WHAT? WHERE?

Skippers Hill is a co-educational prep school that takes children from 2 – 13 years old – all tucked away in Five Ashes, near Mayfield.

You enter the grounds via the main school building – a smart old manor house – with the 22 acre site hidden Narnia-like at the rear. The school has a free-range, relaxed but purposeful feel (the academic results are proof of the productivity).

With just over 200 children currently on roll, there’s very much an ‘everyone is known’ feel about the school. The smaller size of the cohort combined with those spacious grounds gives it that elusive balance between cosy and caring, which suits its younger pupils, and expansive and grown-up, a boon for the Year 7 and 8 cohort (year groups which are currently at their most subscribed to date, in terms of numbers).

FACILITIES

Behind the main building of the thatched-roofed manor house, which has those characteristic huge windows that allow light to stream in, the picturesque grounds appear before you down the hill. Looking particularly attractive when I visited, on a very sunny day, the site stretches out into fields and woodland beyond.

Traditional hard-standing playgrounds give way to adventure playgrounds, a sweeping grassy slope leads to astroturf courts, and then another slope down to a cricket pavilion that doubles up as an outdoor classroom, and endless pitches. To the side of the pitches runs woodlands that are used for everything from Outdoor Learning to Mountain Biking Club.

The school has been under the ownership of Bellevue Education since 2010, a move which was seen as positive and certainly helped with budgets.

At the top of the site lie the brand new year 7 and 8 classrooms, and the music centre. These chalet-like timber buildings have a different style to the redbrick manor and the atmosphere here is slightly different too. The manor house is all cosiness and warmth and nurture, out here it’s more of a grown-up space to accommodate the children’s growing need for independence and to prepare them for senior school.

Art and Science share a block – there’s no built-in science lab – but they use portable bunsen burners and microscopes are all to hand so everything is covered.

SPORTS

Given the size and scope of the site, and the range of pitches, it’s no surprise to learn that sport is strong at Skippers – and by that I don’t mean that the school wins all its matches (although it probably wins many!).

Success in sport for a school should be measured by the degree of uptake and enjoyment for ALL children and here several of the pupils I spoke to (of mixed sporting abilities) instantly volunteered sport as one of their favourite things about the school.

Alongside the regular PE and games curriculum encompassing swimming at the on-site pool and all the usual games and gym, the school is involved in regular fixtures for football, netball, hockey, rugby, cricket, athletics and cross-country.

Over the years a significant number of children have been awarded specialist scholarships in Sport at their chosen senior school. England cricketer and three-time World Cup winner Laura Marsh is a former pupil.

Sport-loving kids can also join after-school clubs covering all the usual games suspects as well as tennis, outdoor activities, ballet, dance, and even fencing.

OUTDOOR LEARNING

Embracing the outdoors and getting a bit muddy is a big part of the culture here and there was so much buzzy activity going on outside on the day that I visited. They utilise the latest research and studies into outdoor learning to make these lessons and activities meaningful and purposeful. As a result children develop an appreciation of all natural and living things from an early age.

Heading down to the woods is a timetabled lesson for all children and a particular highlight of the children’s week. Pupils relish the chance to take their learning outside of the classroom, explore nature and get thoroughly muddy while having lots of fun.

Activities such as building dens and campfires, collecting and investigating natural materials and making mud pies in the Mud Kitchen allows both the older and younger children to explore their school surroundings and learn boundaries with the outdoors. It’s a magical environment in which to learn.

If the weather allows yoga takes place in the beautiful rose garden, (pictured above) and is enjoyed by all children from 2 – 13 years old.

MUSIC & DRAMA

The sizeable school hall provides a great space for productions and performances, like this one pictured above of the Year 5 and 6 production of Toad of Toad hall.

All classes from Nursery to Year 8 have Music lessons as part of their curriculum. The Skippers Music curriculum uses singing as its focal point and all children learn to express their musicality through songs and musical games (which gives them a good grounding for the principles of music theory).

Skippers has a flourishing Senior Choir which performs both in and out of school. Most recently the choir has performed at community events locally, as well joining thousands of other young musicians to sing at the O2 Arena as part of the Young Voices Concerts.

There’s a School Orchestra, plus there’s the usual opportunities for one-to-one tuition with peripatetic music teachers, including piano, violin, brass, cello, flute, clarinet, saxophone, recorder, drums, guitar and (yes) singing.

ACADEMICS

Director of studies Matthew Minister clearly has a deep personal interest in teaching and learning and a knack for using the environment around Skippers to its best advantage.

The school is academically non-selective and there’s a strong focus on developing children as individuals, but as it happens, academic results are also very good.

Children go on to a range of senior schools both locally – Brighton, Eastbourne, Hurstpierpoint, Bede’s, Battle Abbey, Mayfield and Ardingly among others in Sussex and across the border in Kent – destination schools have included Tonbridge, Benenden and the Grammars.

For the last 20 years, the school has had a 100% success rate with Common Entrance and for now the exam remains in core subjects including English, maths and science.

Although Mr Minister is aware many schools are moving away from Common Entrance, Skippers Hill wants to keep this academic rigour in place for now. Alongside this the school provides plenty of opportunities for pupils to enjoy an enriched curriculum in the top years – from school trips to workshops – with particular highlights recently being when Year 7 and Year 8 flew over to visit the Titanic museum in Belfast and the very popular French Trip as well as other activity based residential trips in the UK.

Adding to the offering, from Year 5 to Year 8, children follow a Global, Social and Ethics programme that brings together a range of subjects from geography to ethics and design to languages, with critical thinking and creativity at the forefront. Children use a range of 21st century skills to produce an ebook – the first topic is Sussex and makes use of the local environment to tie together multiple subjects and skills.

All this focus is no doubt why the school is currently enjoying the largest number of pupils ever for Year 7 & Year 8 – with a combined year group of 53.

PASTORAL CARE

Pastoral care underpins everything at Skippers Hill and staff display such a strong sense of conviction in this area. They certainly do seem to know every child and there is a truly relaxed, but respectful, connection between pupils and teachers.

It was a sunny day when I visited and I spotted a teacher outside having a one-to-one chat with a pupil who is sitting on the tennis courts and looking a bit anxious about something, the teacher is sitting right there on the court beside them, which speaks volumes about their approach.

I note lots of interaction with parents too who are clearly integrated with the school – and when I speak to several of the pupils they all seem very at ease with one another – which supports that schools’ ethos that kindness runs in its veins.

The school day starts with a Wake and Shake session to boost serotonin levels and get the children relaxed and happy for the day ahead. There’s a Wellbeing ‘Garden’ Room, pictured above, where everything from Art Therapy to Wellbeing Club takes place.

Another nice touch is that every child at Skippers Hill not only has their own Form Tutor, but a Special Tutor too – and this is a person of their own choosing.

This isn’t limited to teaching staff either – the groundsman, Chris Walker, (pictured above) is often the children’s first port of call and is so valued by the school and families he’s billed as Superhero as his official job title on the Skippers website. I witness pupils helping Chris out, having a lift in his buggy and enjoying working in the beautiful grounds.

HEAD

Phillip Makhouli took over as Head teacher during lockdown – a challenge he took on whole-heartedly. And it certainly feels like he’s been at the school for much longer – being very well-known to both the children and parents alike.

Highly approachable he has the same unpretentious and relaxed air as his school. That’s not to say there isn’t enough rigour or old school tradition here – Makhouli was previously Director of Teaching and Learning at Holmewood House School, which is one of the most established and successful preps in the Tunbridge Wells area. And the school is striking a good balance between the two. He is clearly very ambitious for Skippers Hill and excited to build on its current successes.

LITILIES

Early Years has its own separate, purpose-built space complete with outdoor classroom and freeflow play area. It’s large, modern, bright and airy and also plays host to mum and toddler groups for families from the local community, whether or not the children go on to attend Skippers Hill.

Children can start in the Nursery – 48 weeks a year (Monday to Friday from 8.15am to 5.45pm) from the age of two and have the run of the entire 22-acre site (supervised of course)!

The tiny ones are gently introduced to school life during their time in Early Years, following a curriculum based on self-discovery, curiosity and learning through play, with tailored specialist teaching lessons in music, sports and French. They mix very well with the older children.

Learning is steered by children’s interests and passions, and has seen the children follow topics including space, autumn and Roald Dahl, which led to the creation of a chocolate factory and much marvellous medicine brewing. There’s lots of natural materials.

Their approach in Early Years is to spark curiosity and wonder. Teachers find out about the children’s existing interests through observation, and then follow those interests through supporting activities planned in collaboration with the children.

The outcome is really engaged kids who are very enthusiastic about their learning rather than children called out of their play to take part in an activity which really has no meaning to them. The little ones I met were certainly a curious, busy bunch – all highly engaged in various pursuits.

USP & QUIRKS

As well as the exceptional focus on pastoral care, (already covered above) Outdoor Education is a real strength at Skippers. The school has its own Forest School onsite along with an outdoor classroom and children get out into the woods to learn on a weekly basis.

Bushcraft and outdoor activities also feature as extracurricular activities. The school has its own mountain biking trail in the woods and cycling skills and mountain biking is a popular after-school club.

Skippers has its own resident chickens, which are soon to be joined by some goats – next step, a mini farm? Watch this space!

WRAP AROUND CARE

Breakfast Club runs daily, from 7:45am each morning (best of all – there is no need to pre-book) – the charge to use this service per child is £2.50 per day.

The After School provision enables children to remain at school until 5:45pm. Plus there’s a good school bus service which picks up children from all the surrounding areas at a very reasonable cost.

FEES

Nursery (Full time), £2,932; Reception, £3,180; Years 1 & 2, £3,440; Years 3 & 4, £4,420; Years 5 & 6, £4,745 and Years 7 & 8, £5,062 putting the fees at the more competitive end of schools in the area.

WORD ON THE GROUND

Parents talk about teachers who genuinely adore their job, the special setting and a happy, relaxed feel being the three magic ingredients that make this school a success. In an increasingly complex world the focus on unpretentious and simple core values gets the big thumbs up. Pupils like going to school here – and wellbeing and fun is a big focus – as well as getting those all important academics. I’ve heard stories of children that were previously really struggling really finding their feet after a move to Skippers Hill.

THE MUDDY VERDICT

GOOD FOR: Outdoorsy, creative, active kids who might like to run a little bit free-range. This is a relaxed and rural school that also gets the all-important results that parents crave. What’s special here is that no child has to fit a description – there’s an air of acceptance – which is why parents love it.

NOT FOR: It’s a day school so families will need to be relatively local or committed to a commute. As with all preps, some of the more urbane, faster-maturing Year 7 and 8s might start to hanker after the bright lights of senior school.

GO SEE FOR YOURSELF: Book now to visit the school during their Open Week from Mon 26 – Fri 30 Sept 2022.

Skippers Hill Manor Preparatory School, Five Ashes, Mayfield, East Sussex, TN20 6HR, 01825 830234.

Skippers Hill Manor, Mayfield

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