PROSPECTUS
HEAD’S WELCOME Lady Barn House School has created its special atmosphere and reputation for excellence over nearly 150 years of educating boys and girls. At Lady Barn, we have a strong sense of community and a common purpose of ensuring that each individual child achieves their full potential. The pupils are at the heart of our school. We foster a love of learning and ignite children’s curiosity in the world around them. Throughout the school, pupils are encouraged to be bold and aim high, take risks and challenge themselves. Our friendly, cohesive community fosters an environment where ambition is never stifled, where existing talents are honed and new ones are discovered, where inquisitive minds are developed and where pupils grasp every opportunity that comes their way.
Ms Louise Higson, Headmistress
IT IS A JOURNEY OF DISCOVERY, OPPORTUNITY AND SUCCESS. 01
FORWARD THINKING SINCE 1873 Lady Barn House School was founded in 1873 by the educational pioneer,W.H. Herford. Herford’s approach was highly unusual in its time: that girls and boys should be educated together and experience the same curriculum; that teachers should be positive and kindly role models of the school’s values; that physical fitness is paramount and that the outdoors provides a treasure trove for learning by discovery and asking questions. And so it remains today at Lady Barn, true to our heritage and traditional values, we equip children for a future as yet unknown, but that they can shape. Lady Barn goes from strength to strength, building on its success and continuing to be forward thinking and ambitious for our pupils.
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A JOURNEY OF DISCOVERY, OPPORTUNITY AND SUCCESS The Lady Barn journey begins in our purpose-built EYFS Department, where our ‘Baby Barners’ can grow. Cared for by the highest quality Early Years staff, the children lay firm academic, social, physical and creative foundations. Academic success is a key feature of a Lady Barn education and we are very proud of our long record of achievement in enabling our pupils not only to gain places and scholarships at schools locally and further afield, but to move on confidently, to find their feet and make their mark.
THERE IS SOMETHING FOR EVERYBODY AT LADY BARN
With a maximum class size of 22 through the school, plenty of individual attention is provided for each child. Specialist teaching in Sport, Music, Science, Computing, Drama, Mandarin, French, Spanish and Art and Design provide challenge, variety, balance and breadth to our curriculum. Our award-winning Challenge and Research programmes enable every child to push their own limits and follow their own passions. We offer a wealth of co-curricular activities, day trips and residential visits to the UK and further afield, all designed to develop independence in our pupils, and opportunities to make discoveries about the world and themselves.
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YOUNG MINDS IN CARING HANDS Lady Barn’s family ethos and the warmth of relationships enable our pupils to feel happy and secure. Our staff create Lady Barn’s celebrated pastoral support structure for the children. Each child has a form teacher who oversees their academic and pastoral development, spending time with them every day and recognising when a little extra care and attention is needed.
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Our school values – creativity, resilience and teamwork – underpin all relationships in school. We hold regular assemblies and have dedicated space on the timetable to consider themes such as friendship, the meaning of respect and recognising right from wrong. Most impor tantly of all, Lady Barn is a school where children care for and suppor t one another in a way that we believe to be quite unique, stemming from our ethos of kindness which, put simply, has become over the decades par t of the school’s DNA.
NURTURING CONFIDENCE AND CREATIVITY Lady Barners are encouraged to become confident and creative individuals. This is a skillset that will serve them well throughout their lives and is why we have great emphasis on and provision for the creative and performing arts. Colourful displays of paintings, drawing, photographs and project work showcase the children’s talent and achievement across the school.
Specialist drama teaching and the opportunity to take LAMDA examinations from Year 2 lead to many opportunities to perform in concerts and productions. Music teaching starts in Nursery, and from Year 3, children can take up a wide range of musical instruments with our visiting music teachers. Our orchestra, ensembles and choirs ensure there is something for everyone, whatever their talent, level or instrument.
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SPORT FOR ALL From Nursery onwards, every child has the chance to shine and develop their physical skills, decision-making and fitness levels with our specialist sports teaching team. We want every child to enjoy physical activity in its many forms, to find particular sports that they enjoy and achieve in to the best of their ability. Our children learn to be team players and team leaders - playing hard, but winning (and sometimes losing) with good grace. Our main team sports are football, hockey and cricket for boys and netball, hockey and rounders for girls. From Year 2 we have a full fixtures programme enabling children of all abilities to represent the school. We also hold fixtures where boys and girls create mixed teams to compete. As far as football and gymnastics are concerned, Lady Barn has won itself a national reputation for excellence.
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On site facilities include two high quality, multisport astro-turf areas, a fully equipped indoor gymnasium and ECB approved, two-lane cricket nets. Regular swimming lessons are provided at a local pool from Year 3 to Year 6. Our innovative Physical Education curriculum allows pupils to explore a wide range of sports and physical activities, including athletics, cross-country and orienteering. Our partnerships with outside specialists enable us at Lady Barn to be at the forefront of sporting inspiration and inclusivity, offering such diverse sports as Archery, Dance, Fencing, Judo and Tennis.
BEYOND LADY BARN The Lady Barn journey runs from Nursery to Year 6, and paves the way for entry to the full range of senior schools locally and further afield. At Lady Barn, you can see how your child develops, their strengths and personality – and then decide which senior school best meets their needs, guided by our years of experience in pinpointing the right school for each individual.
“Lady Barn gave me the building blocks for my life. Good manners, competitiveness, great friends who I am still in contact with, excellent education and happiness. Lady Barn had the right balance for me and it was fun!” – Former pupil
“Lady Barn gave me opportunities and taught me to persevere, no matter what gets in my way. The school helped me to find my strengths and weaknesses, and taught me to focus on my strengths. My confidence grew and I discovered a passion for acting.” – Former pupil
Discovery | Opportunity | Success
Lady Barn House School Schools Hill Cheadle Stockport SK8 1JE t. 0161 428 2912 e. admissions@ladybarnhouse.org twitter @ladybarnhouse facebook /ladybarnhouseschool ladybarn_houseschool
www.ladybarnhouse.org