We aim to make the Admission process to Highfield as simple as possible for both parents and their children.

Open Mornings, this Website and word of mouth are the most common ways prospective parents learn about us. They will then contact the School Office and if they do not already have a copy, will be sent a Prospectus. If they wish to visit the School this is again arranged through the School Office. The visit involves a meeting with the Headmaster that lasts for approximately half an hour and is followed by a tour of the School. If parents then wish to Register their child they do so by completing the Registration Form and returning it to the Registrar, Mrs Jenny Croucher, with a Registration Fee of £50 for each child. Once registered and on our Database, parents will be invited to a range of events at Highfield, including our Open Mornings and kept informed of developments at the School through regular mailings, including Newsletters and the annual School Magazine.

Joining from Brookham

Children who join Brookham Pre-Prep are automatically registered for Highfield and will move on to Highfield in Year 4 at 8+ if that is what their parents wish.  Parents of Brookham children are most welcome to visit Highfield at any time. The Headmaster would expect to have met  all of them at some point in their child's time at Brookham and for them to have been toured around Highfield. They would then be best placed to take their final decision about whether Highfield was right for them and their child.  

If the Head of Brookham feels that Highfield would not be the 'best fit' for their child, she will have raised her concerns with parents before the start of Year 3, so giving parents plenty of opportunity to consider alternatives.  There is extremely close liaison between the two schools at all times and the Head of Year 4 at Highfield meets the Head of Brookham each week to discuss a whole range of issues, including pupils development and progress. It is for this reason that it is unnecessary for Brookham children to take a formal Assessment for entry to Highfield.

If Brookham parents decide that Highfield is not for them and their child,  they notify the Registrar at Highfield in writing and their child is withdrawn from the Entry List.

Joining Highfield

Children joining Highfield from outside Brookham at 8+ and at any later stage, are required to sit a straight forward Assessment. This takes the form of standardised NFER Assessments in Reading, Spelling and Mathematics. They are widely used assessments and are age appropriate. Highfield is not a 'hot house' (thank goodness!) and takes pupils of a broad range of ability from those who would be classed as 'average' against national standards, to those who will be sitting Academic Scholarships. We believe this breadth is an essential element of the School's strength and gives it its great character and atmosphere. 

Children from outside Brookham who are registered for entry to Highfield in Year 4 and above are invited to the School to sit the Assessments on a Saturday morning in the October prior to their joining Highfield the following September. Childen who are registered after this date are able to take these Assessments at the School at other times. Overseas children almost always take the Assessments at their own schools as these schools are invariably happy to administer them on our behalf. Following these Assessments formal Letters of Offer are sent to parents who are then required to respond within three weeks and pay a Confirmation of Entry Deposit, £1,000, with £700 of this refundable against the first term's Fees, and the balance refundable against the final term's Bill.

Providing there is a place in the appropriate year, children can join Highfield at any stage in their educational career and in any term. Most children join in Year 4 but there is also a significant intake into Year 7. Children who join at different times are always made to feel very welcome and settle very quickly. 

We understand that getting the decision over your child's school is a vital one. For this reason we are always happy to see prospective parents as often as they wish. Likewise, we are always happy for prospective pupils to experience 'taster days' at Highfield so that they can really get a sense of how we work. These visits can be easily arranged by a call to the School Office and we are happy to welcome children at any time.