Joining Clayesmore Prep

Once you have enquired about availability of places, we will invite you and your child to the school to meet with one of our Assistant Heads in the Prep (or with Head, Mrs Thomson if appropriate) and have a tour; meeting teaching staff and other pupils as you make your way around. When you have decided to progress your application, we ask you to fill in a registration form, pay a registration fee and then we will invite your child to a Taster day, or Taster night if they will be boarding, so they can properly experience a 'day in the life' of Clayesmore Prep.

If you are happy with the outcome of the tour and Taster, and if the school is happy to progress based on the information provided and the meetings, then we will formally offer your child a place at Clayesmore Prep. Both parents (or guardians) will be asked to sign a Parental Contract to accept the offer and you will be asked to pay a deposit of £500. (This can be offset against the deposit to the Senior school later).

We do not do formal entrance assessments in the Prep School. Instead, our teachers informally assess a child's ability during class time on the Taster day. This takes away any anxiety your child may feel about 'tests'. If your child has an EP or other SEN report it is essential you share this with us so that we are able to set up a relaxed meeting with your child and our SENCo, Mrs Coombes.

Those people who wish to speak to additional staff members (sport, academic or learning support) are able to do so by contacting Admissions, at admissions@clayesmore.com

We encourage and welcome questions about all aspects of the school and want you to feel fully informed about everything Clayesmore Prep can offer your child.

Welcome to Clayesmore!

We have an outstanding and committed team in our Teaching and Learning Centre who work with pupils to ensure they are being supported in every possible way with their academic, personal and social development. We are happy to consider students with a special educational need for a place in the school. However, in order for us to do this properly we require parents to be transparent about their child’s needs and for them to supply all educational assessments which have been undertaken in the preceding five years.

It is important to note that Clayesmore is a mainstream school which requires all pupils to assimilate into their year group easily, productively and with academic achievement in mind. While we have excellent and well-known credentials in SEN, this is not a core provision of the school. 

If you wish to speak with our SENCO to discuss your child's educational needs, please let the Admissions team know.

Clayesmore has recently introduced a new school uniform which has been happily embraced by our pupils throughout the school. The new uniform will be fully adopted through the school in the 2022/23 academic year.

Prep and Senior pupils have a very closely aligned uniform, making it easy for Year 8s to transition to Year 9 without having to purchase too many additional items - unless new sizes are required. Pupils are required to have a blazer (and tie for boys) for our "Sunday Best" events, where full, formal uniform is required to be worn.

The uniform is purchased via the SchoolBlazer website, who are also able to include name tags on all clothing items and can deliver to your home or school for boarders. New families will receive information about this when they join.

Sixth Form students have a dress code to which to adhere. They are required to have a navy "Sunday Best" suit for formal occasions. This can consists of trousers or a skirt, a jacket and white shirt. This suit must be purchased via the School Blazer website. For everyday wear, students are able to wear a business-style navy or dark grey suit of their choosing, with a navy jumper in colder weather, and conservative business style shirt. Shoes should be comfortable black leather.

The school does not operate a second hand uniform shop, but parents often seek to sell uniform when children have outgrown it and this is best monitored via the year group What's App feeds and Facebook forums.

We operate a gender flexible uniform policy at school and do not force children to wear gender specific items - we are happy to discuss options with you if you feel your child would prefer to have a different choice within the range of uniform on offer.