THE EARLY development of children both personally and academically is at the forefront of Stonar Prep School’s ethos, says its head teacher Mark Brain.

The Atworth school, which teaches boys and girls aged two to 11, prides itself on moulding its pupils into well-educated and responsible children. The school, which is set in lovely parkland, also ensures the children also maintain physical fitness.

Mr Brain, who has been the head of Stonar Prep for eight years, said: “We look to develop children academically and personally. We wish to teach them co-operation and enquiry. We don’t like to think of ourselves as an exam factory school, we have a nurturing and friendly atmosphere. We aim to make the children struggle in work, with struggle they learn strategies about how to work around it, something they will need when they are in a career.”

As well as an abundance of space for the pupil’s sporting activities, the school is also home to a large equestrian centre.

“Riding is a big part of Stonar. We have the equestrian centre with stables which could hold up to 70 horses before we started work to make it bigger. The horses are owned by the children and the school so the pupils can start learning how to ride from reception. It is a fairly unique school with a creative curriculum,” added Mr Brain.

Stonar, part of the NACE school group, has links to places across the globe, including India, the US and other schools in Europe.

“We teach international mindedness and help the children understand that there is a bigger world out there. We share visits from other schools by having pupils from France and Spain to Stonar. I took some of the kids to Barcelona which meant they could learn about the country and experience new surroundings,” Mr Brain said.

Although the school has been co-educational in the Prep department for some years, and in the Senior School more recently, Mr Brain said a number of people still think of it as an all-girls' school, adding: “I would say it is a 55/45 split of girls and boys. An average sized class is 16 pupils, but we do have mixed classes.”