WHAT? WHERE?

The New Beacon (TNB) is a boys’ day school with flexi boarding, located on a single site of 22 acres, nestled in woodland, yet only a stone’s throw from the town centre of Sevenoaks, (one of the 10 Kent towns listed in our Best Places to Live).

Founded in 1900, the original school building maintains many of its historic features. The school has its own dedicated St George’s Chapel, used weekly for assemblies, Chapel Services and, less frequently, weddings!

This is the only all-boys’ prep school in Kent (with girls accepted in the Nursery). And it comes complete with brand new Nursery building (for children from 2+) and a flexible weekly boarding provision for 180 boys from 9 to 13 years.

At the heart of every decision the school makes is one central question – what is the best way to teach boys? And this is evident from the Early Years through to finding the right fit for your son(s) at senior school.

Boys are encouraged to embrace their interests and take risks, try new things, make mistakes, explore and develop their talents and passions. The school has a long history and glorious traditions (think Siegfried Sassoon alumni!) but, increasingly, with a modern approach.

FACILITIES

The latest exciting development at TNB is a brand new bespoke Nursery building (for boys and girls from the age of 2) with its own playground and wonderful outdoor learning space.

The Pre-Prep is housed in its own building with large central atrium and classrooms adjoining. Each classroom has access to an outdoor space providing flexibility with teaching and learning and age appropriate play equipment.

The school grounds are pristine – the groundsmen keep busy here, keeping up the striped lawns and gloriously green grass.

Extensive sports pitches are edged by woodland where the outdoor classroom serves all sections of the school and there are a wide range of outdoor learning opportunities here.

Facilities include a chapel (pictured below), cricket pitches, a flood-lit astro turf pitch, an astro-turfed adventure playground, an indoor swimming pool, three IT suites and an impressive state-of-the-art MAC suite where you’ll find green screens, podcasting and digital music.

There’s also a fully equipped science lab; an Art studio, complete with pottery and ceramics kiln; a DT workshop and theatre with full lighting rig and sound decks so that boys can be equally at home in front of or behind the spotlight. But more on all these below.

As you’d expect from a smart boys’ prep there’s a real variety of co-curricular activities from fencing and a rifle shooting range on site to sailing which is offered just up the road at Chipstead Sailing Club where the school owns several dinghies.

Rewilding projects around the site bring nature to the fore of the boys’ learning. There’s a pond for pond dipping and nature studies, that is also home to ducks and crested newts. Science and Gardening Clubs provide boys lots of opportunity to get their hands dirty while learning about nature – they eat what they grow!

The New Beacon prep school Sevenoaks Kent Music Composition 2

Technology is strong here too – from the Mac-based Media Centre – where the boys learn to do brilliant stuff, like create their own Podcasts – to the well-equipped Music department, with enough keyboards to allow a class of boys to all compose their own symphonies, should they wish.

The original brick building is now over 100 years old and has been added to over the years – one impressive architectural addition being the slick New Beacon Centre, (pictured below) which boasts a cleverly designed tiered theatre that can unfold into 300 seats for performances.

You’ve got a Science Centre, DT & ICT Centre and Music & Art Centre – basically I’m not surprised to learn that the facilities are used by other schools and the local community because it’s all going on here.

The New Beacon Centre has a large, open plan studio upstairs overlooking the school grounds and those beautiful sports pitches (hello, afternoon teas in the warmth while watching the sports match outside).

SPORTS

On the subject of sports, they are strong here and sport is taught by a team of specialist teachers and coaches from Nursery upwards – headed up by the new Sports Director, Owen Herbert, who started in January 2024.

Rugby, hockey, football, cricket, basketball, gymnastics, athletics and swimming all form part of the current curriculum – but there’s a lot more on offer – from table tennis to judo, waterpolo to fencing, there is a sporting activity for everyone to enjoy.

The school regularly wins gold or silver medals and plates in inter-school competitions, for example in football tournaments the boys have been very successful. The under 11’s football season have enjoyed a 100% winning streak!

And, as if you needed any further persuading, impressive alumni includes sporting heroes Zak Crawley, Sam Billings, Joseph Choong and Ben Earl, who visited this year and took part in a Q&A session and training session with the boys.

THE ARTS

Perhaps it’s not that surprising that sport is strong here, but what’s really interesting is the other stuff. Research suggests that just as girls are more likely to take up science at an all-girls school, boys in an all-male environment are far more likely to pursue the subjects normally dominated by girls. And that sense of liberation and not conforming to stereotypes is definitely the case here. Art, DT, music and drama are again, specialist taught and big news at The New Beacon.

Large scale productions take place in Years 4 ,6 and 8 building confidence as boys reach the end of each section of the school. No one gets teased for sticking on a wig and a lick of lipstick to play a female in the school productions – in fact we have it on good authority that those roles are the most sought after.

Boys love to sing in the choir here. LAMDA exams have a big uptake and English Speaking Board exams in Years 4 & 8 focus on presenting, performing and public speaking. The Concert Band is full – and many go on to graduate into Big Band higher up in the school. Drama and musical theatre are super popular.

There’s the opportunity to learn over 20 different instruments with peripatetic teachers and over 75 per cent of students take up a musical instrument be that piano, violin, cello, harp, drums, guitar, saxophone, clarinet, oboe, flute, bassoon, bagpipes, accordion, to name a few.

Boys can perform in the school orchestra, big bands, choirs, ‘barbershop groups’, in whole school performances, or in informal concerts. A number of alumni have gone on to become organ scholars at Oxbridge.

Creative boys will love the large art studio and looking at the work on display around the school the level is exceptionally high. The DT department is fully loaded with specialist equipment covering woodwork, metal work, engineering, laser cutting projects – you name it.

ACADEMICS

The boys are keen to show off their DT projects – smile!

This school is all about what’s best for the boys. When a new teacher is recruited the question is – will they be good at teaching boys? Class sizes are small, learning is designed into 30 – 60 min flexible chunks – the optimum time apparently for a male brain to focus on one thing.

The New Beacon is a non-selective school committed to helping every pupil to reach their full potential (no matter what their ability) and boys will leave for a wide range of future schools.

Entry into the school in Nursery and Reception is non-selective, but the school is academically ambitious. After Year 3 evidence of a boy’s work and progress (through previous school reports) will be taken into account before a place is offered.

Any prospective pupils spend a day at the school during which there will be an assessment of his potential – but this does not mean that boys with learning difficulties won’t be offered a place, it’s more about making sure the school is the right fit. There are 3 support teachers on hand in case your child needs a helping hand and around 30 boys currently attending the school receive specialist support for everything from English as a second language to dyslexia.

Speaking of languages, teaching starts early, with French taught informally through games and songs in Reception but weekly lessons from Year 1 build a love of communication.

Specialist taught German and Mandarin clubs are introduced in Junior School for boys who are interested in broadening their repertoire and in Year 8, Spanish and German become termly options alongside French, providing the boys with a strong grounding so that they can make informed language choices when they leave in Year 9.

TPR (Theology, Philosophy and Religion) is introduced in Year 8 providing boys with the opportunity to challenge themselves and think critically about the world in which they live.

Latin is popular amongst the older boys and is taught from Middle School along with Classical civilisations – another firm favourite with the boys. School trips abound and stretch far and wide – from sailing voyages to choir tours in Dubrovnik.

ISI REPORT

Click here to read Inspection Report s.

NEXT STEPS

Naturally, with most Senior schools in Kent starting in Year 7, including all those Grammars, there is some movement at this age. Speaking of which, TNB is rightly proud of the prep’s 100 per cent pass rate at 11+ with over half of the year group sitting and passing the test in 2023. But TNB still maintains healthy numbers at the top of the school – with three quarters of boys staying for Year 7 and Year 8.

Focused on encouraging families to find the right school for their son, pupils leave for a wide range of schools including in recent years: Ardingly College, Beechwood School, Caterham School, City of London School, Cranbrook, Eastbourne College, Eton College, Gresham’s, Harrow, King’s Canterbury, King’s Rochester, Sevenoaks School, Sutton Valance School, Tonbridge School, Whitgift and Worth School. Some will leave after Year 6 for local grammar options such as Judd, Skinners’, Tunbridge Well Boys’ Grammar.

Long regarded as one of the main feeder schools for Tonbridge and Sevenoaks – which gives you an idea of the academic standards here – the relationship with Tonbridge School was formalised in a school merger two years ago.

TONBRIDGE SCHOOL MERGER

Tonbridge is one of the leading independent boys’ schools in the UK and also the only remaining school in Kent that starts at 13+ (Year 9). There’s always been a strong connection between The New Beacon and Tonbridge, with some 20 boys from TNB heading to Tonbridge every year. So the merger, in 2021, pretty much formalised this relationship.

There is a curriculum alignment for those bridge years of Year 7 and Year 8, which has been well received by parents who want their boys to take this route – as Tonbridge is a determinedly selective school and anything that helps secure that place will be a bonus. While it’s easy to see the considerable benefits to both schools of this arrangements, the schools insist they will keep their separate identities.

It stands to reason that anything that helps prepare pupils for entrance assessments and transition to senior school – not just academically but also in terms of confidence and life skills – will be of benefit to ALL boys, whichever their preferred senior school destination. And, in the interests of balance, it might be a good time to point out that TNB has sent boys to no less than 25 different destination schools in the last five years, so Tonbridge is certainly not the be-all-and-end-all.

PASTORAL CARE

Pastoral care has increasingly moved to take centre stage at TNB. There’s a big focus on social and emotional education and wellbeing – they want the boys’ rounded character to be the single thing that sets them apart.

From a School Counsellor to Drawing & Talking sessions, Sensory Circuits, Wellbeing Therapy Dog visits, Zones of Regulation framework, 1-to-1 or small group sessions – there’s a lot in place now – basically whatever the boys need, when they need it.

WRAP AROUND CARE

Children can be dropped off for a full breakfast from 7.30am and, depending on their age, can stay until as late as 6.30pm (5pm for Nursery) completing prep, joining clubs and then enjoying a freshly cooked supper (there is a charge for these).

Clubs include Sailing, Tennis, Drama, Chess, Jiu-jitsu, Reasoning, Arts & Crafts, Greek, Basketball, Squash, Rifle Shooting, Nature Club, Gardening, Move it!, German, Touch Typing, Bricks4Kidsz, ICT fun, Dungeons & Dragons, Genealogy, Advanced Musicianship, and Debating – just to name a few!

Flexi boarding is also a popular option – helping to support modern family life where needed. The school can accommodate up to eighteen boys a night, boarding part time from Monday to Friday. Boys bring their duvets from home in big storage bags, (pictured above), and places are either weekly, nightly or occasional (there are no full-time boarders).

Lots of the boys come from a 30 mile radius as well as international borders and boys choose from a range of fun evening activities making the most of everything the site has to offer.

THE HEAD

Sarah Brownsdon head teacher The New Beacon prep school Sevenoaks Kent

Sarah Brownsdon took over as Head of The New Beacon Prep School, in April 2023 (succeeding Headmaster, Mike Piercy, who stepped down after 15 years in the role).

She’s perfect for the role both on paper and in person. Educated locally, at Walthamstow Hall, Brownsdon has more than 15 years of senior leadership experience in independent, all-boys Preparatory School education. She joined The New Beacon from Dulwich Prep London, the biggest boys’ Prep School in the country, where she was the Senior Deputy Head.

Highly personable, Brownsdon is very easy to chat to and strikes the balance between driving the school’s long-standing reputation for academic rigour and creating an environment where all boys will thrive and reach their potential, coming out as happy, rounded young men. With two teenage sons of her own she clearly understands the priorities, aspirations and, sometimes, challenges faced by modern families.

I’m not surprised to learn the head personally welcomes everyone each morning at Drop Off. Or that parents are comfortable to bring up anything and everything and feel they will be heard.

Sarah Brownsdon has taken over a school in excellent ship-shape condition and is the ideal person to steer it forward with the kind of sensitive and contemporary touch that is befitting of the world today while nurturing the men of tomorrow.

LITTLIES

The New Beacon prep school Nursery Sevenoaks

A brand new Nursery opened this January 2024, in a bespoke, purpose-designed building, complete with sedum roof, solar panels, indoor-to-outdoor free-flow spaces and a private playground just for little ones.

It sits in the heart of their 22-acre site where the children have easy access to the outdoor classroom, woodlands, gardens and duckpond, offering wonderful outdoor learning opportunities.

The focus both inside and out is on natural materials and creating a warm, welcoming environment where little ones feel confident to explore and develop their strengths and interests through fun, play based activities.

The Nursery is one of the key points of entry to the School and is co-educational, accepting children from 2 years of age, so girls can attend until they’re ready to move on to Pre-Prep.

During their time in the Nursery, children benefit from the school’s dedicated team of teachers, Early Years Practitioners, PE, Music and Swimming specialists – who start to lay the foundations for future learning and success.

For the younger boys the school is divided into Pre-Prep (Reception to Year 2) and Junior School (Years 3 – 4) both housed in separate buildings with their own secure environment and identity but use of the main school facilities when needed.

Classrooms are bright and interactive and they have access to the lovely astro-turfed adventure playground.

USP & QUIRKS

Everything here is designed for boy heaven. There are lots of pockets of space for fun and learning outdoors. Woodlands School is a well-used space – there’s a Quiet Play Area too, should your child fancy it – and so boys get to burn off energy and never seem to be bouncing off the walls.

Have a son? Close your eyes and think – what would he like? All learning in flexible 30 min – 60 min chunks to maximise attention span? Tick! Hands-on, practical assemblies where you get to try out experiments, rather than listening to some old bore droning on? Tick! Outside learning, including a pond (pictured above) that’s home to a wooden crocodile? Tick! A snake? Tick!! The New Beacon has all these things. Meet Fizz the school pet snake who lives in the Science block.

There are bees in the Science block too, making honey which the school now sells. One side of the hive is a glass box sitting in the Science Lab, with a removable cover so you can see the bees at work. There’s a bee tunnel leaving the building on the outside so they can come and go happily as they please. As a simple, effective lesson in nature – you don’t get more hands on and engaging than this.

TRANSPORT

The school minibuses run every morning, collecting children from various conveniently located stops to facilitate the school run.

FEES

For the full breakdown of fees, c lick here.

WORD ON THE GROUND

Where the school might have previously had a reputation not just as academic, but for high achievers and possibly a bit pushy, evidence on the ground is that this is a rather outdated, and unfounded, perception.

I had long chats with lots of the current pupils during my visit – from the sensitive souls to the extroverts – and I’m happy to report the kids I met were not only polite to me, but also to each other, and the right side of confident without being arrogant. They spoke very freely (I ask a lot of questions) happy in their own skin kind of thing. I wouldn’t rule out the likelihood that there are some parents who send their kids here and have high expectations for their academic path and success (but aren’t they everywhere?).

THE MUDDY VERDICT

GOOD FOR: It’s hard to imagine a boy that wouldn’t suit this prep, with the ultimate focus being to find the right Senior School destination for each individual. Plus it has the facilities and playing fields of a country school, but happens to be in the suburbs of Sevenoaks. Academic enough for the pushiest of parents but the pastoral care, style of teaching and large amount of sport and extra-curricular activities mean the kids have a ball too.

NOT FOR: On the whole, boys love practical teaching and competition. Both are positively encouraged here. So if you want your son to experience the realities of co-educational learning and how to always sit perfectly still this school might not be for you. Also it’s a relatively large school at around 350 boys so not for you if you’re looking for a smaller setting.

GO SEE FOR YOURSELF: Visit their Open Day on Fri 10 Oct 2025, 9am to 11:30am.

The New Beacon School, Brittains Lane, Sevenoaks, Kent, TN13 2PB, Tel: 01732 452131, newbeacon.org.uk

The New Beacon, Sevenoaks

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