Haberdashers’ Monmouth Prep School is celebrating national recognition after being named Best of the Best Prep School for Teaching & Learning and achieving Second Place for Best Prep School for Music in The Week Independent Schools Guide 2026.
Haberdashers’ Monmouth Prep School is celebrating national recognition after being named Best of the Best Prep School for Teaching & Learning and achieving Second Place for Best Prep School for Music in The Week Independent Schools Guide 2026.
These prestigious accolades highlight the School’s innovative approach to teaching, its sector-leading music provision, and its commitment to nurturing curiosity, creativity and excellence in every child.
Winners of Best of the Best: Teaching & Learning
Judges praised Haberdashers’ Monmouth for its distinctive blend of subject-specialist teaching from Nursery to Year 6, cutting-edge digital learning, and a curriculum designed to spark ambition and deep intellectual curiosity.
The School’s status as a Microsoft Showcase School played a key role in its recognition. Digital tools such as Minecraft, Reading Coach and Flip are integrated seamlessly across subjects to enhance creativity, critical thinking and personalised learning. Pupils engage in immersive experiences, from exploring Neolithic cave art to analysing live data, developing both digital fluency and academic confidence.
Special mention was given to the School’s advanced provision for More Able & Talented pupils, which includes enrichment in maths, the Revolutio reading programme, national academic competitions, and the ISEB Project Qualification. Haberdashers’ Monmouth Prep is also the first school in the UK to offer ABRSM‑endorsed Grade 5 Kodály Musicianship through its partnership with the National Youth Choir of Scotland (NYCoS).
Judges commended the school’s outstanding outcomes, including the fact that 25% of pupils finish Year 6 with a reading age of 17+, and many go on to achieve scholarships at the Senior School.
Facilities also play a key role in the School’s success. Purpose-built science lab, a specialist computing suite, performing arts spaces, music rooms, recording studios and extensive sports facilities enable hands-on, high-quality teaching, further strengthening the Prep School’s award‑winning credentials.
Second Place: Best Prep School for Music
While Teaching & Learning led the School’s success this year, Haberdashers’ Monmouth Prep School also achieved an impressive Second Place nationally for Music. Music is at the heart of life at Haberdashers’ Monmouth Prep School, reflected in the judges’ praise for its sector-leading Kodály-inspired curriculum, delivered from Reception upwards. The School is the first and only school in the UK, junior or senior, to deliver the full Kodály pathway to Gold Level Musicianship, equivalent to ABRSM Grade 5 standard.
Instrumental learning is embedded throughout the curriculum: Year 3 pupils learn violin or cello in full-class ensembles. Recorder is introduced to support future wind instrument development. Individual instrument lessons begin from Year 2. Singing, percussion, and instrumental opportunities expand significantly across Prep years. The School’s ensembles, including its Wind Band, String Orchestra and Choir, perform regularly and to an exceptional standard. The Choir has sung at the National Festival of Music, featured on local radio, and performed in the world premiere of EVERYTHING by Michael Rosen and Jamila Gavin.
Judges also highlighted the School’s outstanding Performing Arts Campus, complete with a Recital Hall, theatre, recording studios and a rich collection of world instruments, from Javanese Gamelan to Korean Taiko drums.
Neil Shaw, Head of Haberdashers’ Monmouth Prep School, said:
“We are incredibly proud to receive this national recognition. These awards reflect the passion, talent and dedication of our exceptional staff and our wonderful creative pupils. At Haberdashers’ Monmouth, we believe in empowering children to be curious, confident and kind, and in giving them every opportunity to discover what they love and excel in. Whether through innovative teaching, inspirational music-making or the breadth of our curriculum, our aim is to spark a lifelong love of learning. It is wonderful to see this celebrated by The Week.”
