Open all
Our View
‘A quintessential country prep school with a bit of ambition,’ is how head Will Austen describes Witham Hall. We think he’s being modest. This co-ed in rural Lincolnshire seems to have cracked the formula for providing a near-perfect education, with pupils gaining scholarships left, right and centre to the country’s top public schools. It’s no wonder parents travel up to an hour each day to send their children here.
Where?
Located in Witham-on-the-Hill, a village a few miles from the market town of Stamford, the school sits in stunning parkland with a magnificent Queen Anne mansion at its heart. Several snazzy new buildings have been added in recent years, including a science and resources centre with a modern languages suite and a superb sports centre that is, without doubt, the best we’ve seen at a prep. The grounds offer ample romping room for outdoor fun and reflection – as well as the tree house and swings complex, an ornamental pond area has been turned into a safe and accessible wellbeing space and Reception has a new adventure playground.
The rural location means most children arrive by car, while a school minubus service scoops pupils up from Oakham, Uppingham and Grantham. There are links to mainline trains at Peterborough via Stamford – the area is becoming increasingly popular with ex-Londoners, with the commute from Peterborough to King’s Cross taking just 50 minutes.
Head
The easy-going and unstuffy Mr Austen joined in September 2020 from Ludgrove School in Berkshire, where he was deputy head. His two sons are pupils here, giving him both a parental and professional perspective.
A self-declared ‘country person’, Mr Austen has set out to ensure that pupils can make the most of Witham Hall’s impressive grounds. He also strives to help the most and least academically able achieve the best they can, with learning support now a central and natural part of the school day. Drama, music and art are other focal points; Mr Austen hopes to make the school’s reputation in these disciplines as strong as it is in sport.
Admissions
Most pupils join at Reception, and with high demand and no formal assessment – places are allotted on a first-come, first-served basis – early registration is highly recommended. There are also admissions in Years 4 and 7 with informal assessments – current reports and a school visit – to gauge levels for streaming. Ad-hoc admissions are possible if there is space. Since the pandemic, the school has seen increased demand, which has meant the introduction of waiting lists. However, there’s ‘always room to squeeze in another’, says Mr Austen, so it’s definitely worth enquiring.
Academics and senior school destinations
Mr Austen’s drive to strengthen the school’s academic offering has seen him appoint a new deputy head of academic and introduce streaming for pupils taking scholarships at Common Entrance in Years 7 and 8. It’s a roaring success. The current Year 8s are the first to complete the two-year programme and scholarships are already in double figures midway through results season, with five academic scholarships including ones to Rugby and Oundle among them.
A restructured timetable allows for more time to travel between lessons and in turn has maximised learning time. Pupils have form teachers from Reception to Year 4, after which they move to subject teachers. The SEND department is brilliant, with four learning support teachers (there was only one when Mr Austen arrived) who take pupils out of lessons for one-to-one work. Among other recent appointments are a new head of maths and head of geography.
Pupils go on to a wide range of senior schools; the current Year 8s are heading to 12 different destinations, including Eton, Cheltenham Ladies’ College, Marlborough, Rugby, Greshams, Stamford, Uppingham, Oundle and Oakham.
Co-curricular
Witham Hall is renowned for its sporting prowess and fields teams for all of the main IAPS competitions (the girls are shining particularly bright at the moment, smashing national finals), as well as triathlon and cross-country running. But its competitiveness doesn’t mean it caters only for the gifted, with teams and matches for all abilities. The state-of-the-art sports complex built in 2018 houses an indoor sports hall, sprung-floor dance studio, gym, changing facilities and a first-floor viewing terrace overlooking an Astro hockey pitch and tennis courts. In the grounds there is a grass running track and a number of cricket square, which are sometimes used for county training. There’s also a small golf course, a long-jump pit, a discus cage and space for javelin.
Art, drama and music are timetabled, as well as offered as clubs. Head of music Miriam Forbes is both extremely talented and inspirational, and everyone takes part in music, be it in a choir, in the drum ensemble (places in this are hotly contested), the rock group or learning an instrument with a peripatetic teacher. All pupils enjoy art in a loft-style studio, and a good number go on to gain art scholarships to senior schools – ‘We clean up on art scholarships every year,’ Mr Austen tells us. A Lent-term production is the focal point of the school’s drama calendar – this year was The Lion King – with festivals and competitions throughout the year, and all pupils in Years 4 to 6 each doing their own annual play. LAMDA exams are an option for those with a passion for the stage.
There is an array of extracurricular clubs, including polo, dry-ski slope skiing, clay-pigeon shooting, water-skiing, cooking, sewing and bushcraft in the school’s wilderness area. Pupils also get involved in the school’s various councils and can earn headships and prefect status, which come with plenty of kudos.
Boarding
Weekly and flexi boarding is available from Year 4, and it is very popular. Understandably so, as the dorms, housed in the main mansion, are both elegant and cosy, and the boarding activities are a real draw. By Year 8, most pupils will have boarded at one time or another. There is no full boarding, so everyone goes home after sporting commitments on Saturday.
School community
Pastoral care is exemplary, with form teachers the first point of contact, and there is also a vertical mentoring group. Boarders are under the care of matrons, as well as houseparents Chris and Lucy Meadows. ‘Steph the Chef’ is a school legend – she has won awards for her cooking and is a real innovator with her tasty and healthy dishes. One pupil told us their three favourite things at Witham Hall are breakfast, lunch and supper.
As mentioned, Mr Austen has bolstered the learning-support team with the aim of removing any stigma. The department is at the heart of the prep-school building and is open to any pupil, whether they need extra help with spelling and times tables or emotional support.
Parents are active with a society known as the Friends of Witham organising lots of events throughout the year, including the much-anticipated biannual summer ball.
And finally....
This is a beautiful and happy school, with a strong family feel and an ethos based on encouragement and promoting wellbeing rather than pushing for achievements – and yet achievements roll in in spades, from scholarships to sporting triumphs.