04 Dec 2023
At Walhampton Prep School, we believe in the importance of understanding and participating in every aspect of our students' education. This commitment goes to the very top, as Head, Jonny Timms, demonstrates. Mr Timms recently spent the day immersed in the vibrant world of our Pre-Prep department and, in his own words, shares a unique glimpse into daily life at Walhampton.
17 Nov 2023
A big congratulations to Czar for his Moroccan mountain climb which raised an amazing £600 for The British Red Cross Society. Czar took on the huge challenge during half term overcoming many physical and emotional obstacles along the way during the gruelling 20 hour journey scaling Mount Toubkai in North Africa.
When you’ve run up the path that curls around the hill, or scampered through the Cherry Laurel hedges, you are rewarded with magnificent views across the grounds to the main house. A popular spot from Nursery to Year 8. Often used as a base during Flags – a Walhampton tradition played in the woods by all year groups in the Prep school. The children need to develop the sharpest strategies and tactics and then display determination and speed to win the day!
Our equestrian centre, complete with a multi-purpose manège, is home to a variety of horses and ponies of different heights, ages and abilities. All the ponies belong to individual pupils and are kept at school on working livery contracts, meaning they can be ridden by other pupils. From the most perfect Shetland pony for the smaller rider to Welsh and New Forest Ponies who have fantastic temperaments to ex competition horses for the more advanced riders – all the ponies are part of the Walhampton community and loved dearly.
This is one of three lakes at Walhampton and this one is predominantly used for beginners sailing lessons (keen sailors progress to the Solent) and kayaking. There is also an after school fishing club and regular pond dipping sessions for outdoor learning and science lessons.
We have a 17m heated outdoor pool, which is used during the summer term and sometimes in September. As well as weekly swimming lessons and regular swimming galas, the pool is also used by boarders at the weekend and for an after school activity.
Our Garden of Remembrance was created in 2016 to honour those men and women who endured the bloody battle of Arnhem, in Holland, in September 1944. Within the garden is a beautiful statue depicting a veteran standing alongside two school children carrying sunflowers. This was designed and sculpted by our Head of Art, Jane Pickance, who visited Arnhem as part of a Walhampton school trip and experienced first-hand the special relationship between the school and the veterans.
Sport plays an integral and important role at Walhampton. The combination of qualified staff and fantastic facilities provides outstanding opportunities for the pupils to learn, improve and develop their skills in a wide variety of different sports. Our lower sports field is predominantly used for rugby, football, cricket and athletics. It is large enough to host the Wessex Junior Athletics Championship every summer, with 20 schools taking part.
As well as classrooms and offices, within the main house is Bradfield House, our boarding house. The girls’ dormitories and common room are on the first floor and boys’ dormitories and common room are on the second floor with views across to the Isle of Wight. Our Heads of Boarding and Assistant House Parents all live in flats within Bradfield House, which helps create the ‘home from home’ environment that our boarders thrive in. Our dormitories were described by Tatler as “some of the best we’ve seen”.
Named after the Enid Blyton novels, The Faraway Tree is encased in climbing equipment on the front lawn and is a popular spot at break times.
Our purpose-built sports hall with viewing gallery and a range of equipment, is just part of the suite of sports facilities at Walhampton. Our 100-acre grounds are put to good use and we have ample room on-site to accommodate a wide range of sports including three netball courts, a full-size Astroturf pitch, an outdoor heated pool, riding stables, a sailing lake, games pitches for rugby, football and cricket and an athletics track.
Walhampton has three outdoor netball courts as well as room to play indoors in the Sports Hall. The girls play netball during the Spring term and we often host an annual tournament with other Prep schools in the area.
There’s a purposeful feel to the kitchen garden, particularly when there are raspberries or pears to pick. Throughout the year keen pupils help to weed, plant, stake and sample a range of organically grown fruit, vegetables and herbs from tomatoes, broad beans, runner beans, strawberries, potatoes, onions, rhubarb, to more unusual plants like okra, mini kiwi and cucamelons. The most popular activity is probably watering – we have a huge collection of watering cans, pupils have a ‘splashing’ time and most of the water ends up where it should!
The Clock House is home to our two recently renovated science labs and the computing suite. The two science labs have everything we need for lots of hands-on learning. The science garden is a new outdoor learning space behind the labs. Nextdoor is our fully-equipped computer suite, packed with computers and a bank of Chromebooks. This is also home to our STAG Radio podcast recording studio.
Our self-contained, purpose-built Pre-Prep school was created with the children in mind: it is separate from the potentially daunting surroundings of ‘big school’ but adjacent to it too, so youngsters can easily access facilities including the Chapel, stables, swimming pool, library, ICT, music, performing arts centre, cookery kitchen and all that our 100 acre grounds have to offer. Vibrant classrooms have free-flow access to thoughtfully designed outdoor areas.
We have an outdoor classroom set in the woods within the grounds, which is used as often as possible by children of all ages for lessons, spanning from science to reading. There is a fire pit to keep warm in winter and a canopy to provide shade in summer, with seats and a blackboard to hold attention. This area is only part of the school’s focus on learning outdoors, with many lessons taking place elsewhere in the large grounds.
Our Pre-Prep classes have weekly Forest School sessions which take place in our grounds, predominantly in our Forest School site in the woods near Portmore Lake. The benefits of Forest School extend beyond pure nature. Forest school activities complement and extend the academic curriculum. Children develop resilience, perseverance and determination to succeed as they work. These values are then transferred to the classroom and directly support their literacy, numeracy and other academic development.
Every summer term pupils are invited to join our ever-popular beekeeping club. Our beekeeping expert teaches the children about feeding, hive construction and maintenance. And everyone enjoys the honey produced in our hives. A buzzy time!
The gypsy caravan, which lives on the Front Lawn, was originally bought by Walhampton’s first headmaster, John Bradfield (JB) in the 1960s and used to take the boys camping in the New Forest along with other horse-drawn caravans. It is now owned by old Walhamptonian Lord Montagu of Beaulieu and kindly on loan for the pupils to play in.
The sound of leather of willow fills the air at Walhampton during the summer term with both boys and girls playing as their main sports.
At its heart, Walhampton has a gentle, inclusive and meaningful Christian ethos. A number of engaging services and acts of worship occur each week in our beautiful chapel.
