Markyate, St Albans, Hertfordshire AL3 8AW
10 reasons to choose Beechwood Park School
Top line
Beechwood Park School has a Schoolsmith Score® of 90. It is one of the best independent prep schools in and around St Albans and one of the 3 best primary schools for 5 miles.
School fundamentals
Beechwood Park School is an independent prep day and boarding school for boys and girls (60%/40%) between the ages of 2.5 and 13 years. Boarding from Year 5 for the 10% of pupils who board. All are weekly or flexi boarders. It is a Church of England school, open to all faiths and none. The school has an academically selective admissions policy. It is a standalone prep school, not tied to any one senior school. Beechwood Park School fees range from £4,995 (Rec) to £7,240 per term (2024/25). Fees exclude VAT but include lunches.
Average class size
Beechwood Park School has three classes per year to Year 5 rising to four from Year 6, and an average class size of 16 pupils.
Leavers' destinations
Destinations for most Year 6 Beechwood Park School girls are an independent day school with 50% going to St Albans High School and Berkhamsted School. Around 20% of boys leave at Year 6 for a variety of independent and state schools. At Year 8 St Albans School, Berkhamsted School, Bedford School, and Haileybury usually account for 70% of boys’ destinations. 20%-30% win scholarships and awards. There are around 30 different destination schools per year.
The Beechwood Park School curriculum
School curriculum is based on the National Curriculum and the ISEB Common Entrance curriculum with some additions and variations. It also includes PSHEE, future skills, French, Spanish, Latin. The school teaches subjects discretely, in the main, but maintains a commitment to promoting thinking and project skills. There is cross-curricular referencing, topic teaching of geography, history to Year 4, and humanities to Year 5. The Year 7 and 8 curriculum incorporates skill acquisition, as well as fact acquisition. The school offers each pupil between 5 and 10 different extra-curricular academic activities or hobby clubs.
More on the curriculum
There are regular educational trips for all year groups, visiting speakers and residential trips from Year 5. Forest School for all year groups.
Specialist teaching
Specialist teachers for sport, music and languages throughout, and for most subjects from Year 6.
Sport at Beechwood Park School
School is one of the 50 prep schools with the most extensive sports offers in the UK. Competitive teams in major sports from Year 3. In recent years the school has enjoyed national success in orienteering, swimming.
The Arts at Beechwood Park School
Art, music and drama are taught as discrete curricular subjects to all pupils. All pupils learn an instrument in class and nearly all take extra-curricular instrument lessons from Year 3. Six choirs, orchestra and 18 instrument ensembles. The school offers each pupil over 5 different extra-curricular creative and performing arts clubs.
Wraparound care
Wraparound care from 7.30am to 5.30pm. Facility for occasional boarding.
Find another school near Beechwood Park School
Lockers Park School (5.5 miles); The King’s Junior School, Harpenden (7.3 miles); Westbrook Hay Prep School (7.8 miles); Aldwickbury School (8 miles); Royal Masonic School Cadogan House (14.8 miles).
Little Gaddesden Church of England Primary School (4.3 miles); Brockswood Primary School (4.7 miles); St Cuthbert Mayne Catholic Junior School, Hemel Hempstead (5.3 miles).
Berkhamsted School (5.9 miles); The King’s School, Harpenden (7.3 miles); Abbot’s Hill School, Baird House (8.1 miles); St Albans School (9.6 miles); Stanborough Secondary School (11.1 miles); Tring Park School for the Performing Arts (11.1 miles).
John F Kennedy Catholic School (5.4 miles); The Hemel Hempstead School (5.6 miles); Priory Academy (6.1 miles).