Transition to High School

Almost all pupils from the Gateways Preparatory transfer to the High School. All Lower III girls sit the High School Entrance Examination, usually held on the last Friday in January, alongside external candidates. The Head of Lower School visits the pupils regularly while they are in Preparatory to talk to them about the next stage of their school career.

Pupils in their last year of Preparatory School attend some classes in the High School in order to prepare them for the transition from the Preparatory School system to the High School system in which they are taught by subject teachers in varying environments.

There are information meetings about the High School for pupils and their parents and opportunities to tour all areas of the school, some of which will be familiar, and others new. In the Summer Term we hold a New Parents’ Evening and a New Girls’ Afternoon when the girls have an opportunity to meet their new form tutor and the other members of their class. Members of the current Upper III speak about their own recent experiences at these events, which is helpful and reassuring to the girls.

The girls do not lose touch with the Preparatory School. Once they are settled in High School, all pupils are encouraged to write back to their 'old' school, and as senior pupils many will go back into Preparatory to help the younger children with their reading or other activities.