WHAT? WHERE?

It’s almost impossible to believe you are just minutes (maybe even seconds) from the M25 when you pull up the drive to Manor Lodge – a bright beacon, amid 22 acres of green fields and views as far as the eye can see.

There are 451 pupils from age 3-11 (which include the Nursery, of course), with average class sizes of 20. Unsurprisingly (you’ll understand once you see what it has to offer) it has a wide catchment area for a Prep, with families travelling from Radlett, St Albans, Watford, Whetstone, Barnet and North London.

It’s three-form entry, and remains three classes per year group throughout. Children are invited to an informal Assessment Day, ahead of being offered a place, where the school looks for those who interact well with both adults and other children, as well as having a curiosity and a desire to learn – things which will continue to be nurtured if they come to the school.

FACILITIES

Where to start? Head, Alyson Lobo, has been working through a five-year plan, which has involved massive physical changes to the school site. The main part of this has been the development of The Space (or the ‘heartbeat of the school’ as she calls it).

Coach House manor lodge school — The new Coach House extension and entrance

The old school building might be a lovely listed manor house, which is over 250 years old, but the former main school entrance was far from welcoming – dark, dingy and not accessible. Now you walk through the contemporary glass doors of the new Coach House extension, into a light-flooded atrium (aka ‘The Space’), with the library at the centre and specialist STEAM-focused classrooms leading off it.

Manor Lodge School The Hub — The bright and welcoming ‘Hub’ of the school

These include a Science classroom, Computing room (which feels more like a Google office, complete with green screen, gadgets and plenty of space for eveything from Robot Wars to Garage Band composing) and a DT room with tools AND ovens for cooking. Plus there’s a fabulous Art room on the mezzanine level, at the top of a striking spiral staircase.

Children in a computing lesson at Manor Lodge School

If you hadn’t realised already, glass features heavily here – a physical representation of how Lobo is breaking down barriers, creating transparency and allowing the opportunity to move between spaces. It’s her take on the concept of a ‘classroom without walls’ – essentially a big melting pot for collaborative learning. This is what she’s trying to acheive with the curriculum, too – the idea that subjects are interchangeable and can be learnt in conjunction with, (not exclusive to), each other. And she plans to put more ‘space’ in the timetable for spontaneous opportunities, such as trips and experiences, led by the children’s curiosity.

Then there’s the Basil Flashman Building, with its living roof… a fabulous creative space which contains a 320-seat theatre-come-sports-hall (thanks to the retractable seats), as well as flexible practice rooms for drama, dance, and peripatetic music lessons.

The original manor house is still very much in use and the main classrooms are housed here, but many have been refreshed with modern features and fixtures and fittings that blend with the original features (see below). Lobo has plans to bring in more of that glass (but remain in keeping with the Grade II-listed character) and a gallery-style staircase.

The Reception classrooms lead off to a conservatory with a play area and Woodland Garden beyond. This is all due to be opened up and a more natural play area installed with features that inspire imagination – think tree stumps rather than toy cars!

Talking of outdoor play, you could not ask for more than you get at Manor Lodge. Outdoor Learning has become a buzz phrase in education, but rather than being shoehorned in, with a token outdoor classroom or a few square feet of forest school, its truly ingrained here.

The school is built around gardens. There’s a wild and sprawling Forest Garden, with a yurt, palette dens, slack lines, wildlife houses, and even a brook – it goes on and on!; a reading garden with a wooden throne; a Japanese Garden; An allotment AND a wild meadow and pond garden.

The Forest Garden is so big that it takes about 10 minutes to walk to the brook at the bottom and the kids can have free reign to explore, built, observe and play. The kids have even created their own QR codes and stuck them on logs to tell you what kind of fungi is growing there. Clever stuff!

WHAT ELSE

I love the Languages classroom… it’s a real example of how Manor Lodge thinks outside the box. Forget that Victorian classroom setting, where all children face the front and recite French verbs in unison to the teacher. Instead, you’ll find amphitheatre style seating to inspire conversation and discussion. Not to mention the fab neon lighting for a bit of fun.

Languages classroom with neon lighting at Manor Lodge School

And when it comes to modernising, Lobo is doing away with teacher desks in classrooms completely, allowing them to move freely around and adapt the layout to their lesson. They’ll be getting a new dedicated board-room style workspace in the redeveloped manor house with desks for marking and lesson prep.

There’s a new allotment, which the children can get involved in, from growing fruit and veg to cooking it and giving to charitable causes. It’s a great hands-on way to learn about the food cycle and waste. They will also be selling some of the home grown produce at the Coffee Shop. Plus parents can rent a raised bed to potter in at the weekends! There’s also a Coronation orchard and each class has a tree – they’re looking forward to having dedicated apple picking days in years to come. And if that’s not enough there are hens and bees due to arrive soon after my visit, so hopefully they’re settling in well by now.

There’s a real sense of enterprise and innovation about Manor Lodge – rather than simply increasing the fees for parents Lobo is keen to make the facilities they have available to them work harder – take those raised beds for example – and she hopes that one day there could be a shiny new sports hall facility, which could open to members outside of school hours. Plus, that new staff workspace will also be used for events and rented ad-hoc as a WeWork-style office for parents.

There are over 60 clubs for Year 1s and up, including everything from Ju-Jitstu to Drama, with one of the most popular (and unique) being MLS Podcast, in which children learn to research, script, record and help edit a regular podcast for the Manor Lodge Community.

There’s a lovely sports field with views across to Shenley, with its clock tower on the horizon in one direction, and St Albans Abbey in the other, with an all purpose shelter.

There is a dedicated Sports Hall, and the Basil Flashman building is used for indoor lessons. There’s a good choice of sports here, with teams and fixtures for each age group from Year 3 upwards. They play Rugby, Cricket and Athletics. Plus, there are Netball and Football teams for boys and girls.

And when it comes to the arts, they’re valued as highly here as English and Maths, with around half of Pupils from Year 3 upwards taking instrumental lessons. There’s also an Orchestra, Brass Ensemble, Woodwind Group, and Senior and Junior Choirs. The Year 2 and Year 6 productions are always popular and of a high quality. There’s an Outdoor music festival in the Summer Term, plus Christmas and Spring concerts and informal concerts for Infants and Juniors on alternate terms.

THE HEAD

Bright and bubbly in a vibrant green linen suit, Alyson Lobo greets me with a warm and welcoming handshake in her inviting pastel-hued office. She has a virtually 360-degree view of the school from there, so she can keep an eye on the comings and goings – and feel part of the action – while enjoying those beautiful bucolic views of course!

An Early Years expert, Lobo has been at the school for nearly two decades (18 years this year) so you could say she knows it inside and out, but don’t let that fool you into thinking she’s been sitting on her laurels since becoming Head five years ago. Far from it. Lobo has completely transformed a traditional Prep (both from a physical and mindset perspective) into a fresh, modern and forward-thinking Primary (she prefers Primary to Prep – more on that below), where children have the freedom to learn in their own way, collaborate and create without restrictions.

On that note, she’s a big fan of child-led learning – if a pupil chooses to build a ramp to the ceiling to represent force, let them; if another is writing a poem about nature, they should be outside, seeing, feeling and experiencing it first hand.

She wants to make sure that children are preparing for a future with jobs that haven’t even been invented yet, and for that they need to be flexible, adaptable and proactive in their learning. But I use the word ‘preparing’ very loosely as Lobo’s calling card is letting children be little – to have fun and play. Unlike some of the traditional Prep schools, where kids are drilled from day one on how to ready themselves for next steps, she doesn’t see Manor Lodge as a preparation for Secondary school. In fact, there’s barely a mention of the 11+ until Year 5 here. And that feeling of freedom is palpaple from the playground to the classroom.

ACADEMICS

While you might wonder if academics come second fiddle to the creative and outdoorsy culture here, that’s simply not the case. Lobo is stringent in her opinion that academic excellence and fun don’t have to be mutually exclusive – kids can express themselves, be hands-on learners AND get results. And the proof is in the pudding as Manor Lodge pupils are two years ahead of the average, and by the time they leave they are up to six years ahead with their reading.

In fact 21 Manor Lodge pupils were awarded 53 scholarships to 19 different schools last year. However Lobo isn’t keen on the idea of being a Prep school in the sense of prepping children for their next move or defining them too early. Manor Lodge pupils go on to a wide range of Secondaries (including state and independent) rather than feeding into just one or two independents and Lobo sees this as a selling point.

PASTORAL

Mindfulness is taught here and there are various systems in place for children who feel overwhelmed or anxious, including worry boxes which are placed around the school, but my favourite of these is the Japanese Garden, where pupils can go for some calm reflective time. There are wooden plaques on the gates which they can take before going in, to ensure there’s only ever a maximum of ten people in there at once. This was one of the parent projects and it’s also used for lessons, too.

Children having a mindfulness lesson — A mindfulness lesson in the Japanese garden

Children can find support in all the usual places though, with Form Teachers as their first port of call, and Heads of Year, Key Stage, House and the Deputy Head (Pastoral) all on hand, too, for any concerns.

QUIRKS

I’ve mentioned the amazing outdoor spaces here, and while many schools can reel off a number of these, Manor Lodge definitely feels unique in its variety. There really is a garden for everything, many of which the parents have had a hand in creating. And parents really are considered part of the journey (or adventure!) at Manor Lodge…

As I wandered up to the school entrance I spotted some bistro tables and chairs on the sunny terrace – a lovely spot to sit and enjoy a morning coffee I thought. Little did I know that it leads out from a dedicated café for mums, dads and carers to grab a caffeine hit after drop-off, or before pick up (perhaps they’re hanging around for an after-school club to finish) and even plug in their laptops and catch up on a bit of work. I’m not talking a dingy canteen here, but a stylish café with pendant lighting, neon signage and proper barista coffee! If that doesn’t say ‘welcome, parents’, I’m not sure what does!

Lobo is adamant that parents should have the opportunity to be involved in the school and their children’s education, to have their say in moulding their experience here as much as possible. There are even dedicated parent events, such as bluebell breakfast walks and summer camps to get involved in.

ISI REPORT

Find the school’s latest ISI report here.

FEES

Starting at £4,100 per term for Nursery, fees increase to £4,370 in Infants and £4,800 for Juniors, plus there’s an additional daily lunch charge of £4.40.

WRAPAROUND CARE

There’s an Early Birds Drop Off from 8am (included in fees) and Tea Club (from Reception), which includes Homework Club for Years 3 – 6, until 5.30pm, at a cost of £7 per day and must be pre-booked.

WORD ON THE GROUND

The main thing I have noted from talking to parents, particularly those who have had children at the school for a number of years, is the sea change that Lobo has brought in under her Headship and how welcome that is. What was once (dare-I-say-it) a rather staid Prep school, is now a unique and exciting Primary. And what parent wouldn’t want to feel valued in their opinions about their child’s education? There’s an ‘everyone’s welcome’ attitude here that is undoubtedly felt by all.

THE MUDDY VERDICT

Good for: Parents who are excited by the idea of a fluid education, which breaks down barriers between subjects and traditional concepts of indoor/outdoor learning; and being part of what feels like a real movement to modernise education.

Not for: Those who believe all learning should happen in the classroom and prefer to leave ‘school’ at the school gate and education to the teachers. Manor Lodge offers parents the chance to get stuck in, and a learning environment which is flexible, dynamic and fun.

Dare to disagree? Be my guest! There’s an Open Morning in May 2025 (date TBC). Register here or contact admissions@manorlodgeschool.com for more information.

Manor Lodge School, Rectory Lane, Ridge Hill, Shenley, WD7 9BG. Tel: 01707 642424. manorlodgeschool.com

Manor Lodge School, Shenley

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