Brackenfield School
Catchment Area, Reviews and Key Information

We invite all children wishing to join Brackenfield to spend a day at the school. This allows them to meet some current pupils and to experience life at Brackenfield for themselves. These Taster Days also enable staff to become acquainted with pupils prior to admission to the school.

Every day is an Open Day at Brackenfield! We are always very happy to provide individual tours of the school. These can be arranged at a time to suit the visitor and the Headteacher usually conducts the tour, socially distanced, of course. 

For those that prefer, we hold Open Mornings at regular intervals during the academic year. These provide an opportunity for prospective families to visit the School to meet the staff and pupils, and to view the facilities and grounds. 

The Governors of Brackenfield School in Harrogate are delighted to announce the appointment of Mr Joe Masterson as Headteacher from August 2020.

Joe is joining Brackenfield from his role as Head of Primary at A’Soud Global School in Oman, a large British international school with over 800 pupils. Joe’s previous roles include Deputy Head of Primary at St. George’s British International School in Rome and Head of Achievement and Progress at the British School in the Netherlands, a leading international school with over 2000 pupils. In addition to his extensive leadership roles at some of the world’s top British International Schools, Joe is a member of the peer accreditation team of COBIS (the Council of British International Schools), and has supported schools through Ofsted, ISI and COBIS.

Joe is an outdoor enthusiast and enjoys endurance events and walking in the mountains, as well as spending time with his family. Joe is an avid follower and reader of educational research and evidence-based practice. He is a strong advocate of continuous professional learning for staff through literature, webinars, the ResearchEd movement, the Chartered College and various social media streams. Joe’s three children will be joining Brackenfield School so it will truly be a family affair.

John Forsyth, Chairman of Brackenfield School, said ‘we are delighted with the appointment of Joe into such a wonderful school. We know that he will bring the ideal combination of passion, energy, warmth and professionalism to the role, and are looking forward to working closely with him in further developing Brackenfield as the best Prep School in Harrogate.’

Brackenfield is a small, independent school with a friendly, family feel for pupils aged 2 to 11. The school is idyllically located in the Duchy conservation area of Harrogate.  

Brackenfield offers:

• A first-class academic education
• A warm family atmosphere
• Award-winning extra-curricular activities
• A friendly, caring, lively and purposeful environment
• Traditional values, modern technology
• A dedicated team of well qualified, inspirational teachers

Brackenfield is unique in Harrogate in that it is not directly associated with any senior school and pupils leaving Year 6 move on to a mix of independent and state secondary schools.  Selecting the right school for your child is a very big decision, particularly when making that choice at birth.  We look at each child’s unique strengths, abilities and learning style to advise you on next steps, whether this be in independent or state education.

Mumbler Love Local Awards

We are delighted to announce that Brackenfield School were the 2020 winners of the Harrogate Mumbler Love Local awards! During such a difficult time with Covid 19, we really appreciated all of the positive comments and kind recognition. The school was nominated for two awards and this is testament to all the hard work from the staff at Brackenfield. We wanted to share some of the comments with you: