Why Choose Notting Hill Prep?
Here at Notting Hill Prep a complete education and genuine childhood joy aren’t mutually exclusive, they’re one and the same. We are one of an exclusive group of advanced-accredited Thinking Schools in England.
Meaning our students aren’t taught simply to recite answers, but to consider and challenge their own ideas. This philosophy is fostered from the moment they arrive in an environment designed to be warm and familiar. Through small classes, a campus designed to promote curiosity and pastoral care that treats every child as an individual, we actively incorporate our ethos at every age level.
The result is a prep school that sends children on to some of the country’s most prestigious senior schools, without ever expecting them to stop being children along the way. Below you can find some of the things that make Notting Hill Prep unique and helpful info so you can explore each one in depth.
Proof points
| Only advanced-accredited Thinking School prep in England | Class sizes capped at 22 |
| Leavers go on to Westminster, Eton, St Paul’s Girls, Harrodian, Bradfield, Francis Holland, Brighton College | Founded 2003 — built by parents and teachers, together |
| NACE Challenge Award and Most Innovative Prep School in England, 2026 |
A Genuinely Different Approach to Thinking
Alot of schools claim to teach children how to think for themselves. Notting Hill Prep can show you exactly how. As an officially accredited ‘Thinking School’, we use Edward de Bono’s ‘Six Thinking Hats’ as a universal language across all subjects and age groups.
We give pupils the tools to gather information before evaluating and reasoning their own opinions. Underpinned by our core values of wonder, challenge, self-knowledge and community. This isn’t a catch phrase, it’s an ethos you can see in all our classrooms, every day.
Explore our Thinking School approach
Academic Rigour Without Losing Childhood
Excellence and joy work in tandem at Notting Hill Prep, never in competition. Pupils are guided by specialists in every subject from an early age, working in our science and design ‘super labs’ and following a curriculum without pressure or limits.
Pupils are allowed to be children, curious and inquisitive. They are also allowed to make mistakes, and try again, as we believe that’s how real confidence is built. Our philosophy not only shows up in results but is felt by our pupils and parents.
Read about our philosophy Learn about our curriculum
Small by Design
Nothing about Notting Hill Prep’s environment is accidental. We cap our classes at 22, so every child is seen, not managed, with our campus being built on the same idea. From our state-of-the-art science and design facilities to our own beehives and air filtration technology.
All our infrastructure is present for wellbeing and not just compliance. Small by no means implies limitation, it means every space is a deliberate choice in favour of the individual child.
Pastoral Care That Actually Shows Up
Kindness and courtesy aren’t values we hope pupils absorb by accident, they’re taught, modelled and expected, every day.
Our pastoral care isn’t a policy on a shelf; it’s the tutor who knows your child had a wobble at break time, and the culture where parents are treated as partners, not spectators, in their child’s education. It’s the reason families describe NHP as feeling less like an institution and more like a community that happens to also be a school.
Where NHP Pupils Go Next
Notting Hill Prep is non-selective for admissions in reception, so every child gets an equal start no matter where they come to us from. And what happens from there is clearly reflected in where they go afterwards.
Our students are accepted into institutions such as Westminster, Eton, St Paul’s Girls, Harrodian, Bradfield, Francis Holland and Brighton College at 11+ and 13+. We see this as proof that curiosity, excitement and personality are often the reasons behind academic success.
Our leavers destinations Check out admissions
A School Rooted in Community
Notting Hill Prep upon foundation has always been rooted in a strong school spirit instilled by the parents and teachers who opened the institution. They also set the groundwork for the NHP Foundation that offers bursaries that give access to families who otherwise couldn’t access a Notting Hill Prep education.
We are also proudly part of the Dukes Education network, providing pupils and teachers with resources and knowledge that extends beyond the campus. Choosing Notting Hill Prep isn’t just joining a school, it’s becoming part of a community.
