On Tuesday 7th January, we were delighted to welcome over 600 prospective pupils from a range of primary and prep schools, including Francis Holland Prep, to our annual three-session 11+ Interview Day.

The interview process consists of a one-to-one interview with a member of staff which includes a creative task and a topical masterclass lesson to give a flavour of our engaging and dynamic teaching at FHS. Candidates also heard from our Head, Alexandra Haydon, about what makes life at FHS so special, had the opportunity to chat to FHS staff, Sixth Formers and other candidates, and enjoyed our famed school cookies! We were so impressed by the creativity, energy and talent we saw amongst the candidates and look forward to welcoming many of them in September.

We have received some lovely feedback from prospective parents, including “our daughter loved meeting the girls also applying, the Francis Holland Sixth Formers, and lovely teachers – everyone was so kind and friendly”, “she loved it and was in high spirits coming out”, “she told us it was so much fun and she loved your famous cookie too!”, “it was clear how thoughtfully planned the day was to bring out the best in each child”, “it was kind of you to make it a fun and interesting process for the girls”, “our daughter had the most wonderful time and came out very excited and energised by the special morning which you had created” and “she emerged full of beans and happy”.

Thank you so much to our brilliant Sixth Form volunteers, all the staff involved in interviewing and our Admissions and Operations Teams, whose impeccable planning, organisation and logistical genius ensured the day ran beautifully. We also really enjoyed meeting our prospective 11+ Art Scholars on Wednesday and Drama Scholars today, and have seen a phenomenal level of creativity and talent in both. More to come next week!