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Our View
This innovative school enviably located opposite London’s Green Park offers a dynamic approach that combines a traditional British education with a modern global outlook. Part of the LPS family – the other siblings are LPS Sixth, LPS Hybrid (based at LPS Mayfair) and LPS Clapham – it’s also in the fold of the excellent Dukes Education group, so there’s plenty of collective power in the engine room. Stellar results go hand in hand with a positive and nurturing work ethic, and with automatic entry into LPS Sixth along with the Hybrid offering, it’s a compelling option in the busy London market.
Where?
Situated on Piccadilly, the school is just two minutes’ walk from Green Park Tube and five minutes from Hyde Park Corner. The iconic Grade I-listed terrace building was originally a grand townhouse and retains many of its stunning 18th-century features, including a sweeping staircase, frescoed ceilings and elegant fireplaces. Sports take place all over London: PE is in Green Park, netball in Kennington Park, cricket in Wandsworth, athletics in Battersea and cycling in the Herne Hill velodrome and Olympic Park. On site, there’s a small area for sports with circular wooden seating. The school’s central location makes it easy to get to from anywhere in London, and pupils come from Blackheath, Chiswick, Hampstead and Battersea, as well as nearer by. Hybrid pupils do one day a week in school, working remotely - but with live lessons - the rest of the time.
Head
A former NFL player, university lecturer and deputy head at Sevenoaks, Dr Adrian Rainbow has worn a lot of hats in his career. Working closely with group principal Suzie Longstaff and fellow LPS Clapham head, Susan Brooks, he’s now pouring his talent and energy into LPS Mayfair and Sixth, where he has been head since January 2023. He is as proud of his pupils’ strong moral compass and compassionate attitude as he is of their successes in and out of the classroom, and works hard to ensure pastoral care is on point for everyone. Dr Rainbow’s enthusiasm for his job is infectious – as he tells us how lessons are brought to life all over London (art lessons in the Royal Academy, anyone?), it makes us want to go back to school ourselves.
Admissions
The first port of call is a tour to ensure prospective pupils and families understand and appreciate the school’s ethos. The school uses existing digital data or asks pupils to take CAT4 tests to ensure they can meet the needs of the curriculum but entry is mainly about ensuring the right fit within the community. In November and January there are Discovery Days, where children take part in problem-solving activities. Selection is based on assessing if a child will be happy and fit in at LPS.
Entry into LPS Hybrid is more bespoke – the school takes care to understand whether the model on offer will enable a child to thrive and always involves a personal meeting with the head of hybrid and the head of school.
Academics and destinations
The mantra here is ‘learning like a Londoner’, and the school certainly uses its unique location to the max. Rarely a day goes by without one year group visiting an iconic venue to bring a lesson to life (parents give permission at the start of the year to allow teachers to take pupils anywhere in Zone 1). It certainly piques curiosity, and LPS pupils have that in spades. At GCSE, pupils take eight to 10 subjects – English, maths and double or triple science are compulsory, and among the options are media studies and psychology. SENCO is amazing: a wonderful learning-enrichment department is located in the 'Loft', and there are specialists in EAL, dyslexia and speech, among other areas. ‘We are all about what student needs are,’ the head of learning enrichment tells us.
LPS Hybrid pupils come into school once a week, depending on which day their year group has sport. On the other days, their lessons are live on screen in real time, not recorded, with twice daily check-ins with their tutor. Lessons are limited to six a day to control screen time, but attendance is compulsory (parents get a call if pupils don’t log on). Hybrid pupils also have two independent study lessons each day, one of which can be exercise (they have exercise logs to make sure they’re hitting government regulations). Pupils’ in-school days include PE, music, drama and art; Year 10s and 11s also have their practical lessons. All GCSE exams are taken in person at school.
There’s automatic entry for both day and hybrid pupils to LPS Sixth, and around half of pupils choose that option. Other destinations include Westminster and St Paul’s.
SEND provision
A calm and supportive learning-enrichment space called The Loft is the nerve centre for the comprehensive offering at the school, which includes speech and language therapy, EAL support, counselling, social skills development, occupational therapy and mentoring. There’s in-class, small-group and one-to-one support, and pupils are issued with a Loft pass that allows them to leave class whenever they need time to regulate. Communication with parents is good, as are outcomes, with many pupils with EHCPs thriving. One parent says their son is ‘happier and calmer than I’ve seen him in years’.
Co-curricular
As mentioned, sport is played across multiple sites in London and pupils team up with LPS Clapham, which allows for bigger teams (and familiar faces when they all feed into LPS Sixth). Art, when it’s not a lesson at the Royal Academy, has its own beautiful room with a domed window in the ceiling. Music also goes off site, as well as taking place in the basement music room or next door to the head’s first-floor study, where there is a stunning grand piano. A new choir has just been formed and there are also two bands. A small drama room is on the first floor. There are lots of shows – pupils were rehearsing for an upcoming production of Romeo and Juliet during our visit, and we love the sound of summer’s Mayfair Madness, which brings drama, music and art into a big showcase festival.
Clubs include LAMDA, table tennis and art, and there are ski and sailing trips every year, as well as a sortie to Italy.
School community
As well as staff looking out for pupils, there’s a school therapist and the Year 10s and 11s have their own common room to hang out in. With its arches and exposed brickwork, the dining room in the basement is another great space (the food is excellent, we are told). Parents get involved in socials, and the PA regularly meets with the head. The school also acts as a guiding hand for international families who aren’t familiar with the UK education system.
And finally....
A breath of fresh air in the London market, LPS does things a bit differently, encouraging pupils to think big and stretch themselves to the best of their abilities. And with the capital’s iconic attractions on its doorstep as extended venues for learning and playing, it’s hard not to be inspired.