategies,’ one parent told us – for example, teaching subjects before class and organising readers for exams.

Inventive artwork everywhere, including a plastic spoon chandelier made by the whole school. We dipped into a year 6 lesson inspired by Navajo blankets and Scottish tartan designs, the boys engaged in weaving, having already smashed the first skill of knotting. From year 3 pupils use the spacious art studio. DT takes place in the well-equipped workshop from year 5 where the laser cutter sees lots of action.

‘Fabulous’ music supports beginners through to the accomplished, with a culture of encouragement evident in the concert we watched. The new director of music has added a twist, with a larger variety of music styles – cue the harvest rap for the harvest festival. The boys love using the MAC suite. Years 1 and 2 have class recorder lessons; years 5 and 6 the ukelele. All part of the twice-weekly lessons for all, plus whole school hymn practice. Three-quarters learn an instrument privately in school. Only a few notes required to join the junior orchestra, and there’s also an accordion group. The chapel choir for the older pupils includes talented rugby players. The traditional Christmas carol service is held at Tonbridge School, which parents say is ‘magical’.

The school theatre hosts three big productions a year – one each for years 4, 6 and 8. ‘Rock n Roll’ backdrop still there when we visited. Five different nativities for the younger years, plus the annual Dionysia Festival for year 6. Year 4 and year 8 boys say they ‘really get into’ the English Speaking Board Exam, which they all participate in.

‘Lots of sport,’ say pupils – with the more inclusive approach praised by parents for ‘turning reluctant boys into eager sportsmen’. The excellent facilities help. Sports hall, swimming pool, astro, rifle range and enough fields to shake a stick at – which many do, with hockey one of the main sports, plus rugby, football and cricket. Older years also play lacrosse, korfball, short tennis, basketball, badminton and table tennis. Swimming in school’s indoor pool (five inter-school galas per year). Pre-season tours are ‘such good fun’, we heard – this year’s footballers went to Nottingham. Calendar sporting highlights include ‘Friday Night Under the Lights’ on the school’s own astro pitch or at Tonbridge School and, of course, sports day which one parent described as ‘just a lovely day spent with friends and family picnicking’. Sports newsletter makes for an interesting read – this month’s challenge was the plank for one minute, meditating for 10 or helping to cook a meal at home!

A plethora of clubs – Top Trumps draws a crowd, plus all the usual sports and even a rifle club. Trips aplenty: ski trip, Iceland (where the highlight, according to one boy, was the waterfalls and seeing a double rainbow), Belgium and France for history and language, year 6s PGL, France, Cornwall and the year 5 campout. The school also hosts a variety of events with local girls schools eg debating, drama, hockey or the ‘social’.

‘Companies’, not houses: Drake, Nelson, Marlborough and Wellington. On our visit, it was the inaugural football competition for the younger years, which had a super turnout of parents. Tug of war, music and cross-country are among others.

The traditional wood-panelled dining hall, with long tables and honours boards, was full of boys’ joyful chatter at lunch, when we got stuck into a jolly good quality sausage (but boys say the chilli is best). It was hard to peel ourselves away from our dining companions – such interesting conversation; some adult dinner parties could learn a tip or two from these boys.

Pastoral care ‘is something else’, say parents, with ‘no taboos or stigmas about having support’. A counsellor works from the new wellbeing room where we saw one boy shooting hoops, a couple playing foam darts and others building Lego – all eager to chat. Pupils told us they feel supported, especially with anxiety around exam time. We liked the ‘Thought Fort’ – a worry box which gets boys to write a message on a shield and post it into the fort, and there are also school counsellor letter boxes. Lots of rewards – ‘quarter-plusses’, ‘e-recommends’ and a letter from the head are all highly sought-after in a culture where boys say ‘it’s cool to want to do well’.

Pupils are full of beans, courteous and squeeze the most out of school life. School ‘just gets boys’, say parents. Ethnic diversity is refreshingly broader than the immediate locale – the biennial ‘uplifting’ Glad to Be Me day celebrates this. An active PTA organises all the usual events, but parents say there’s no pressure to socialise. Many parents are professionals who live locally but commute to London. Recently the older pupils have been encouraged to help organise some of these events, eg the Christmas fair, or cake sales, to take some social responsibility and take the pressure off parents.

Boarders

Boarding from year 5 from Monday to Friday (Sunday night has recently been trialled) in the main building. Capacity for 18. Dorms of up to eight beds, with a homely feel throughout. Activities after prep and supper include swimming or basketball, arts and crafts – or just ‘chilling’, currently popular as it means hanging out with the new hamster Dotty. Note no mobile phone or digital time in the evenings (parental contact via house phone).

The last word

Traditional but not stuffy, with plentiful opportunities academically and beyond. A place where there are muddy knees under the choir robes!