Latymer Prep School Entrance Guide

Shu is an exceptional tutor. Whereas we had a daily fight to get our son to focus ahead of his 8+ exams, she seemed to have him eating out of her hand within days. She made the lessons fun, tuned into areas he needed help on, and worked out how to get him to improve them. We firmly believe that had our son not had Shu on his side, he wouldn't have been offered a place at Westminster Under.

We met Shu nine months before our son sat the 8+ exams. He has a curious mind, and we felt he had the potential to do very well, but his school were ambivalent about his chances of getting into one of the leading London Junior schools, and the daily fights to get him to do any extra work were extreme, often involving tantrums, slammed doors, shouting, and the rest. When Shu walked through our front door, in March 2023, we thought she'd last two minutes - she seemed strict and we expected the tantrums to escalate. How wrong we were! Shu has a magic learning flute, and even our son was unable to resist it's tune. From the get-go, she 'got him'. After the first few sessions, she gave us a more acute assessment than the teachers who'd known him for years ever had. And while our son still complained constantly about doing anything extra with us, over the following nine months he accepted Shu's word as gospel - sometimes calling her himself to ask whether he should do A or B as we requested! More than that, he really enjoyed his lessons, and I'd often look in to see them both roaring with laughter over a shared, private joke. Shu believed in and enjoyed our son in a way no-one had before, and as a result I think he started to believe in himself. She was also an invaluable sounding board for us, often calming us down when we worried that he was not up to it, or that his confidence would suffer, at all times reminding us that she believed he had what it took, whether it was this round or the next. And her belief in him was contagious. By the end of January 2023, our son had an offer from his first choice school, Westminster Under, as well as from other top London prep schools, and I'm 100% confident that this would never have happened had we not met Shu!

This Tutor can engage any child in to learning. She found interests my son had to get him engaged in writing. He started the term barely writing to now writing stories and wanting to be an author.

Our son has grown in confidence in his Maths and English which is all thanks to Shu.

Meredith did an amazing job with my son for the preparation of 7+ exams for KCJS and SPJ. We had Meredith from September as my son was struggled with his writing. Within two months time, my son’s writing improved immensely, as well as his English and comprehension. She also helped for the interview practice. She is very patient and professional, and got on very well with my son. She prepared well for each session, and managed to keep my son focussed and motivated during the session. My son always looking forward to have the lesson with her. My son has received the offers for both schools, we would highly recommend her to other families.

Amy is excellent. She somehow has inspired my son in just a couple of sessions and he feels confident and likes writing stories. I wished I had found her earlier.

Our son was immediately comfortable with Joe. The sessions so far have been excellent - good variety in content and good tempo. Joe has judged well the degree of stretch and challenge.

Hannah is a great tutor. She has a really nice balance of being firm and working to achieve the objectives set, with a warm and accommodating manner that puts the child at ease. After school tutoring has been easy and fun, with significant strides made in concentration and focus alongside the academic progress.

Tricia is currently tutoring our son in preparation for a 7+ exam and we cannot recommend her interpersonal skills and teaching style highly enough. Tricia very quickly built a rapport with our son and myself and I feel very comfortable with her assessment of my sons capability and recommendations to help him thrive. Above all, I can clearly see my son is having a great time, whilst learning lots of new skills which is wonderful to see.

Hannah was great and quickly engaged with my son. He looked forward to his sessions with her and she kept the curriculum varied and interesting. Sounds like she know how to prepare kids for the 7+ as she’s been doing this for awhile.