JP School Consultants

With more than 20 years of combined experience working in, visiting, and reviewing schools, we are uniquely positioned to help families select the best school for their child's needs. We offer expert advice on the entire UK education sector, including independent, state, and grammar schools.

About Us

  • After completing a PGCE in 2005 Hetty spent a number of years teaching in both the state and independent sectors before joining the Independent Schools Council as a school and parent advisor. She then set up on her own as an independent schools advisor, helping numerous families in their search for the right school. More recently she worked for Talk Education as a school researcher and parent advisor, visiting and reviewing both prep and senior schools across the south of England. She was instrumental in organising school visits for all of their researchers and so has considerable contacts in the independent school sector.

    She currently writes for The Good Schools Guide reviewing both independent and state schools, alongside jointly running JP School Consultants with Katharine James.

    This breadth of experience, along with having navigated school choices for her own children, means that she understands the process from all angles and can offer a wealth of invaluable expertise to families.

  • Katharine started her school career as the admissions registrar for a large prep school in Kent, having worked in insurance consultancy for many years. She loved the job of getting to know both the parents and the school environment inside out. She then worked for Talk Education for three years on their online schools marketing platform, visiting prep and senior schools across the south east as well as virtual visits with schools from Singapore to Switzerland. She was also a key member of their parent advisory team providing advice to parents on school choices.

    She runs JP School Consultants alongside being a writer for The Good Schools Guide. Her time spent working at a school and also visiting many others, has given her a comprehensive knowledge of the independent schools sector and she is never shy of asking those difficult questions!

Our Services

The Troubleshooter

This is a simple one hour phone or video call to discuss any specific schools or decisions you are finding tricky. We can cover any individual needs your child may have or any school dilemmas you are currently facing. We follow this up with an email including a brief summary of everything discussed.

The Complete Schools Package

We meet with you online, or in person, and find out everything relevant to your child, your family circumstances and what is important to you in a school. We take great care to get to know you and your child in depth, so that we can provide the very best advice. Following this we put together a detailed schools pack, with a list of schools best suited to your requirements, using our knowledge and expertise to help you narrow down the search. We are then available for any further questions you may have.

Please note that our services are not limited to the above, we can help with a full range of education queries, from senior and state school entry to comprehensive admissions support and introductions to registrars. We can also give families access to our extensive network of parent contacts within specific schools. A bespoke service will be charged at an hourly rate.

Get in Touch

Schedule a free introductory call to discuss your family and child’s needs.

Testimonials:

"We can’t thank Hetty enough for her advice and expertise in helping us find the right school for our daughter. She quickly recognised what kind of schools would appeal to us as a family and in a very balanced and unbiased way helped us make an informed choice."

"During our time living overseas as a family and since we moved to back to the UK, Katharine has provided invaluable guidance on the secondary school options for our children. We would recommend her without hesitation"

Frequently Asked Questions

  • We can advise on schools across the south of England in counties such as Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire, Surrey, Berkshire, Oxfordshire, Dorset, Wiltshire, Somerset, Devon, Cornwall, Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire and East Anglia as well as Greater London. We can also support families looking for boarding schools across the UK.

  • We can support families looking at state schools in Kent, Surrey, Hampshire and Sussex. We can also give advice on Kent Grammar Schools, the Kent Test and catchment areas.

    We can advise on schools across the south of England in counties such as Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire, Surrey, Berkshire, Oxfordshire, Dorset, Wiltshire, Somerset, Devon, Cornwall, Hertfordshire, Cambridgeshire and East Anglia as well as Greater London. We can also support families looking for boarding schools across the UK.

  • We can definitely help you identify the type of school that might suit your child best and give you advice on both specialist schools as well as mainstream schools with excellent SEN provision. Please get in touch with us to discuss your specific needs.

  • Once we have had an initial introductory phone call with a potential client, we will decide which consultant best suits their needs and which service is most appropriate. The charge will be tailored to your specific needs.