Senior School Admissions FAQs
Howell’s is here for your daughter at every stage of her senior school journey
We warmly welcome students into Howell’s at various stages of their senior school journey, subject to availability, up until Year 10, when students begin their GCSE courses.
After an initial visit and tour of the school, we invite your daughter to spend at least two taster days with us. During this time, she will take part in lessons, meet staff and students, and sit assessments in English and Mathematics. She will also have a short interview with a senior member of staff.
As part of the admissions process, we also ask for a recent school report, and we may request a reference from your daughter’s current school.
If you are applying from outside the UK, we are happy to arrange the assessments and interview online.
Once an offer has been made, we will agree a start date with you that works best for your family.
Senior School Admissions FAQs
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Click here for information on the tests. Your daughter will also have an interview, and we will look at her last report and/or take a reference from her previous school.
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If your daughter doesn’t do quite well enough in the examinations, we may invite her for an interview with the Head of English and/or Mathematics. If we have any concerns after the interview, we may suggest that she does some extra work and re-takes the exams in a few months’ time.
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If you have indicated that you wish to apply for a bursary, you will need to complete an online application. A link to the bursary application will appear in your Applica account. If you do not see the link or experience any difficulties, please contact Mrs Chrissie Hall-Davis, who will be happy to assist you.
You can begin your bursary application in September of the year your daughter is in Year 6, and the deadline for submission is the end of December.
Bursaries are administered by the Fees Assistance Department at the Girls’ Day School Trust (GDST). We will notify you of the outcome in February, after your daughter has taken the Entrance Examination but we are not able to provide detailed feedback on bursary decisions.
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We provide all our students with tailored learning opportunities. This could be differentiated lessons, extension tasks, and problem-solving challenges to deepen their understanding. We provide advanced learning opportunities in all our subjects to challenge students to reach their full potential.
We have guest speakers, workshops, clubs, drama productions and musical opportunities which all enhance learning beyond the classroom.
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We have a qualified teacher who will support students with additional learning needs both in lessons and on a one-to-one basis. We also offer formal and informal drop-in sessions.
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We have a formal welcome programme to help girls settle in which includes making sure she knows her way around the school, a clubs fair, setting her up on our IT systems, showing her the library and setting standards for behaviour and homework. Then there is a myriad of ways we keep an eye on your daughter From her Head of Year, to our Senior School Prefects to the ladies who work in the kitchen, we will all be making sure your daughter is settling in.
