Bucks &amp; Oxon

<p>My son has been at SHS for 9 years (since the age of 3) and will be moving on this year to a specialist music and drama school.  My boy has dyslexia and couldn&#8217;t have been supported more by the school.  I can highly recommend Justine Mitchener as SENCo; she is wonderful..!  The teachers in general couldn&#8217;t do more and work incredibly hard. We will miss SHS very much, but I have no doubt Jane Thorpe will continue to take the school from strength to strength.  She is a wonderful asset to the school and has brought about much change for the good already.  Thank you Swanbourne!</p>


<p>I went to swanbourne house for 10 years and  had the most amazing time. I left in 2013 so a lot will have changed since then, but there was the best friendly and caring community that encouraged everyone to get involved!! Many many happy memories.</p>


<p>My daughter boarded here from age 8 -13 and LOVED her time here.</p>
<p>She was never a strong academic but has moved to here next school (Gordon&#8217;s in Woking) with a really rounded and higher than average base to work from.</p>
<p>Sport wise and from a boarding perspective, she positively thrived and was very sad to leave the school last summer.</p>
<p>All staff, from the Head down were always supportive and caring.</p>
<p>Highly recommended.</p>
<p>Tim</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-where"><strong>WHAT? WHERE?</strong></h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="664" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM7_6938.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-152984" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM7_6938.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM7_6938-800x531.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM7_6938-400x266.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM7_6938-791x525.jpg 791w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>Swanbourne House School is an all-rounder co-ed Prep School (3-13 years)  in the rural village of Swanbourne, north of Aylesbury and close to Winslow and Milton Keynes in Bucks. The only co-ed Prep School to offer full boarding in the county, you&#8217;ll find Swanbourne&#8217;s handsome early Victorian stone mansion nestled in 55 acres of grounds &#8211; plenty of room in which the 300 or so kids can&nbsp;dash around, including massive wooded areas for den-making and tree-climbing. Most of the children here are day pupils, but there&#8217;s ad hoc, flexi, weekly and full-boarding on offer from Y3 upwards, with most kids starting in Y4-5. Classes here are small &#8211; maximum of 18 in each of the two class intakes per year. </p>



<p>A huge advantage for Swanbourne has been its incorporation since 2021 into <a aria-label="The Stowe Group  (opens in a new tab)" href="https://www.stowe.co.uk/school/news/latest-news/the-stowe-group" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Stowe Group </a>of schools (Winchester House School prep in Brackley also having been scooped up). Part of a national trend that has seen deep-pocketed Senior Schools financially partner with feeder school preps, it&#8217;s good news for Swanbourne, with cash at its disposal and Stowe School&#8217;s excellent facilities and expertise now at its disposal.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-sport">SPORT</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="665" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM6_5436.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-152987" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM6_5436.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM6_5436-800x532.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM6_5436-400x266.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM6_5436-789x525.jpg 789w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>Sportswise, there&#8217;s a well-kept 20m indoor swimming pool within an attractive walled area, an athletics track, a mixture of grass and artificial cricket nets, four astro pitches, 3 tennis courts including 2 grass courts (*swoon*), a Cricket Pavilion, a dance studio and&nbsp;a 6-hole golf course with views over the Vale. The indoor hall&nbsp;accommodates&nbsp;three badminton courts as well as facilitating indoor cricket nets and mini basketball courts. </p>



<p>Like other schools I visit with a small cohort, Swanbourne is introducing sports that can be excelled at individually as well as together &#8211; they have an equestrian team, and triathlon is being encouraged here. That said, football has now been given equal footing with rugby &#8211; the Head of Sport was the coach for Arsenal ladies which no doubt helps! &#8211; and lacrosse is back on the curriculum too. </p>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="665" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM6_6784.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-152989" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM6_6784.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM6_6784-800x532.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM6_6784-400x266.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM6_6784-789x525.jpg 789w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>There&#8217;s no mixed sport here which is a bit surprising given the school&#8217;s size and the current trend in Prep schools to integrate talent, but watch this space &#8211;  the new Head is keen to promote sport, and is looking to upgrade the sports facilities and upgrade the swimming pool, nothing is off the table.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-arts">THE ARTS</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="563" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/Screenshot-1.png" alt="" class="wp-image-152991" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/Screenshot-1.png 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/Screenshot-1-800x450.png 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/Screenshot-1-400x225.png 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/Screenshot-1-900x507.png 900w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>In 2015 the Music department was refurbished and now boasts practice and teaching rooms, plus a percussion room. There&#8217;s currently a Musician in Residence, an enthusiastic 18 year old from Bedford School, who I watched taking a class with awe.</p>



<p>Drama is an area that currently lacks its own dedicated space, with the main gym hall doubling up for drama shows and assemblies, though Stowe School&#8217;s Roxburgh Hall is available on demand. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-littlies">LITTLIES</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="667" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/swanbourne-sept-2022-36.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-152992" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/swanbourne-sept-2022-36.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/swanbourne-sept-2022-36-800x534.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/swanbourne-sept-2022-36-400x267.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/swanbourne-sept-2022-36-787x525.jpg 787w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>During Covid Swanbourne cancelled its nursery for 3 year old entry but the new Head Nick Holloway has reinstated it for 2023 as a common sense measure &#8211; how better to recruit for Reception?! &#8211; and it currently has 20 young guests. It&#8217;s a gorgeous space with a large sheltered outdoor area, a big garden, digging area, new playground and fort play area, of course, access to the woods. The building, which has recently gained a dining room in the newly refurbished conservatory, dates back to Elizabethan times and is the oldest in the village.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-academics">ACADEMICS</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="667" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/swanbourne-sept-2022-11.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-152993" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/swanbourne-sept-2022-11.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/swanbourne-sept-2022-11-800x534.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/swanbourne-sept-2022-11-400x267.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/swanbourne-sept-2022-11-787x525.jpg 787w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>Swanbourne has been non-selective in the past, but Head Nick Holloway seems keen to be more &#8220;gently selective&#8221; in his approach &#8211; not creating an academic hothouse, but confident to know which children will best suit the school. Currently there&#8217;s a Bright Young Things club for Years 3-6 at Stowe School to stretch the most talented kids, and there&#8217;s an internal scholar mentoring programme where all scholars meet every Saturday for workshops and support  and Holloway has re-assessed every subject (including DT and Art) for possible improvements. </p>



<p>In terms of the co-curricular offering, the Saturday Enrichment programme provides two 75 minute sessions for Years 5-6 (optional) and Years 7-8 (compulsory) across a wide range of interests, from DT, art and music to fencing, trampolining and even puppetry.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">SEND </h2>



<p>There&#8217;s a Learning Support cabin that&#8217;s open all day for drop ins as well as one-to-one and small group work. Justine Michener is the SENDCo, and highly respected &#8211; she taught my three children at primary school back when she was an Ofsted-outstanding head teacher, so I can report personally that the kids here are in good hands.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-pastoral-care">PASTORAL CARE</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="563" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/Screenshot-2.png" alt="" class="wp-image-152995" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/Screenshot-2.png 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/Screenshot-2-800x450.png 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/Screenshot-2-400x225.png 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/Screenshot-2-900x507.png 900w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>The major benefit of a school with just shy of 300 pupils is that it&#8217;s hard for kids to slip through cracks. From Y5 upwards, every child has a Personal Tutor as well as a Form Tutor and they meet weekly, and the pastoral care system in school is managed by a Safeguarding Lead, who is a member of the school’s Senior Leadership Team. There&#8217;s a Wellbeing Garden that&#8217;s due a spruce over winter and a brand new Wellbeing room that was opened by Betsy &#8216;wife of Ian&#8217; Duncan in Oct 23 (her father is The 5th Baron Cottesloe of Swanbourne and Harwick).</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-boarding">BOARDING</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="678" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM6_2288.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-152996" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM6_2288.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM6_2288-800x542.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM6_2288-400x271.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM6_2288-774x525.jpg 774w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>Boarding is central to Swanbourne&#8217;s USP and an area that the current Head wants to expand further, particularly the full-time boarders, who are generally international pupils. Currently around 3% of the school population, the plan is to raise the full boarding numbers to around 10% to help foster a strong boarding community. There&#8217;s been investment in the boarding houses, which are on the top two floors of the main manor house, and some originality at play with fun wallpapers and retro fittings. There are currently around 60 boarders, most of whom start in Year 4 or 5. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-head">THE HEAD</h2>



<p>Nick Holloway arrived in Sept 23 for this, his first Head Teacher role, from Brambletye School in Sussex, where he was Deputy Head. All smiles and unabashed excitement to be getting stuck into the role, he&#8217;s wearing an outfit that includes both the countryside staple of padded gilet, and also some natty spotty socks, a visual analogy for what he&#8217;s trying to achieve &#8211; traditional Prep values delivered with new energy and flair. Holloway had a previous working life outside teaching, working for Bank of Scotland and Lloyd&#8217;s Bank, and he is taking a very calm, structured approach to the role &#8211; the vibe is very much that the grown-ups have arrived!  </p>



<p>Already he&#8217;s run focus groups with parents to find out what they want more of (turns out it&#8217;s social events and better communication). He&#8217;s also introduced GL standardised testing to better understand how each child learns, dispensing with the three separate tests that were previously used. There are some easy wins around the school that he&#8217;s clearly dying to get his teeth into &#8211; some cosmetic like making the interior design work more sympathetically with the building (his architecture degree no doubt fuelling an interest), others more ambitious like creating a cohesive relationship between the bottom astro, little-used but beautiful orchard and the pool area. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-quirks">QUIRKS</h2>



<p>It&#8217;s a traditional prep school offering here, and quirkiness is not high on the agenda, but one way Swanbourne has bucked the trend is to move away from Common Entrance exams to the <a href="https://www.psbacc.org/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">PSB educational model</a> &#8211; the Pre-Senior Baccalaureate, based on skills such as leadership, arts and debating as well as core knowledge. There are now 40 schools signed up nationally, including local schools The Beacon and Davenies in Buckinghamshire, and New College School Oxford.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-wrap-around-care">WRAP AROUND CARE</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="678" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM7_7415.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-152997" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM7_7415.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM7_7415-800x542.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM7_7415-400x271.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM7_7415-774x525.jpg 774w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>Breakfast Club starts at 7.30am and, if parents are running late, kids can stay on past until 6.30pm with no notice, meaning prep and supper are cleared by the time kids get home.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-isi-reports">ISI REPORTS</h2>



<p>Swanbourne nailed an &#8216;Excellent&#8217; rating by the ISI (Independent Schools Inspectorate) in 2018; The school was awarded the rating in all aspects of the report which assessed by the quality of education and other achievements and the pupil&#8217;s personal development. <a href="https://www.isi.net/school/swanbourne-house-school-7085" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Read all the reports here (opens in a new tab)">Read all the reports here</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fees">FEES</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="667" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM7_8447.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-152999" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM7_8447.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM7_8447-800x534.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM7_8447-400x267.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM7_8447-787x525.jpg 787w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p>Keeping pace with other local prep schools I&#8217;d say. Per term, full boarding&nbsp;fes are £9,936, weekly boarding&nbsp;£9,288,&nbsp;Day Fees (Year 5-8) £7,290,&nbsp;Day Fees (Year 4)&nbsp;£6,156,&nbsp;Day Fees (Year 3)&nbsp;£5,724,&nbsp;Day Fees (Reception &#8211; Year 2)&nbsp;£4,266. For all school fees, <a href="https://www.swanbourne.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Swanbourne-House-School-Fees-2023-24.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">download this brochure</a>.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-transport">TRANSPORT</h2>



<p>The school transport has been expanded and now covers several surrounding areas, to and from school, including Woburn Sands and Milton Keynes. </p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-word-on-the-ground">WORD ON THE GROUND</h2>



<p>The Swanbourne parents I talked to are very pro the new Head &#8211; it&#8217;s early days but they like the direction he is taking the school. The Stowe partnership is popular too, though some parents would like even more interaction between the two schools.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-muddy-verdict">THE MUDDY VERDICT</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1000" height="666" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM6_1398-low-res.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-153000" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM6_1398-low-res.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM6_1398-low-res-800x533.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM6_1398-low-res-400x266.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/bucksoxon/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/11/JM6_1398-low-res-788x525.jpg 788w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></figure>



<p><strong>Good for:</strong>&nbsp; Parents looking for their child’s all-round education; those who want an outdoorsy, idyllic country setting for their kids; anyone who needs flexible childcare. </p>



<p><strong>Not for</strong>: This is a rural setting, and may not suit those who want proximity to the facilities of a city. The idea of Saturday school, even under the guise of &#8216;enrichment&#8217;, will be a Marmite moment.</p>



<p><strong>Dare to disagree? </strong>Be my guest!&nbsp;You can arrange a <a aria-label="private tour by email (opens in a new tab)" href="mailto:admissions@swanbourne.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">private tour by email</a>. </p>



<p><em><a href="https://www.swanbourne.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Swanbourne House School (opens in a new tab)">Swanbourne House School</a>, Swanbourne, Milton Keynes Bucks MK17 0HZ Tel: 01296 720264. <a href="https://www.swanbourne.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="swanbourne.org (opens in a new tab)">swanbourne.org</a></em></p>


Swanbourne House School, Swanbourne

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