Visit

Welcome to Admissions

“We understand that choosing the right educational setting for your child is important to you.”

Sheena Clark | Registrar

We aim to give you all the information you need by offering opportunities for you to visit St James, talk to staff about starting school, and provide support throughout the admissions process.

We look forward to welcoming you to our school.

 

Our Admissions Process


1 Open Events

Families are encouraged to visit the school before making an application.

Coming into the Prep School building, and watching us at work is very important. You will pick up on the very special sense of place we have here – one part calm and focus, the other a buzz and joy for learning – which makes St James Prep so unique, and such a popular choice for parents who want their children to be their best and love learning.

Individual tours are also held throughout the year. We look forward to welcoming you to the “hidden gem” that is St James Nursery & Preparatory School.

Book your visit here

Next Open Events

Coffee with the Headmistress

Tuesday 11 June or Wednesday 26 June (9.30am-11.00am)


Reception 2025 Taster Morning

Thursday 10 October (8.30am-10.00am)


Open Morning

Wednesday 6 November 2024 (9.00am – 10.45am)

2 Registration

To register your child for a place at St James, you will need to:

  • complete our online registration form
  • pay a non-refundable fee of £150 per child registered (through the registration form)
  • Upload the required documentation, ie passport, last school report and a digital photograph

Register here

3 Assessment Process

Children entering Nursery, Reception and Year 1 will need to:

  • meet with the Headmistress or Head of Nursery and EYFS
  • attend a Taster Morning with their parents

Children entering in Year 2 upwards will need to:

  • meet with the Headmistress
  • attend a Taster Day
  • take a CAT4 test in Mathematics, Verbal Reasoning and English or a written test in English and Maths

International applicants

We invite overseas applicants who are looking for a place in Years 2 to 6 to meet with the Headmistress and complete a CAT4 test online or a written English and Maths test. Children can then be placed in the correct form group for their ability.


The interview with the Head is as much an opportunity to discuss your child’s individual strengths and needs, as a chance to ask any questions you may have about life at St James.


The Taster Days or Mornings are also opportunities to try out the school and for us to get to know your child a little more.


Please note that we will ask for your child’s most recent school report and any other relevant documentation.

4 Offer

Notification as to whether we can offer your child a place will be sent to you once all these steps have been completed.

Places are offered in order of registration, whilst ensuring an even spread of birth dates, boys and girls and following our sibling priority policy.

5 Acceptance Deposit

Once a place is offered, an acceptance deposit payment must be paid to secure the place.

The deposit is half a term’s fee (a whole term’s fee for non-UK residents) and is returned when your child leaves the school.

Please see our Terms and Conditions for further information.

Entry Requirements

Nursery (2+) Entry

Admission to our nursery is non-selective and children can join at the age of two. There is automatic transfer from our Nursery to Reception at the Prep School.

Reception (4+) Entry

We recommend that you register your child for entry into Reception when they are between the ages of one and two years old. We contact all parents who have registered for a place to join Reception one year prior to entry.

We require a satisfactory report from your child’s current nursery school, if applicable, and priority is given to our Nursery pupils and siblings of current pupils.

Year 3 and 4 (7/8+) Entry

Several children join us in Year 3 or 4 to benefit from our 11+ provision while also having the option to continue to our Senior Schools. We like to think this is the best of both worlds. Please contact Admissions for further details on availability in these year groups.

Occasional Places

Entry to Years 1 to 6 depends on places becoming available during the academic year. You are most welcome to register your child for an occasional place in any year group.

International Applicants

We invite applications from overseas and our international pupils are warmly welcomed to St James. We would ideally like you to visit St James for yourself to see all that is on offer, but understand that this is not always possible. We can facilitate the admission process online.

Our schools are a Sponsor for UK Visa and Immigration and are licensed to support CAS for Child Student Visas.

Please contact Admissions for further information on availability of places and procedures.

If you would like any further information or have further questions, please do not hesitate to get in touch.

Where next?

The Pause

At St James, we feel it is important to introduce our pupils to stillness and allow them to discover how to be inwardly free and deeply at ease within themselves. A short period of 5-10 minutes at the beginning and middle of every day is allocated to quietude in which pupils may meditate, contemplate or simply be still – according to their own spiritual inclinations.

Learn more