WHAT? WHERE?

Notre Dame Prep is an independent day school for girls aged 2-11, and boys in the nursery from 2-4. It’s situated in 26 acres of beautiful countryside in Cobham, which it shares with Notre Dame Senior School.

A Catholic school, Notre Dame Prep is part of the 400-year-old international Company of Mary Our Lady founded by Saint Jeanne de Lestonnac. St Jeanne was a progressive educator with a passion for women’s education – and those values are still strong today. The Prep school’s motto Learn, Love, Flourish rings true throughout the school. Girls appear happy and enthusiastic, buzzing about the school with purpose and confidence.

There are about 200 pupils on the register at the start of the academic year. But this grows to 230 by year-end, as new starters come into the nursery after their second birthday.

The main entry points are Nursery, Reception and Year 3, but there are some in-year places up for grabs. Entry is non-selective into Nursery and Reception, and gently selective from Year 1 and above. This involves the girls sitting an assessment paper. All potential new students will also attend a taster day.

Reception is single-form entry, rising to two forms in Year 3. The growth means the school expands and develops naturally as the girls get older.

FACILITIES

The theatre at Notre Dame School in Cobham, Surrey.

For a Prep school of this size, the facilities are phenomenal. And you’ll catch your first glimpses as you enter the school via a long private road just off the A3 and M25.

Burwood House, an attractive 18th-century Grade II-listed manor house, is the school’s main building and where you’ll find the main entrance and school office. Notre Dame Prep fans off to the right, with much of the Senior School to the left. The school chapel and dining hall – used by both Prep and Senior – sit in the middle.

The Nursery and Reception are housed in their own building which opens out to a secure nursery playground. The main Prep playground is just beyond this. There’s an adventure playground and a wonderful treehouse that I’m told looks amazing when it’s glowing with fairy lights.

The Prep school has a huge sports hall (one of two at the school) and there’s also a dedicated music suite, library and dance studio, plus science labs, art studio and ICT suite.

The Prep also makes use of the new state-of-the-art ‘Innovation Space’ (opened in autumn 2024) which is kitted out with top-level technology that includes 3D printers, laser cutters, CAD software and green-screen technology.

The wonderful Montaigne Theatre, a professional-standard 370-seat theatre, is a sight to behold. It’s modelled on the Elizabethan-style Rose Theatre in Kingston.

Outside, there are two Forest Schools, grass sports pitches, a full-size all-weather pitch, sprint track, four netball and tennis courts and two cross-country tracks. There’s also an indoor heated swimming pool.

SPORT

Pupils at Notre Dame Prep School in Cobham, Surrey.

Notre Dame Prep punches above its weight when it comes to sport – and they’re suitably proud of the fact.

Physical education is given a lot of weight. From Reception to Year 2 girls have two-and-a-half hours of games a week – which includes swimming, dance and PE. In Years 3 to 5 it goes up to four-and-a-half hours, and by Year 6 it’s almost five hours including dance, swimming, curriculum PE and a games afternoon for the whole year group.

Fixtures are played from Year 3 in netball, hockey, football, tennis, athletics, cross-country, cricket and swimming. Notre Dame Prep is super strong in the pool and has lost only one home gala in the past 11 years.

An inclusive ethos surrounds the sporting programme, with all girls encouraged to represent their school. Great efforts are made to expose girls to sports they might love, with 15 competitive sports on offer. There’s something for everyone.

THE ARTS

Pupils at Notre Dame Prep School in Cobham, Surrey.

There’s a real focus on the creative subjects at Notre Dame Prep – and it shows.

The music department is vibrant and buzzing. The head of music is wonderfully passionate about music, which I suspect might be infectious and part of the reason it’s so popular. A mind-boggling 80 per cent of pupils (from Year 2 up) are learning a musical instrument, with 23 different instruments on offer. If you can think of an instrument, a Notre Dame girl is probably learning it!

And of course, there’s a whole swag of music ensembles, choirs, bands and groups for the girls to join – everything from the concert band and flying strings to the chamber choir and ukelele club. So far, there’s 25 and counting!

Drama is on the curriculum from the outset, and each year group is involved in a production every year – taking to the stage in that fabulous 370-seat theatre. The Year 6 production is the big hoorah – a production written especially by the head of drama so there’s a role for everyone. Lamda is also offered.

LITTLIES

Pupils at Notre Dame Prep School in Cobham, Surrey.

The Nursery at Notre Dame is year-round – with the flexibility to do term-time only, year-round or a combination of both when care is needed. This model was introduced three years ago and has been hugely popular.

As you’d expect, children in the Nursery – which is open to boys and girls – do a lot of learning through play. But there’s also some structure with the introduction of phonics using the Read Write Inc Phonics programme.

Children in the Nursery have specialist teachers for swimming (from age 3), PE, games, Spanish, music, dance and Forest School. In Reception, drama is also introduced.

ACADEMICS

Pupils at Notre Dame Prep School in Cobham, Surrey.

Notre Dame Prep aims to inspire a life-long love of learning in the girls – and the clever curriculum means it hits the high academic notes, without piling on the pressure.

The entire curriculum has been redesigned over recent years with creativity at its core. All girls take part in dance, drama and music lessons weekly or twice weekly. The learning is linked across all subjects by topics which change termly or half-termly. The topics really help to bring the curriculum to life, says headteacher Amélie Morgan.

IT is introduced as a specialist subject in Year 1, and in Year 4 art and science are added to the specialist subject programme. In science, 80% of lessons are practical and hands-on with the girls wearing white lab coats and carrying out experiments.

Aside from the specialist subjects, girls are taught as a class with break-away interventions for those who need additional challenges or more support, but crucially, also for those in the middle.

A detailed tracking system monitors the progress of all pupils throughout the year – linked closely with their pastoral care and wellbeing. If there are any gaps, they’re quickly spotted and addressed.

Girls will receive their Senior School offer in Year 5 – which takes the pressure off the 11+ application process and means that in Year 6 the focus is on getting prepared for Senior School. The vast majority go on to the Senior School and of those, around two-thirds apply for a scholarship place. Girls are supported in this process, but not prepped and pushed.

PASTORAL CARE

Pupils at Notre Dame Prep School in Cobham, Surrey.

The students are the centre of everything at Notre Dame Prep. It’s a small school with a warm and caring ethos, and a super close-knit community that extends all the way through to the Senior School.

The first port of call for pupils with a problem would be their class teacher, and there are also heads of school on hand to support children.

As in the Senior School, there are wellbeing monitors – staff members with specialist training in drawing and talking therapy, bereavement counselling, art and Lego therapy and Elsa. There’s a medical centre with a school nurse, plus the school chaplain, and Ted, the wellbeing dog.

The Girls on Board programme – a programme designed to help girls understand and navigate the dynamics of female friendships – starts in Year 4.

Each classroom also has a worry box, for the girls to write down worries. The class teacher will read the notes, but the school has found that often they’re resolved without any intervention from staff – just the act of writing things down can be cathartic.

THE HEAD

Amelie Morgan head at Notre Dame Prep School in Cobham, Surrey.

Amélie Morgan has been head at Notre Dame Prep since 2019, coming from a 20+ year stint at St George’s and St Maur’s Weybridge. She’s a local girl, having grown up in the area. She was educated at Northumbria University, and did her MA at Kingston University.

Amélie is warm, ordered and approachable – and while academic excellence is important, wellbeing is a central focus. She’s passionate about single-sex education for girls. The absence of boys means that girls have fewer inhibitions, she says. And the girls-only environment means girls are willing to take on greater challenges and learn without limiting themselves.

Not a fan of streaming pupils, she believes that in most cases children can learn from each other. She’s a hands-on head, and still in the classroom. This year she is teaching history to the Year 6 pupils, and she runs a weekly writing club that’s super popular.

Amélie has three children – a boy and girl both aged in their early 20s, and a daughter who attends Notre Dame Senior School.

WRAP AROUND CARE

Pupils at Notre Dame Prep School in Cobham, Surrey.

Breakfast Club is available for all Prep school pupils in the school dining hall from 7.30am – a free service, that includes breakfast.

Afterschool care is offered until 6pm. Cost is from £4-£9 per session, depending on timings.

The extra-curricular programme at Notre Dame Prep is huge. The aim is to offer girls a variety of experiences and skills to take into their senior education and beyond.

ISI REPORT

Notre Dame Prep School was inspected by the Independent Schools Inspectorate in May 2024. Read the full report here.

MOBILE PHONE POLICY

Children are not permitted mobile phones during school time. Those who might need a phone for travelling to and from school will hand it in when they arrive at school.

TRANSPORT

Pupils at Notre Dame Prep School in Cobham, Surrey.

Children at Notre Dame Prep live mostly within a five-mile radius of the school.

An extensive network of mini-buses and coaches operates morning and afternoon taking in areas that include Fulham, Putney and Wimbledon; Teddington, Surbiton, Thames Ditton and Esher; Woking and West Byfleet; Shepperton, Chertsey and Molesey; Twickenham, Tolworth, Hinchley Wood and Claygate; Kew, Richmond, Mortlake and Barnes; Ashford; and Epsom, Leatherhead and Ashtead. New routes are also planned for Dorking, Guildford and Ripley.

FEES

2024-24: Nursery fees vary range from £612 per term for one morning a week only to £3,060 for five mornings. Termly fees for one (standard) day a week are £857 and £4070.75 for five full days. A standard day is from 8.30am – 4pm. Extended days (from 8.30am -6pm) are also an option, with fees from £1,040 per term for one extended day to £4,940 for five extended days. Children who do five days benefit from a 5% discount on fees.

Termly prep school fees are £5,018.75 for Reception; £5,877.50 for Year 1; £6,163.75 for Year 2 and £6,679 for Year 3 to 6.

WORD ON THE GROUND

Pupils at Notre Dame Prep School in Cobham, Surrey.

Notre Dame Prep is known for its pupil progress, close-knit community, excellent pastoral care and kindness. Students tend to fulfil their potential and their results show significant improvement from their starter baseline scores. One parent said girls stay ‘younger’ for longer at Notre Dame. But parents have also praised the academics, saying they’re challenging without it being a ‘hothouse’.

THE MUDDY VERDICT

Pupils at Notre Dame Prep School in Cobham, Surrey.

Good for: Parents looking for a supportive, friendly and inclusive school with a nurturing family feel. Those looking for a small all-girls’ environment with the facilities of a much larger school. Notre Dame Prep offers an all-round education, which will appeal to many.

Not for: It’s an all-girls school after Nursery, so if a co-ed offering is what you’d rather – this won’t suit. Whilst Notre Dame Prep welcomes children of all faiths and none, it is a Catholic school. There are also no boarding options.

Dare to disagree? Arrange a visit to see the school for yourself. The next whole school open day is on Thurs 13 Feb. Or you can book a private tour. There is also an Explore and Play Open Day (for children aged 0-7 years) on Sat 22 March. Information here.

Notre Dame School, Burwood House, Convent Lane, Cobham KT11 1HA. Tel: 01932 869990

Notre Dame Prep School and Nursery, Cobham

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