A leading independent prep school in Somerset, offering excellence in education for 2-13 year olds
Years 5 to 8 camped under the stars on Saturday for our first boarding activity weekend of the year. Following a hearty breakfast on Sunday, the children got stuck into some bushcraft with Hooke Court’s Chris McConnell. As well as gutting fish and plucking pigeons for a gamekeeper’s stew, the teams discovered three different ways of lighting a fire. Many thanks to Chris for his bushcraft expertise and to Miss Hand, Mr Edgar and the boarding team for a brilliant weekend.
Earlier this term, we were invited to take part in the IAPS Covid-19 Response Series, a new project by IAPS and ITN Productions to showcase the great work of prep schools in dealing with lockdown and remote learning. The series launches this week via IAPS (which has over 670 of the world’s leading prep schools in membership) and we are delighted to share the Headmaster’s interview with you today. Proud to be Perrott.
Perrott Hill has today joined the Stirling Education family of schools, which currently includes 55 schools and two universities across Europe, India and the Middle East. Perrott Hill becomes the ‘flagship’ UK school and will be very much a part of growing and shaping the group as it expands into the UK.
“Stirling Education has been looking to expand into the UK, my home country, for some time now and we are hugely excited to have found a school like Perrott Hill to be our ‘flagship’ school,” says Stirling CEO, Timothy Fisher. “The brand is strong and successful, with a breadth of excellence across the board and a very supportive and dedicated team of staff and parents. We have invested in Perrott Hill because we can see what a truly incredible school it is, and we are committed to retaining its ethos and charm. As such, nothing will change: the leadership will stay the same, as will the board of governors, which includes current and former Heads of some of the most respected schools in the country. I very much share the school’s vision of being the most sought after prep school in the South West and am looking forward to watching it thrive.”
For more information, including a summary of the recent Q&A session with parents, please go to the Stirling Education box on our homepage or click on https://www.perrotthill.com/stirling-education/
Friday’s community action and fundraising morning saw pupils in Year 3-8 putting their shoulders to the wheel in a range of initiatives, from cleaning churchyards and clearing paths to picking litter along the River Parrett. We are immensely proud of all our pupils who, in true Perrott fashion, threw themselves into their tasks with gusto. Upon returning to school, the children took part in the inaugural Perrott Games – a range of fun challenges designed to test the children’s strength, endurance and ability to work as a team. The morning was superbly organised by Messrs Coverdale and Silk and was in support of this term’s chosen charity, Young Minds, the UK’s leading charity for young people’s mental health. A fantastic morning of community action and fundraising; well done, everyone.
And the winner is… Perrott Hill! We are on cloud nine after being announced as the winner of the Supporting Junior Boarders award at the prestigious BSA Awards 2020 this week. This is an incredible achievement, especially considering the stiff competition from fellow finalists, Farleigh School and Saint Ronan’s School. “Supporting junior boarders to flourish and fulfil themselves is at the heart of everything Perrott Hill does,” commented the judges. Well done to our amazing team of talented and dedicated staff and many thanks to all at the Boarding Schools’ Association for this award. Proud to be Perrott!
New this term! Our Monday evening academic sessions for senior pupils, in preparation for Common Entrance and life beyond PH, are already proving a hit. In true Perrott spirit, no session is complete without a game of bulldog on the Front Terrace and some downtime in the dorms.
Each September, our Year 8 pupils go on a residential team building and geography trip to Hooke Court in Wales. This year, instead, we brought Hooke Court to Perrott Hill! Many thanks to the amazing Chris McConnell for a superb day of team building this month, which included exploding Christmas pudding pots and a car load of cones. Communication, grit and determination were all put to the test as the groups had to negotiate trenches full of lava, remove toxic waste containers between locations without it touching themselves, navigate an explosive mine field – blindfolded – and create structures out of nothing but rope and a few logs. Thankfully everyone survived, learning some valuable lessons in the process and strengthening the bond between the group as they start their final year at Perrott Hill. A brilliant day; many thanks to all involved.
What a week! We are over the moon to have been named as one of the three finalists in the Supporting Junior Boarders category at this year’s BSA (Boarding Schools’ Association) Awards, taking place on Wednesday 23rd September. The talented boarding team at Perrott work tirelessly to maintain and strengthen the school’s excellent boarding provision and we are all extremely proud of the initiatives in place to encourage and support our junior boarders. We’re keeping everything crossed for the 23rd!
From Forest School to the Front Terrace, pupils across the school have been making the most of our glorious outdoor space this week. It’s been great to see everyone getting stuck into our activities programme too, with golf, ceramics, music technology and carpentry among the options.
We are delighted to announce that Perrott Hill has been named as one of the seven finalists in the Prep School of the Year category at this year’s Independent Schools of the Year Awards 2020. “The judges were very impressed by your story, which so ably contributes colour and depth to our annual celebration of all that’s great about the independent school sector in the UK,” said the ISOTY team, ahead of next month’s virtual ceremony. We are so proud to be flying the flag for small but mighty country prep schools!
