School History

Highfield Preparatory School has been on the same site since 1918, and is steeped in history as the leading independent girls’ school in Maidenhead, Berkshire.  ​

Founded by Miss Evelyn Hadfield in 1918, we operated as a PNEU (Parents National Education Union) school until we were made into an Educational Charitable Trust in 1966.  We believe that learning in school has to be fun and we are founded on the guiding principles of Charlotte Mason, a forward-thinking educationalist of her era.

Miss Mason’s philosophy was that all children are individuals and should be treated as such.  

The ethos of the PNEU is still found daily at Highfield as we encourage all parents to be actively involved in the education of their child, believing that such co-operation and team-work will be of the greatest benefit.

We strive for excellence in every aspect of life, at school and at home, in academic pursuits and in games. Kindness to others, tolerance, conscientiousness and good sportsmanship are all encouraged. Most importantly, we believe that learning must be fun!

We’ve commemorated the work of these strong women including our second Headmistress Miss Tovey in naming our school houses after them: Mason, Hadfield and Tovey.