Founded in 1905 by Miss Hanson – with only 9 pupils – Arnold House, located in St John’s Wood now boasts an established reputation as a leading independent day school for boys. Arnold House is notable for its traditional approach, and bears a coat of arms which features all four boys houses (Wellington, Brunel, Nelson and Pitt); their motto is ‘Conquer We Shall’. There is a main site for Junior School pupils (Years 1-4), and a Senior School for pupils in Years 5-8.

Early Years (Pre-Reception and Reception), Juniors (Years 1-4) and Seniors (Years 5-8) comprise Arnold House, with each year group being divided into two forms. Class sizes average 17, allowing moderate personal attention from teachers, and refreshed each year to ensure academic balance and prevent social staticity. The curriculum for Arnold House provides a thorough and holistic education, ‘which engages, excites and challenges [their] boys’. Leavers of Arnold House have gone on to schools such as Westminster, Eton, Harrow, Rugby, and St Paul’s, following their preparatory education. 

For Juniors and Seniors, Sport at Arnold House ranges from gymnastics, music & movement and volleyball, to rugby and hockey. Facilities are located at Canons Park, a seven-acre site which encompasses both grass and artificial surfaces (cricket pitches, tennis courts etc). The Arts are highly regarded within the school – in particular Music, for which there is an i-Music suite containing ‘a bank of 9 Apple Mac computers’. Extra-curricular activities include Coding, Cookery, Gardening, and Taekwondo – to name just a few from a certainly extensive range. Notable residential trips include visiting Rome in Year 7, and France in Year 8, with plenty of day trips and other residential activities for the younger years, too.

The Good Schools’ Guide observes that the boys are ‘very polite and kind’, and there are consistent references made to the family atmosphere pervading the school. There is mild SEN provision in the form of additional support from teachers and TAs, and some one-to-one specialist learning support. Though there is no counsellor, the pastoral care rests on the parents and teachers working together – after which clinical partners and outside agencies are involved (there is, additionally, ‘Arnold’, the school Goldendoodle).