Tatler UK - 10.2019

tatler.com Tatler Schools Guide 2020 89

PHOTOGRAPHS: SAM PEAT PHOTOGRAPHY; ANDREW MALTZOFF

and wear gowns in their final year.

With just 36 students in a year

group, the school is proud of its

small size, stating that it reassures

parents that ‘their sons’ potential

will be identified and fulfilled’,

wherever their skills and passions

may lie. Ninety-five per cent of

students take music lessons;

Head Nicholas Kaye – who has

been at the reins here for 25 years

• runs an architecture club; and
  pupils won the Boys’ IAPS fenc-
  ing championships for the third
  year running. No one wants to
  leave at 11, so, at 13, boys go on
  to choices such as Winchester,
  Westminster, Eton, St Paul’s and
  King’s Wimbledon on a whole
  host of scholarships.

THOMAS’S

BATTERSEA 

28 – 40 Battersea High Street,

SW11 3JB

Website thomas-s.co.uk

Head Simon O’Malley Pupils 575

day: 317 boys, 258 girls Faith C of E

Ages 4–13 Term fees £7,262

This school hit the headlines

back in 2017 when it was chosen

by the Duke and Duchess of

Cambridge for their firstborn,

who goes by the name of George

Cambridge at this southwest

London prep. The Duke and

Duchess’ fellow parents are

reportedly smitten with calm

and approachable Head Simon

O’Malley and are equally pleased

with how the school shapes their

children. One says: ‘If you want a

teenager who is kind, calm,

thoughtful and confident, then

this is the school for you.’ Pupils

are kept busy – 90 per cent of

them play an instrument; netball

and football are strong; there’s

church every Thursday; and last

year’s production of The Lion

King was superb. The biennial

ballet show is a highlight, as is the

annual ski trip. Pupils are ‘very,

very lucky’ with the food, enjoy-

ing katsu curry and veggie tagine.

Leavers skip on to Marlborough

and Wellington, but plans for

Thomas’s Senior School are now

making headway.

THOMAS’S

CLAPHAM 

Broomwood Road, SW11 6JZ

Website thomas-s.co.uk

Head Philip Ward Pupils 650 day:

343 boys, 307 girls Ages 4–13

Term fees £6,792

Head Phil Ward described himself

as ‘a lucky bloke’ who’s ‘proud

every day I come to work’.

Kindness is king at this prep

housed in a Victorian red-brick

building situated between the

commons, but it’s what’s inside the

school that ‘enthrals and surprises’

• high ceilings, gorgeous library,
  swanky new science labs and, most
  importantly, very happy children.
  Shouting is not allowed – although
  shrieks of delight are encouraged
  in the big playground, which is
  home to a wooden scene from
  Tolkein’s Middle Earth (complete
  with dragon). Mindfulness is
  widely practised and Carlos the
  caretaker’s smile is legendary. Years
  4 and 5 learn Mandarin; girls’
  cricket is thriving; the rock concert
  was extremely loud but ‘totally
  amazing’; and the school is host-
  ing a conference on Executive
  Functioning in January. Leavers
  move on to Marlborough and
  Wellington, as well as top London
  schools with 27 awards this year.

THOMAS’S

FULHAM 

Hugon Road, SW6 3ES

Website thomas-s.co.uk

Head Annette Dobson Pupils 435

day: 212 boys, 223 girls Ages 4–11

Term fees £6,965

Parents report that there’s a certain

buzz around Thomas’s Fulham.

Perhaps it’s Head Annette Dobson’s

influence, who pupils say is ‘like

Mary Poppins – practically perfect

in every way’. Parents are equally

impressed, commenting on her

unflappability. The school sits on

the edge of South Park, and most

families are local so walk to school,

though some come from over the

river in Wandsworth. At 11, a

third of pupils head on to

Thomas’s Clapham, while the rest

disperse to schools including

Cranleigh, Thomas’s Battersea and

Wycombe Abbey. Every pupil in

Years 4–6 has an iPad; there are

more than 20 choirs and ensem-

bles thanks to a wealth of musical

talent; and the Reception children

regularly visit Age UK Hammer-

smith & Fulham for intergenera-

tional activities. The good news is

that children no longer need to be

registered for a place at birth –

though the recommended age is

still between one and two.

THOMAS’S

CLAPHAM

THOMAS’S

KENSINGTON 

17–19 Cottesmore Gardens,

W8 5PR

Website thomas-s.co.uk Head

Joanna Ebner Pupils 372 day: 187

boys, 185 girls Faith C of E

Ages 4–11 Term fees £7,582

Pupils rave about the Year 5 and

Year 6 trip to Thomas’s chalet,

Daheim, in Austria where all

manner of snow-related activities

are enjoyed, including snowshoe-

ing and, of course, skiing. Back on

home turf, the school parkour

club is proving very popular

indeed, while the newly formed

fencing team can’t wait to take on

friendly rivals Thomas’s Battersea.

Head Joanna Ebner ‘insists on

good manners’ and is a trained

counsellor, so it’s no wonder that

the school prides itself on its

pastoral care, while catering

manager Mark Newman ensures

that the food is both delicious and

nutritious. Pupils work towards

the Unicorn Award (the school’s

take on D of E) and spots on the

swim squad and chamber choir

are much coveted. Pupils go on to

St Paul’s Girls’, City of London

and the Francis Hollands, and last

year's leavers won an impressive

haul of scholarships – over 21. ]

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