UK Boarding Schools | Independent Schools | Private Schools

The three boarding houses are large converted Victorian houses which have been sensitively designed to take into account the ages and gender of the children living in them. Each boarding house has married houseparents, two tutors and a matron living in, and several extra members of day staff who are affiliated with it. There are three junior boarding houses, for girls and boys aged 7–10; boys aged 10–13; and girls aged 10–13. There are extensive new buildings, which include day-house facilities, a classroom computer centre and science laboratories. The school hall and dining hall, together with the art, pottery, technology and library building, make up this excellent situation. There is also a music school, amphitheatre and 550-seat indoor theatre.
The Pre-Preparatory School, known as the ‘Squirrels’, is a self-contained school within the Dean Close School grounds (see page 83).
A new state-of-the-art theatre surrounded by 13 new classrooms is due to be opened in September 2013.

Curriculum
Boys and girls enter the School from age 3, and the School follows the basic National Curriculum and Common Entrance syllabus, aiming all children towards examination at 13+ for entry to the Senior School. The School has excellent educational facilities, including an outstanding computer set-up along with modern laboratories.

Sport
The main games for the boys are rugby, hockey and cricket, and for the girls are hockey, netball, tennis, cricket and rounders. Children swim in the School’s indoor heated 25-metre pool all year round. There is a new sports centre with large gymnasium, fitness suite and dance studio, in addition to extensive playing fields, two water-based Astro pitches, a climbing wall and a shooting range.

Activities
There is a very extensive programme of extramural activities and all the children are encouraged to participate.

Pastoral care
The pastoral care is of the high quality one would expect in a Christian Family school, and the structure of the day and boarding houses ensures the maximum attention to all aspects of a child’s life at the School.

Type and location
Dean Close Preparatory School is the prep school for Dean Close School, and the vast majority of boys and girls enter the Senior School at 13+ via Common Entrance and scholarship examinations. The School is situated in 55 acres of lovely grounds on the edge of the Regency town of Cheltenham in Gloucestershire. The School has an excellent minibus arrangement for collection and delivery to the major airports.

A Christian school
Dean Close Preparatory School is very much a Christian Family school, where all Scripture teaching and assemblies are Bible-based, and there is
a strong Christian Union.The School provides the choristers for Tewkesbury Abbey, the Tewkesbury Abbey Schola Cantorum of Dean Close Preparatory School. Choristerships are available from age 7 to 13.


A boarding and day community with a Christian family atmosphere, excelling in all-round education.

Dean Close Prep School invest £4.5 million for new building

Due to its continuing success and despite the difficult economic climate, the School is investing in a new building which is due to be completed in autumn 2013.

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Dean Close Prep School Perform the Wizard of OZ

With a cast of 97on the stage in the School’s Bacon Theatre, the musical The Wizard of Oz was a feast for the eyes - a spectacular show with lots of surprises.

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Year 3 Entry
Dean Close Prep offers an academic award into Year 3. The assessment process will take into account pupil’s ability, potential, attitude and work ethos. The awards will be open to internal and external pupils alike. Pupils must be under 8 on the 1st September on the year of application.

The Prep School offers awards of up to 15% of the day fees, excluding any extras. Awards will commence on September 1st of Year 3 and run to the end of Year 6, by which time pupils will have the opportunity to sit for 11+ scholarships. There is no set number of awards; they will be awarded on merit to internal and external pupils alike.

Award assessments take place in March.

Pupils will be given an opportunity to demonstrate Literacy and Numeracy skills as appropriate for their age as well as show academic potential through baseline testing. Test that will be taken will include a computer based assessment test, an English comprehension and short extended writing exercise, and a Maths paper. Each paper will last approximately 20 minutes. There will also be some challenges and puzzles to look at group interaction and problem solving.

Confidential reports from the Pre-Prep or the candidate’s current school will also be sought to give an idea of standing in relation to their peers and all round suitability.

Once papers have been marked a review panel analyses scholarship assessments and letters of offer, as appropriate, are sent to parents within two weeks of the examinations. The final decision rests with the Headmaster of DCPS; no further correspondence will be entered into.

Any parent with questions about their child’s suitability for an academic award should contact their current Headmaster or Headmistress who will be able to give a good indication of academic potential and suitability.

Year 7 Entry
TO VIEW SCHOLARSHIP BROCHURE click here
The school offers six different types of scholarship for pupils joining in Year 7. These are Academic, Music, All-Rounder, Design Technology, Art and Sport. For those applicants who show considerable academic promise, but not of the standard required for Scholarship, an Academic Exhibition may be offered. Awards made at 11+ carry on to the Senior School until such time as the pupil leaves Dean Close. Awards are subject to good behaviour, academic endeavour and commitment to the whole life of the School. They are rarely revoked or reduced; however, they are reviewed annually.

The number of individual awards made each year depends solely on the calibre of the candidates.

DATES FOR SCHOLARSHIP ENTRY 2013

Art and Design Technology - Tuesday 15 January 2013 (practical exams); Friday 18 January 2013 (written tests)
Music - Wednesday 16 January 2013 (practical exams); Friday 18 January 2013 (written tests)
Academic and 11+ entrance tests for All-Rounder, Art , Design Technology, Music and Sports Scholarships - Friday 18 January 2013
Sports tests for Sports and All-Rounder Scholars - Saturday 19 January 2013
Please ring the Admissions Office on 01242 258001 if you are interested in scholarships for entry in September 2013.

CLOSING DATE FOR SCHOLARSHIPS 2013 - Monday 10 December 2012

Click to download 11+ Scholarship Forms. It is possible to print individual pages depending on which scholarship/s you are interested in. Please note that scholarship forms must be accompanied by a completed Registration Form and fee of £100.