Evenings are spent watching films, playing games, big tree climbing (with ropes), karaoke competitions, baking brownies and enjoying barbecues. The children also get to relax and spend time with friends, just like at home.
Sundays are for expedition, and the children head off to exciting new places every week such as the coast for beach games, the Haynes Motor Museum, Dorset Water Park, Snowtrax and Monkey World and many other exciting locations.
Once you have enquired about availability of places, we will invite you and your child to the school to meet with one of our Assistant Heads in the Prep (or with Head, Mrs Thomson if appropriate) and have a tour; meeting teaching staff and other pupils as you make your way around. When you have decided to progress your application, we ask you to fill in a registration form, pay a registration fee and then we will invite your child to a Taster day, or Taster night if they will be boarding, so they can properly experience a 'day in the life' of Clayesmore Prep.
If you are happy with the outcome of the tour and Taster, and if the school is happy to progress based on the information provided and the meetings, then we will formally offer your child a place at Clayesmore Prep. Both parents (or guardians) will be asked to sign a Parental Contract to accept the offer and you will be asked to pay a deposit of £500. (This can be offset against the deposit to the Senior school later).
We do not do formal entrance assessments in the Prep School. Instead, our teachers informally assess a child's ability during class time on the Taster day. This takes away any anxiety your child may feel about 'tests'. If your child has an EP or other SEN report it is essential you share this with us so that we are able to set up a relaxed meeting with your child and our SENCo, Mrs Coombes.
Those people who wish to speak to additional staff members (sport, academic or learning support) are able to do so by contacting Admissions, at admissions@clayesmore.com
We encourage and welcome questions about all aspects of the school and want you to feel fully informed about everything Clayesmore Prep can offer your child.
Joining Clayesmore is a seamless and straightforward process which ensures new pupils and the school make a happy and successful match.
We encourage families who wish their child to join Clayesmore in Year 9 to register with us when their child is in Year 6, however we also welcome applications during Years 7 and 8 to join our waiting list.
Occasionally pupils join the school in Year 10, at the start of their GCSE programme and we welcome enquiries from those hoping to complete GCSEs and A Levels with us.
No matter when children come to Clayesmore, we do all we can to ensure they are happily absorbed into friendship groups and the daily routines.
Get in touch as soon as you are ready to do so. If we have places for the year of entry you are looking for we will invite you and your child to see the school and to meet the Head , Mrs Jo Thomson. You will have a tour during which you will meet some teachers and pupils as you make your way around. The next step will be to fill in a registration form and pay a registration fee to secure a place on the entry list.
We will ask for a reference from your child's current headteacher and need to see previous school reports.
Children joining in Year 9 from Prep schools usually take Common Entrance exams which are then sent to Clayesmore for marking. However, many prep schools have moved away from preparing students for Common Entrance in some subjects and this is fine with us. We will liaise with your child’s current school about the most appropriate ways for us to understand your child’s academic strengths and weaknesses.
Before making an offer of a place all prospective pupils will take, at Clayesmore, a short entrance test in both English and maths. These help us gauge their areas of strengths and weaknesses and are used to advise on whether we are a suitable school for your child and then for future 'setting' purposes.
Students applying for academic scholarships or for a place in the Sixth Form take a wider range of entrance exams.
If you are happy with the outcome of the tour and meeting with the Head, and if the school is happy to progress based on all the information available, we will formally offer your child a place at Clayesmore.
Both parents (or guardians) will be asked to sign a Parent Contract to accept the offer and you will be asked to pay a deposit of £1000. (£500 if you are moving up from Clayesmore Prep). The deposit is refundable against your final fee invoice, less any outstanding disbursements, though happily many parents choose to donate the remaining deposit to school fundraising projects.
If you have specific questions about the curriculum, how we teach, about sport or any other aspect of the school, the Admissions Office will be able to put you in touch with people who can answer your queries.
We encourage and welcome questions about all aspects of the school and want you to feel fully informed about everything Clayesmore can offer your child. Do get in touch today!
Sixth Form at Clayesmore is an exciting and challenging place to spend those vital and important transitional years between school and adult life.
We welcome a significant number of students into our Sixth Form who join us from other independent schools or local state schools.
Please book a visit and meeting with the Head (and Head of Sixth Form if you wish) to find out more about completing your A Levels or BTECs at Clayesmore.
You can also register for our Sixth Form Open Morning, held each October or join one of our whole school Open Mornings, held each term.
Get in touch as soon as you are ready to do so. If we have places for the year of entry you are looking for we will invite you and your child to see the school and to meet the Head , Mrs Jo Thomson. You will have a tour during which you will meet some teachers and pupils as you make your way around. The next step will be to fill in a registration form and pay a registration fee to secure a place on the entry list.
We will ask for a reference from your child's current headteacher and need to see previous school reports.
Children joining in Year 9 from Prep schools usually take Common Entrance exams which are then sent to Clayesmore for marking. However, many prep schools have moved away from preparing students for Common Entrance in some subjects and this is fine with us. We will liaise with your child’s current school about the most appropriate ways for us to understand your child’s academic strengths and weaknesses.
Before making an offer of a place all prospective pupils will take, at Clayesmore, a short entrance test in both English and maths. These help us gauge their areas of strengths and weaknesses and are used to advise on whether we are a suitable school for your child and then for future 'setting' purposes.
Students applying for academic scholarships or for a place in the Sixth Form take a wider range of entrance exams.
If you are happy with the outcome of the tour and meeting with the Head, and if the school is happy to progress based on all the information available, we will formally offer your child a place at Clayesmore.
Both parents (or guardians) will be asked to sign a Parent Contract to accept the offer and you will be asked to pay a deposit of £1000. (£500 if you are moving up from Clayesmore Prep). The deposit is refundable against your final fee invoice, less any outstanding disbursements, though happily many parents choose to donate the remaining deposit to school fundraising projects.
If you have specific questions about the curriculum, how we teach, about sport or any other aspect of the school, the Admissions Office will be able to put you in touch with people who can answer your queries.
We encourage and welcome questions about all aspects of the school and want you to feel fully informed about everything Clayesmore can offer your child. Do get in touch today!
We aim to make the transition to a UK boarding school as easy as possible for all our International students.
Our International Admissions team are highly experienced and will assist you through the whole admissions process. You can find out more by clicking the blocks below.
Joining Process
Many international pupils are introduced to Clayesmore via an education Agent and we welcome enquiries from all Agents. The process to join the school is as follows:
Entrance Tests
Students are asked to sit an English language test so we are able to assess wether they have suitable language skills to be able to understand lessons and communicate with their peers. We encourage students to practice their English language skills and read English books whenever possible to help with the English language assessment. Students entering Year 9 (age 13/14) will be expected to reach a B1/Preliminary Level standard while those joining Sixth Form will require a B1/First Certificate Level. If a child is joining the Prep school we would hope for a B1 level but can be a little more flexible on language standards.
We often find our German and Spanish students do not need to sit a language test as their English proficiency is high - please discuss this with our Admissions team.
Guardians
All International students are required to have a Guardian in the UK at the time of joining the school. This is essential for a student's welfare and safety.
Visas
Students coming to the UK need to apply for a visa to be able to study in a UK boarding school. If your child is aged between 4 and 17 years old you will need to apply for a Child Student Visa. Once you have accepted the place offered for your child, the school will apply for a CAS (Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies) which you will need to submit with the visa application so that your child is able to join Clayesmore. Our International Admissions Officer will assist you with this process, however, we are not experts in visa applications and strongly recommend you seek professional help to attain your visa and your Biometric Residents Permit (BRP) if you require one.
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