We are delighted to announce that from September 2027, we will extend our provision to include Years 3 and 4, enabling girls to begin their St Helen and St Katharine journey from the age of seven. To reflect this expanded provision, the current Junior Department will become St Helen and St Katharine Prep, encompassing Years 3 to 6.
Join us for Head’s Breakfast – SHSK Prep, Thursday 15 October. Book your place
Welcome from the Joint Heads of Section – SHSK Prep
We offer a nurturing learning environment that is small enough to allow every child to be supported to learn at their own pace, and to thrive and develop a love of learning, but which also provides the benefits and ambition that come with being part of a larger school.
Our students are kind, curious and enthusiastic learners. Our passionate, specialist team of teachers support and challenge able girls, not just helping them to succeed but equipping them with the skills to fulfil their potential, while recognising that success looks different for every individual. All of our expertise is focused on supporting the changing needs of girls as they grow. At St Helen’s they have the space to be themselves and enjoy their learning.
For girls in Years 3 and 4 their St Helen’s journey begins within our dedicated Prep building. They also have exclusive use of our Prep Science, Technology, Art and Design facilities. Students will use the extensive sporting facilities of the senior school in addition to their own adventure playground.
Our Years 5 and 6 experience provides a bridge between primary and secondary education. Many lessons are still based in the Prep building, but girls have increased access to facilities and teaching in the senior part of the School. This is the best of both worlds: a prep experience with the enhancement of some secondary-level opportunities.
We celebrate individuality, and as such our students are encouraged to pursue interests across a range of subjects, as well as through our extensive co-curricular programme, Beyond.
We are very proud of our strong identity within the wider school community. With a newly refurbished building tucked into the corner of the senior school campus, SHSK Prep is a happy and vibrant place to make friends, have fun, learn and play.
Mrs Nina Bass and Mrs Rachel Green
Joint Heads of Section – St Helen and St Katharine Prep
Pastoral
Your daughter will join a school with dedicated teachers who want, most of all, for her to flourish; her happiness and wellbeing are at the heart of all that we do. Her form tutor will quickly get to know her and provide guidance as she settles into the routines of a new school. Our dialogue-based approach is centred on core values of kindness, honesty, confidence and respect for each other, in line with our school motto: Per Severa – perseverance.
We are a community within a community, and girls in SHSK Prep develop friendships across the year groups. These early relationships endure throughout their time at St Helen’s, and are often mentioned by our Upper Sixth students as they leave.
In addition to her form tutor and the other teachers in SHSK Prep, there are a range of other friendly faces to support your daughter during her school day. She may have lessons with teachers from the senior part of the School, visit the Health Centre with our two school nurses, or chat with the Chaplain or with the Sixth Form students who spend time with the Prep students at lunch, acting as excellent role models for the younger students and offering them a listening ear.
Central to our approach is our partnership with you. As parents, you know your daughter best. Right from the start we want to have an open and positive relationship with you in support of her thriving at school.
Mondays begin with tutor time and provide a gentle start to the week. The focus is on wellbeing and there are a range of activities provided, including fun games and class discussions. Tuesday mornings start with the joy of singing together. On Wednesdays, your daughter will join the other years in SHSK Prep for an assembly, usually in the Prep building but occasionally with the older students in the main school hall, YPH. On a Thursday she will either have Chapel or form time, and on Friday she will have an assembly led by one of the members of the School Leadership team.
Breaktimes are an important moment to relax, refuel and have fun. Your daughter will have access to our adventure play equipment and a well-resourced open garden play area. As well as providing structured play equipment, such as badminton nets and balls, we believe in the importance of creative play for our Prep students. Our garden area is a great place to make a den, and we provide a range of resources to encourage students to use their imaginations. At lunchtime there is also an extensive range of Beyond co-curricular clubs that your daughter can attend.
From the moment she joins SHSK Prep, your daughter will become a member of a House, giving her an immediate sense of belonging within the wider school community. Our House system promotes integration across year groups and provides opportunities for student leadership and House representation. There are myriad competitions, from growing plants to making cakes or being on a sports team. She will be part of House meetings both within her Prep setting and with the older students.
Students in SHSK Prep are encouraged to take up various leadership roles, such as being Form Leaders or representatives on the SHSK Prep council. Year 6 also take on class responsibilities, such as reporter, librarian or classroom monitor.
Academic life and curriculum
Our academic approach
At SHSK Prep we promote lifelong enthusiasm for learning within a safe and secure learning environment. We are committed to helping our students recognise their individual strengths while challenging them to take intellectual risks and fulfil high expectations.
The curriculum is designed to use exciting, inspiring lessons and a breadth of subjects to engage our students, allowing them to take part in practical activities where relevant, as well as classroom-based work.
When planning and delivering each lesson, we assess the relative merits of using technology. We hold as a fundamental principle that students need to be proficient and comfortable with handwriting and expressing themselves on paper. Consequently, most lessons are paper-based and students do not have their own devices. We use digital technology where it adds value to the learning experience and carefully monitor the amount of screen time students have in a week. Students have access to laptops when required.
Most of our curriculum is taught as discrete subjects to ensure that we have the time to delve into the detail. There are some lessons that are more cross-curricular in nature, to help our Prep students begin to make connections between topics covered.
Art and Design Technology
Computer Science
Drama
English
Food and Nutrition
Geography
History
Mathematics
Modern Foreign Languages
Music
Outdoor Learning
Personal Development
Physical Education and sport
Science
Homework
We introduce homework gradually from Year 3. All students are expected to read regularly to an adult at home, and keep records to chart what they have read. They will also be given spelling and Maths activities to help build on the skills that they will be working on in school.
By Year 5, students will be expected to complete longer homework tasks across a wider range of subjects. For Year 5 this will be 15 minutes per day, progressing to 20 minutes a day for Year 6.
Transition
Once students have gained their place in SHSK Prep they are guaranteed entry into Year 7. SHSK Prep is therefore uniquely positioned to facilitate a smooth transition between the junior and senior stages of school life and remove the anxiety around senior school choice and exam preparation. Students are given support and guidance to develop a growing sense of independence, both in terms of organisational skills and in taking more responsibility for their own learning. Our students really benefit from spending this time developing these skills before moving confidently into the senior school.
Trips and visits
Trips and visits provide memorable experiences for our students that extend their learning beyond the classroom. During their time in SHSK Prep, students will participate in several day visits every year. Destinations include Warner Bros. Studio to learn about film making, Hazard Alley to learn about personal safety, an Art trip to Oxford Botanical Garden, the Oxford Story Museum, Pitt Rivers Museum and, when studying the Romans, the Ashmolean Museum Oxford. In addition to trips to places of educational interest, we often invite specialists into school and provide workshops and experiences which enhance the curriculum and inspire the students.
As part of the Outdoor Learning programme there are optional evening or weekend trips to visit climbing walls, orienteer and learn water sports.
We provide opportunities for all of our students to take part in a residential experience. We appreciate that for many of our students this will be their first time away from home, so we build this up gradually. For our Years 3, 4 and 5 students we provide an overnight camp, either onsite or at a local outdoor learning centre. This then culminates in a longer stay for Year 6 at either an outdoor adventure centre or as part of a cultural visit to a different city.
Co-curricular
Beyond, our broad and varied co-curricular programme, plays a central role in school life. We encourage students to join in with a range of clubs in order to find something that they love doing. The majority of SHSK Prep co-curricular activities take place during the extended lunch break, allowing plenty of time for eating, playing and having fun, as well as giving new things a go. There is always a wide array of activities on offer to our students. In addition to the team sports programme, there are clubs including drama, art, gymnastics, music, creative writing, computer science and bug club. Flexibility is at the heart of the programme with the vast majority of activities being offered free of charge and with students able to join in without the need to sign up in advance.
The HelKat Award
The HelKat Award recognises students who contribute positively to school life and the wider community while also developing their skills and interests. This is done through engaging with the six different categories below.
Helping Others
Enjoying the Outdoors
Life Skills
Keeping Healthy
Advancing Knowledge
Taking Care of your World
The challenges at each stage are an opportunity for students to extend their skills, to try new things and to show off their interests and talents to others, and can be completed any time over the year.
Helena Project
In the final term of Year 5, students complete an independent research project on a topic of their choice. This is their first step in the journey of learning academic research skills, and culminates in a lively poster session for them to present their work.
We wanted a smooth transition to a new school for our daughter, and starting in Year 5 has not only a been a smooth transition, but also a very happy one. We no longer have to worry about SATS or 11+ preparation, and we can just enjoy the wealth of opportunity available while she finishes the final precious years of primary school. Our daughter is finding out every day about what motivates her and what her particular interests are, because she has the opportunities here – and it is just wonderful.Mother of Year 5 student
A typical day
The school day is split into four lesson sessions with breaks in the morning and afternoon. Within each session, students may have a double, two singles evenly split, or two singles unevenly split to allow an hour for English and Mathematics, and then 20 minutes for another subject. Students in Years 3 and 4 will have more of the shorter lessons and will have an hour a day of English and Mathematics.
With a generous lunch break, there is plenty of time to join one of the Beyond co-curricular clubs on offer or simply just have fun with friends.
Find out more at our Our day page.
Lunchtime
HelKats of all ages love and celebrate the school food. Lunch can be a very busy time, so students in SHSK Prep go into lunch at 11.55am, giving them time to choose their lunch before the other year groups. SHSK Prep have their own dedicated lunch area in the Refectory, and staff will be there to support them and ensure that everyone enjoys their lunch and is well fed. Our nutritious lunches cater for all, providing a well-balanced and varied choice of food.
Wraparound care
Our supervision is part of our service to you from 7.30am to 5.15pm. Morning supervision from 7.30 to 8am needs to be booked ahead so that we know we have sufficient staffing in place. Standard drop-off time runs between 8 and 8.35am. At the end of the day, students can be collected, use the bus service, stay in the SHSK Prep building for supervised activities or go to a Beyond co-curricular club. Optional paid supervision is available from 5.15 to 6pm.
Joint Bus Service
Our convenient Joint Bus Service (JBS) covers a wide catchment area across six counties – Oxfordshire, Gloucestershire, Buckinghamshire, Wiltshire, Hampshire and Berkshire. The morning service is open to all students. There are two services in the evening, one at 4.20pm from SHSK and one at 5.20pm from the Abingdon School bus park. The 4.20pm service is open to all year groups and the 5.20pm service from Year 5 upwards. Years 3 and 4 students wishing to travel with older siblings on the 5.20pm service may be considered on a case-by-case basis.
