WHAT? WHERE?

Moulsford School is a prep school with day, flexi or weekly boarding in South Oxfordshire, set in an idyllic 30 acre location by the river, but, newsflash – the school announced in May 2024 that it plans to go fully co-ed. The Pre-School and Pre-Prep went co-ed as of Sept 2023, then the plan is to take girls into Year 3 in Sept 2026, with a view to having girls in every year group by Sept 2031.

Sympathetic modern buildings house the Prep School classrooms for the 300 (currently only) boys aged 7–13, of whom roughly 45 are boarders. A purpose-designed state-of-the-art Pre-Prep building (opened September 2022) is home to 75 boys and girls in Pre-School (from 3+), Reception, Year 1 and Year 2.

FACILITIES

/SPORT

Excellent and evolving. Sport is a BIG DEAL at Moulsford with 8 cricket pitches, 12 sets of cricket nets, one large hockey pitch on the astro (which can be divided into two small pitches), 4 tennis courts, up to 12 football/rugby pitches and a massive indoor gym that’s marked up for tennis, badminton and basketball with an indoor climbing wall to boot (not to mention a natty mezzanine with views over the river). There’s a 15 metre outdoor swimming pool, and tentative plans now for another astro.

You’ll find plenty of prep schools with that kind of sports roll call, but not many of them have this kind of view or access to the river.

My view from the upper pavilion of the sports hall

The school, unsurprisingly, offers comprehensive water sports including kayaking, canoeing and even dinghy sailing where kids can go up to ‘Goose Poo Island’ for the full Swallows & Amazons experience. Paddleboarding has gone berserk here and the school has just bought a further 12 boards (you might catch headmaster Ben Beardmore Gray on the river in the early evening too). Moulsford has recently bought 8 new ergos and are exploring rowing as an option. And since 2021 there has been an increased focus on hockey, with the sport given proper timetabling for the kids to get more exposure.

Moulsford sport once had a reputation for ‘win first, inclusivity second’, but there’s been a shift over the last few years – the head master only referees the lower team matches, the first XV rugby jerseys have been phased out, and schools chosen for the fixture lists are deliberately of a similar size, so all teams have a fair chance to shine.

/THE ARTS

Drama-wise, the main school hall is small but well-appointed with all the theatre lighting and pull-out tiered seating you’d expect. All kids get the opportunity to perform or be involved in a drama production each year, drama courses run in holidays and children in certain years being offered an introduction to film production. 10% of kids here go through LAMDA exams.

The dedicated music space is relatively small at Moulsford, but even so 65% of senior boys choose to learn instrument here (that’s on the higher side of what I experience going round schools). Boys play a wide variety of instruments across brass, woodwind and strings – even including the harp – it is considered cool to be a member of the orchestra or choir. The performing arts are being taken seriously – in 2017 the school introduced its inaugural dedicated summer music concert on the front lawn and it’s now the second most important event of the school calendar, after Prize Giving.

LITTLIES

Moulsford’s new state-of-the-art Pre-Prep building opened in September 2022, home to a Pre-School, Reception, Year 1 and Year 2.

Watch for a typical day in the life of a pre-prep student

The Pre-Prep build is the latest example of Moulsford showing real teeth in taking sustainability seriously. The school recently launched its Environmental and Sustainability Plan and the new Pre-Prep fits that perfectly – solar panels and air source heat pumps to provide underfloor heating, natural ventilation is provided through roof turrets, green roofs will cover flat roof areas, rainwater is harvested, and extensive planting and landscaping with wild flower meadows will shield the building from the road.

ACADEMICS

Moulsford isn’t overtly academic in its selection process (the school is over-subscribed and looks actively at ‘all round’ abilities) and in fact, 45 of its children have 1:1 learning support, mostly for dyslexia/dyspraxia. A purpose-designed new Learning Support classroom hub, fitted out with the latest in technology and kit to support those with additional learning needs, has been opened for September 2023, housed in a conversion of the former uniform shop (now online).

Small class sizes and a smart use of technology (£1m invested in the last 12 years) have kept standards up, and also stood the school in good stead when Covid decided to say hello in 2020.

Interestingly Moulsford was one of the first schools to opt out of working toward the Common Entrance exam and design its own curriculum on its own pre-testing for next schools. In 2024, at 13+ boys progressed to Abingdon School, Pangbourne College, Radley College, Magdalen College School, Reading Blue Coat, Harrow, Eton, Wellington, Winchester, St Edward’s Oxford, Shiplake, The Oratory, Cokethorpe and Bloxham. In 2024, 11 scholarship awards were gained across Academic, Sports, Drama and Music to Abingdon, Eton, Stowe, Reading Blue Coat, Radley, Magdalen College, Shiplake and Bradfield.

Looking ahead to when Moulsford welcomes girls throughout, with so many of Moulsford’s senior schools already or shortly going co-ed, there will be plenty of options for girls. Moulsford is working hard to build relationships with all-girls’ senior schools between now and 2031 when the first girls leave at 13+, to ensure plenty of single sex senior options for them too.

ACTIVITIES

Five years ago Moulsford initiated a radically new Activities Programme from Reception to Year 8. I like the way it’s successfully unlocked potential and opened the pupils’ eyes to having a go at things they wouldn’t ordinarily attempt.

Basically, every half term the students can choose an activity every day (45 – 60 mins, depending on age), anything from music theory, fencing, dance and gymnastics, to rugby fit, kayaking, sewing and night running. For pre-prep, it’s the likes of music and movement, golf, balance biking (great idea), drama, mindful drawing and board games.

BUT the pupils have to have to tick boxes for healthy living, performance and the arts, self-development, community service and adventure, which means that a sports nut can’t just do sport, they have to try, say, public speaking. Conversely the music prodigy has to step out of their comfort zone and try dance. Only by showing they’ve tried hard to master a new skill will they be in the running to win the Moulsford Award. Such a great initiative – I know with my own kids how hard it is to get them to step out of their comfort zone so to reward the effort is super-smart.

PASTORAL CARE

No school can ignore the pressures now enveloping children and Moulsford is taking it seriously. For starters, one of the school’s two Deputy Heads has the sole task of providing pastoral care for the kids. Over the last year Moulsford has also upped the hours for the school counsellor, and AS tracking continues to help identify pupils who are at a hidden risk of developing social and emotional difficulties. Twenty staff have been trained in mindfulness to teach the pupils to slow down and reflect (as a day school primarily the pace is fast here) and school lunch break has been extended to 70 minutes.

Moulsford has recently (March 2022) been accredited with the national Schools’ Wellbeing Award, developed in partnership with the National Children’s Bureau (NCB) – a kite mark that rewards the promotion of emotional wellbeing and mental health across individual schools.

THE HEAD

Ben Beardmore-Gray has been at the helm here for ten years, and has pretty much overhauled the school in that time. Married with three kids, he’s affable, smart, blazered up, and more English than a mid-afternoon cream tea. Wife Sarah is a smart cookie, overseeing the marketing, along with more practical aspects like dorm decor and, most recently, the new school uniform – checked shirts, blue jumpers and generally less grey.

Ben previously ran a co-ed prep school, Mowden Hall in Northumberland, for 7 years, so he’s got plenty of experience in co-education and knows what to expect when he welcomes girls to the Prep school.

QUIRKS

Moulsford’s strength is not really about quirkiness – I think parents probably choose this school because it’s the quintessential English prep school, big on sport, academics, the arts, and manners, though any school that sends children sailing off to a place called Goose Poo Island shows a smart grasp of how little kids’ minds work.

WRAP AROUND CARE

Nearly all Moulsford’s kids come from a 20km radius of the school, nearly all boarders are local too – either kids who want to do a couple of days a week for fun or older children who are getting in the zone for the time when they board at Senior School. The dorms were refurbed a few years ago with new carpets, repainting, blinds, curtains, and a cosy common room area.

There are 36 beds and priority goes to weekly boarders (Mon – Fri, there’s no Saturday school), but it’s possible to board on single pre-booked nights too. In terms of after-school care, all children can stay until 5.45pm for prep or activities, and if the school is notified first thing in the morning, children can also stay for supper and play until 8pm. In holidays, there are week long (paid for) courses put on for the kids in sport, art, drama, music etc.

ISI REPORT

Recently inspected in March 2022 by the Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI), with the highest possible grade of ‘Excellent’ awarded in all areas. Click here for the full report (2022).

MOBILE PHONE POLICY

I’m sure most parents will be thrilled to read this – mobile phone use is prohibited for day schoolers and flexi boarders, and weekly boarders are allowed only 30 minutes per night.

FEES

Pre-Prep day fees start at £4,710, rising to £7,035 per term for Prep day fees. With boarding the termly fees are £8,800, so I’d say the fees are broadly average.

WORD ON THE GROUND

The mums I spoke to are extremely pro Moulsford and like the head and the changes he continues to implement. Music and drama provision have improved though sport is still the standard bearer. That said, previous moans about lack of involvement for lower teams down the pecking order have largely gone with a much more inclusive ‘sport for all’ philosophy. The introduction of a new school uniform a couple of years ago went down very well with the boys – apparently it’s way more warm and comfortable.

THE MUDDY VERDICT

Good for: Kids with energy to burn, who thrive on an outdoorsy, idyllic Swallows & Amazons-style school. Sporty kids will love it here, but the head is eager to promote an all-rounder ethos and the arts are far from ignored here. Discipline is strong and manners are drilled in with military precision – the students I met were incredibly polite and assured.

Not for: Vehemently non-competitive kids may not enjoy the give-it-a-go attitude at Moulsford.

Dare to disagree? Don’t take my word for it! Have a look for yourself at the next Open day or take a virtual tour.

Moulsford School, Moulsford-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, OX10 9HR. Tel: 01491 651438. moulsford.com

Moulsford School, Moulsford, Oxfordshire

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