Useful phone numbers:
Early Years & Tiny Tots & Toddlers’ Club (020 8300 2112)
After School Club (020 8269 6898)
Mrs A Macdonald (Head of Pastoral Care/DSL/Fees) (020 8300 2112 ext. 204)
Admissions (020 8300 2112 ext. 208)
Please note the School Office is staffed from 8.30am each morning until 4pm.
Additional Information:
EXCLUSION THROUGH ILLNESS
Children who are suffering from vomiting and/or diarrhoea will be excluded from school for 48 hours.
Children who have chicken pox will be excluded until the spots have crusted over. Headlice is a common complaint in young children, please let us know if your child has had headlice so we can advise other parents.
Parents of children suffering from other childhood ailments should consult Form Teachers/School Office for advice as to whether they should come to school.
If Senior children cannot for medical reasons participate in Games lessons they will need to be collected from school by 2.20pm as staff are unable to supervise them due to their teaching commitments.
Please would you remember that should your child be ill or absent, you should ring the School Office by 9.00am that day.
GOOD COMMUNICATIONS
Please consult the school website (www.mertoncourtprep.co.uk) for all up-to-date information (particularly during bad weather or emergency closures).
‘ParentMail’, email and text contact with our parents provides an efficient method of communication to you, whilst complementing our eco-friendly policies. Anyone not yet receiving ‘ParentMail’ please advise the School Office.
HEALTH & SAFETY
Following the terrible events at Grenfell Tower, the school wishes to assure parents that it has reviewed its’ fire safety precautions particularly relating to cladding of the school buildings. All materials used, conform to British Standards and, following our review, there was no need to take any remedial action.
PARKING
Extensive parking is available in our Rectory Lane Car Park. Please remember our peak-time one-way system, as well as our ‘drop-off’ zones. The intention of our ‘drop-off zone’ is just that; to drop off children in a safe zone where they can be received by duty staff, using a ‘conveyor belt’ style of drop-off, to ensure that children can be handed over quickly and efficiently. Please DO NOT park on the right side of the roadway as this blocks the access to the ‘drop-off’ facility. For the safety of everyone, please maintain a maximum limit of 10 mph when using the car park and where possible please turn off car engines when parked. The front of school car park is exclusively for staff and delivery vehicles. Please ensure children do not play in the front school car park. Children should be under supervision at all times when collected from the Knoll Road gate and parents should use the single pedestrian gate as access.
SAFEGUARDING
We are pleased to inform you that we have installed a new ‘state of the art’ IT content filter, designed to address the issues relating to the acceptable use of the internet and the content delivered to both staff and pupils. These comprehensive firewalls will ensure all safeguarding concerns are met, to keep all of our children as safe as possible.
SECURITY
For the security of the children, School gates will be closed at 8.45am and will open again at 3.00pm.
Anyone arriving between those times will be required to use the main Knoll Road entrance/front door to the school.
SCHOOL POLICIES
All statutory school policies are available on our website www.mertoncourtprep.co.uk. Should you wish to see any school policies, either pastoral or academic, please contact the School Office.
Other information is available in our ’parents’ section of the website in the ‘downloads’ (menus, tool boxes etc). Please ring the school office for the password to access this part of the website.
SIBLING DISCOUNT
Parents with more than one child attending Merton Court School are eligible for a fees reduction. 5% on a second child and 10% on a third. Past pupil’s children are eligible for a fee reduction.
SIBLING REGISTRATION
Numbers are particularly buoyant so please register your child/ren as early as possible to be guaranteed a place. Please ask the Office for a Registration Form or call in to speak to Ms Cole. Please be aware that siblings are not automatically registered without a completed registration form.
UNIFORM & APPEARANCE
All children should wear correct full winter (Autumn & Spring Term) or Summer uniform (Summer Term and the first few weeks of the Autumn Term). All items of school uniform are available from our school outfitters ‘OZ’ Schoolwear, Petts Wood.
Please remember that in the mornings, all children should be wearing caps/hats or baseball caps – depending on their daily activities. Ski hats should ONLY be worn to and from school in extreme cold weather, otherwise they are to be worn while the children are in school during breaktimes only.
Children are also reminded that they should leave school correctly dressed – which includes blazers and the correct headwear and footwear. Baseball caps may be worn to school when wearing tracksuits/PE kit.
Once again, parents and children are respectfully reminded that hair styles should be appropriate to school. The excessive use of gel on hair, colouring of hair and cut designs in hair are not permitted in school. Any hairstyle that draws attention to itself should be avoided; as children may risk internal exclusion or being sent home to remedy it.
Hair bands and hair bows should be of a suitable size and be school colours only (red, yellow or grey/black) or school scrunchies. Longer hair should not hinder a child’s vision and should be tied up / secured, for all School curriculum activities, including sport.
We strongly recommend that earrings are removed before all sports lessons. Studs may be worn in swimming lessons but at parents’ own discretion and responsibility. School will not be held accountable for injury, loss or damage.
We have a school coat that all children must wear, available from ‘OZ’ Schoolwear.
Whilst we endeavour to respect the individual tastes of S4 children relating to school bags we would ask S4 children to choose plain coloured bags, rucksacks and sports bags. All other children must have the correct school bags.
NB: Swimming caps must be worn at all swimming lessons Seniors (red) and Juniors (blue).
SWIMMING POOL
We are very proud to have a 25 mtr. ‘Deck Level’ pool at our school. This facility, has given so many children confidence and pleasure. Children swim for enjoyment and for competitions, achieve high standards, in 2018 our swimmers were National Winners of the English Schools’ Swimming Association Open Boys Stroke Relay and the Open Boys Freestyle Relay and in 2025 our Open Girls Mixed Stroke Team had strong success, winning the ESSA National title again. The pool is in very good condition and that is testament to the way it is cared for on a daily basis.
Our team, who look after all aspects of the daily running of the pool are trained in Pool Chemicals and Water Treatment.
The safety and quality of our pool water is taken very seriously and we ensure that our chemicals are maintained to the standards advised by The Pool Water Treatment Advisory Group (PWTAG) who produce detailed guidance on swimming pool water quality and treatment.
We run our Chlorine levels at the nationally recognised 2.2 and our P.H. level is maintained at 7.6, these measurements are parts per million. The pool water is checked twice daily.
We have a microbiological test every six weeks to check that the water is healthy and germ free. We have service contracts on both the Heatstar machine and all our boilers. Our Balance Tanks are cleaned annually.
A service company assists as and when needed, thereby ensuring that very few swimming days are ever lost.
Cleanliness in and around the pool is paramount to clean water. All staff wear pool shoes and no-one ever enters the pool area in outdoor shoes.
All children enter showers when leaving the changing room and again, shower when leaving the pool.
A comment from one Pool inspector was, “You have the cleanest water that I have ever seen in the South East” – a comment we are extremely proud of. We strive to maintain very high standards, to ensure safety for anyone who swims.
Technical Data
Maximum Bathing Load: 55 Bathers
Operational Bathing Load: 200 Bathers
Total Water Volume: 216m³
Turn over: 3.5 hours
Flow Rate: 68m³/hour
Filtration Velocity: 22m³/hr/m²
Backwash Velocity: 44m³/hr/m²
Filter size: 2 x 1.4mm dia
Pumps: 2 x 3 HP
SIGNIFICANT STRENGTHS AT OUR SCHOOL
- A well-rounded curriculum: The school offers a deep and engaging curriculum that seeks to inspire a passion for learning, through excellent teaching and outstanding personal achievement. Pupils gain skills, knowledge and understanding across a wide variety of subjects through extensive enrichment activities including sports, performing arts, and externally accredited courses (e.g. LAMDA) ensuring pupils are well prepared for future stages of education.
- A strong focus on British Values and Citizenship: The school actively promotes the British values of democracy, respect, and tolerance. Pupils participate in activities such as School Council meetings, visits to the Houses of Parliament, and community events, fostering a strong sense of civic responsibility and leadership. Pupils develop clear opinions and a ‘go for it’ attitude ready to take their places as global citizens.
- A Commitment to Wellbeing: Leaders prioritise pupils’ physical, mental, and emotional health. The PSHE curriculum, alongside initiatives like ‘Tooled-Up’, ‘Girls on Board’, B.R.I.D.G.E, N.E.S.T.L.E, and ‘Habits of Mind’ helps pupils develop self-esteem, confidence, and positive relationships. The school also emphasises physical health through an extensive sports programme and Forest School activities.
- Clear Leadership and Governance: Leaders and the Advisory Board demonstrate effective oversight, regularly reviewing policies and processes to ensure the highest standards. They are aspirational for pupils and implement well-researched initiatives to improve outcomes.
- An Inclusive Environment: The school supports pupils with special educational needs (SEND) and those who speak English as an additional language, ensuring they make good progress alongside their peers. The Early Years setting is particularly well supported with generous adult-to-child ratios and tailored activities.
- Community Engagement: Pupils are actively involved in the local community through events that include Remembrance, charity fundraising, and a whole-school performance at The Indigo, O2. Pupils also learn about other cultures and faiths, fostering respect and understanding.
- Safeguarding Excellence: The school has robust safeguarding policies, well trained staff, and effective systems to ensure the highest quality of pastoral care. Pupils feel confident that their concerns are taken seriously.
- A real Family Ethos: The school creates a warm, trusting, stimulating and unique ethos, with a strong sense of community and belonging. Its long history and motto, ‘Omnia Strenue’ (Strive Above All) reflect its dedication to nurturing pupils’ potential, giving them the best possible start to their life story, through a wide range of personal opportunities.
- Academic Results: The progress made by pupils, who come from a broadly non-selective intake at point of entry, is significant. Children achieve excellent results at the end of Year 6, with a large majority of children in the year group achieving selective places at 11+ to both state and independent schools.
- The Voice of the Child/Ambassadors: The school has created multi-layered ambassador roles; roles that offer ‘Buddy’ and ‘Helper’ opportunities in the Junior School and responsibility roles including librarians, Eco Prefects and Deputy Prefects in Year 5. In Year 6, pupils are given roles as prefects, and an Executive Committee within the School Council. Able pupils have the opportunity to communicate their love of reading or other areas of the curriculum, so as to inspire and stretch other children. At the same time, the school’s aims and ethos are imparted and modelled to younger children through prefects’ attitudes and behaviours in other roles, including ‘Curriculum, Community’ and ‘Head, Hand Heart’ Ambassadors.