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Kitebrook Preparatory School is a co-educational day and boarding prep for ages 3 to 13, set in the Cotswolds near Moreton-in-Marsh. It runs through to Year 8, with a small boarding offer designed for modern family logistics rather than a traditional full boarding model. Boarding is available from Year 4, with weekly, flexible, or occasional options.
Leadership is in transition. Ms Christine Cook is Interim Head from September 2025, and the school has announced Tim Knapp as the next Head, starting September 2026.
If you are looking for a country prep where outdoor learning is not an add-on, the combination of Forest School style clubs, a structured co-curricular programme, and a distinctive Rural Crafts curriculum gives Kitebrook a clear identity.
Kitebrook’s tone is shaped by its setting and by deliberate programme choices. Outdoor education is positioned as a core part of school life, supported by the school’s grounds and a clear emphasis on learning that extends beyond the classroom. The club list leans hard into outdoors, creativity, and practical skills, with options like Den Building and Gardening alongside structured arts and sport.
The school is owned and governed by the Prep Schools Trust, and operates as a single-site prep with early years through to Year 8. That “all the way through to 13” structure matters: families can settle early, then avoid a second transition at Year 6, while still keeping senior school choices open at 13+.
Boarding is part of the culture but not dominant. The school describes the boarding area as a “home from home”, staffed by Housemaster Mr Tait and Deputy Housemistress Mrs Medcraft, supported by resident assistants. The practical implication is that boarding can function as a weekly rhythm for busy households, or as a stepping stone for pupils likely to board later at senior school.
As an independent prep, Kitebrook does not sit within the same published performance tables as state primaries, and contains no Key Stage 2 results or national ranking metrics for this school. In practice, parents evaluate outcomes through preparedness for Common Entrance, scholarship success, and the breadth of senior school destinations.
The school states that its Senior years (Years 6 to 8) follow the Common Entrance syllabus to prepare pupils for the next stage. That gives a clear academic spine for families targeting traditional independent senior schools.
A useful window into output is the school’s published list of scholarships and awards for the 2024/25 cohort, which includes academic awards to schools such as St Mary’s Calne and Rugby, plus subject awards (for example Art and Drama) to schools including Kingham Hill, Bloxham, Dean Close, and Tudor Hall, as well as a Pate’s 11+ outcome. Treat this as illustrative rather than comprehensive, but it shows a pipeline that spans selective state and independent routes.
Kitebrook’s curriculum proposition has two layers: a conventional preparatory track for examinations and senior school entry, plus a deliberately broader developmental offer.
For older pupils, the school positions Years 6 to 8 as “Senior” years with Common Entrance alignment. Alongside that, the February 2023 ISI compliance report notes the introduction of a baccalaureate programme for Years 7 and 8 since the previous inspection, signalling a skills and enrichment emphasis alongside core subject coverage.
The co-curricular “Pathways” concept also matters academically. The school describes invitation-based pathways in Art, Drama, Sport, and Music, plus sport-specific strands such as swimming and cross-country, explicitly linked to scholarship portfolios and deeper subject development. For families targeting senior school awards, this is the kind of structured scaffolding that can make preparation feel more coherent than a simple after-school club carousel.
For a prep, this is the section that does the heavy lifting.
Kitebrook publishes a scholarships and awards list for the 2024/25 cohort. Named outcomes include academic scholarships to St Mary’s Calne and Rugby, and awards in Art and Drama to senior schools including Kingham Hill, Bloxham, Dean Close, and Tudor Hall. The same list also references a Pate’s 11+ outcome, which points to strong support for selective state pathways where that is a family priority.
Trips and residentials also support the “ready for senior school” arc. The school lists residential experiences by year group, including a Year 7 trip to Chateau de Sauveterre in France and a Year 8 trip to Pompeii, Italy. These are not just travel perks; for many pupils they function as early rehearsal for independence, organisation, and confidence away from home.
Kitebrook describes itself as non-selective, with an admissions process built around visits, registration, and acceptance, rather than entrance exams at 7+ or 8+. Taster days and pre-school settling-in sessions are encouraged and typically take place after acceptance, and families are asked to submit a school report where relevant.
Open events are clearly signposted. The school advertises an Open Morning for pre-school and Reception entry on Friday 6 February 2026 at 10:00. If you miss a set-piece open morning, private tours are offered by arrangement.
Given the rural setting, practical admissions due diligence is about logistics as much as philosophy. Parents should use the FindMySchool Map Search to sanity-check the daily run and any likely transport pinch-points before committing to a weekly routine.
The most recent ISI visit linked from the school’s site is a material change inspection dated July 2024, focused on compliance in areas including safeguarding, supervision, health and safety, and boarding standards in the context of proposed capacity increases. The report records that the school meets the relevant standards in the inspected areas, and describes safeguarding training, reporting culture, and oversight arrangements as established and effective, including in boarding and early years.
The February 2023 ISI compliance inspection also concluded that the school met the Independent School Standards, the boarding standards, and relevant Early Years Foundation Stage requirements, with no further action required.
Day-to-day, the school operates with a defined structure to the day and clear adult presence across extended day and boarding routines. For many families, that predictability is a quiet strength, particularly for children who thrive on routine.
Kitebrook’s extracurricular identity is unusually specific, and that is where it differentiates itself.
Rural Crafts is the headline. The school sets out a programme including dry stone walling, green woodwork, willow work, allotment management, food preservation, and even musical instrument construction as part of a practical curriculum rooted in local traditions. The implication for pupils is confidence with tools, materials, processes, and problem-solving that is tangible rather than theoretical.
Co-curricular clubs are extensive and structured termly, with sign-ups in advance. Sports options include everything from athletics, rugby and hockey to fencing, karate and gymnastics. The school also lists off-site specialist clubs such as shooting, golf and equestrian. Non-sport clubs span STEM, Coding, Chess, Art, Drama, Orchestra, Woodwind, Choral Club, and Young Voices, plus outdoors options such as Den Building and Gardening.
Trips and residentials add a third pillar. The published programme includes year-specific residentials culminating in overseas travel for older pupils, including France in Year 7 and Italy in Year 8. For many children, these experiences become the moments where social confidence and independence accelerate.
Parents comparing options locally can use the FindMySchool Local Hub pages and Comparison Tool to keep shortlisting disciplined as you weigh school culture, commute, and senior school pathways.
*Bursaries may be available for eligible families.
Basis: per term
The school day is longer for older pupils. Drop-off runs 8:00am to 8:30am; Pre-Prep finishes at 3:30pm, and Years 3 to 8 finish at 4:30pm. Clubs run Monday to Thursday with age-banded timings, and there is extended day provision including Breakfast Club from 7:30am to 8:00am (Tuesday to Friday), Late Stay, and an option that runs to 6:15pm with supper (Monday to Thursday).
For travel, Moreton-in-Marsh is the nearest rail hub for many families, with onward road travel to Little Compton and the school site. This is a school where car-based logistics are common, and families should stress-test the daily routine before committing to it.
Fees are published for 2025/26 and charged per term in advance. For Reception to Year 2, termly fees are £5,110 to £5,340; for Years 3 to 5, £6,750 to £6,990; and for Years 6 to 8, £6,990 to £7,340 (all as published by the school for 2025/26).
Boarding is priced to be genuinely flexible rather than all-or-nothing. The school publishes a flexi boarding charge of £72 for one night on an ad hoc basis, or £288 for four nights per week (with notes on how advance billing varies by term length).
Means-tested support is available. Kitebrook’s bursaries are administered by the Prep Schools Trust, and the school states that bursaries may be awarded as a discount of up to 100% of day tuition fees depending on financial circumstances.
Nursery and pre-school fee details are published by the school; for early years pricing and any eligible funded hours, use the school’s official information and current government guidance.
Leadership transition. With an Interim Head from September 2025 and a new Head due to start in September 2026, families should ask how priorities and staffing will be managed through the handover period.
Rural logistics. The setting is a core part of the school’s appeal, but it usually comes with car-heavy routines. Test the commute at realistic times, including clubs and late collection.
Boarding is optional, but still a culture shift. Even flexible boarding changes a child’s week and social rhythm. It can be brilliant for confidence, but it is not neutral.
Destination planning starts earlier than you think. Scholarship pathways and Common Entrance alignment mean senior school planning can arrive quickly once pupils hit the older year groups.
Kitebrook suits families who want a genuinely outdoors-rooted prep education with a distinctive practical curriculum, plus the option of flexible boarding to make modern schedules workable. The offer is strongest for pupils who will enjoy hands-on learning alongside conventional prep academics, and for families who like keeping senior school choices open at 13+. The key decision points are logistics, and how comfortable you feel with the current leadership transition.
For families who want a prep education that combines structured senior-school preparation with a strong outdoors and practical-skills identity, Kitebrook has clear strengths. Recent ISI inspections recorded that required standards were met in the areas inspected, including safeguarding and boarding-related requirements.
Fees are published for 2025/26 on a per-term basis, varying by year group from Reception through Year 8. Means-tested bursaries are available and can cover up to 100% of day tuition fees depending on circumstances.
Yes. Boarding is offered from Year 4 and is positioned as weekly, flexible, or occasional, with published pricing for ad hoc and weekly patterns.
Kitebrook publishes scholarship and awards outcomes for the 2024/25 cohort, including awards to schools such as Rugby, St Mary’s Calne, Bloxham, Dean Close, Tudor Hall, and Kingham Hill, plus a selective state route outcome via Pate’s 11+.
The school advertises an Open Morning for pre-school and Reception entry on Friday 6 February 2026, and also offers private tours by arrangement.
Get in touch with the school directly
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