If you are considering an independent junior or prep school for your son or daughter, it is never too early to start looking at the options available locally, and thinking which school would best suit your child.

Independent junior schools are often called prep schools. They may be split in various departments: nursery for ages 3+, pre-prep from ages 5-7 and prep from age 7+ and children can join the school at all these stages. Some schools form the junior section of an all through school, meaning they are attached to a senior school offering the next stage of your child's education from 11-18 years. Although transition to the senior school is not usually guaranteed, most children in the junior are expected to continue on and are prepared accordingly. In an all-through school, the junior school children share the resources and facilities that the senior school offers and can allow for a smooth progression to senior school without having to go through the choosing and admissions process again.

However, if you are not sure what senior school you want your child to go to, a prep school that is not attached to any senior school would allow you to keep your options open about which senior schools to consider.
When you are drawing up a shortlist of schools, make sure you know how and when you need to register and if an offer of a place is dependent on some form of assessment or is it done on a first-come-first-served basis. This will differ from school to school and on the age of entry but make sure you keep a note of any important dates.

You should also think about a school's location as you do not want your young child spending lots of time in the car going to and from school. What extra-curricular opportunities are there to develop your child's non-academic interests and what trips and visits are organised to enrich their educational experience? Does the school offer any wraparound care before or after school which would fit in with your work commitments and reduce your need for additional childcare?

But the most important influence on your final choice of school should be where you think your child will be happiest. In which environment will he or she thrive and be nurtured in. You can only discover this by visiting a school on a normal working day and seeing at first hand the interaction between staff and children. Are the girls and boys enjoying what they are doing? Is the atmosphere caring but purposeful and do you feel confident in the ability of staff to bring out the best in your child?

Judith Bate, Head,
St Dunstan's College Junior School