We asked some of the county’s best schools to answer the question all parents would like answered: ‘How do you nurture children to release their full potential?’

Abbot’s Hill

Established: 1912, Pupils: 450, Age: 4-16

Boarding/Day: Day, Girls/Boys: Girls 4-16, co-ed nursery and pre-school

Open days: Prep: January 28 and February 24. Whole school: March 5

At Abbot’s Hill Prep and Senior School, your daughter is at the heart of everything we do. Our happy, united community will give her the opportunity to shine.

As well as outstanding academic success, your daughter will be inspired to achieve her full potential outside the classroom. Our extensive grounds and first-rate facilities provide the perfect environment for the school, sport and extra-curricular activities.

Our consistently excellent results at GCSE are testament to our ethos – that at Abbot’s Hill, your daughter will achieve her very best because she is happy.

In our purpose-built nursery and pre-school, girls and boys from six months to four develop by learning through play alongside more structured teaching.

To find out if Abbot’s Hill is the best choice for your daughter or son, come to our next open day.

Berkhamsted School

Established: 1541, Pupils: 1,680, Age: 3-18

Boarding/Day: Both

Girls/Boys: Co-ed and single sex

Berkhamsted School is a family of small schools, each led by its own head yet with all the benefits of access to the resources of a large school. We’re able to provide education and pastoral care centred around the individual child and fine-tune to cater for children going through the the various stages of their education.

Berkhamsted is co-educational apart from between the ages of 11-16, when girls and boys are taught separately. This approach in the classroom, coupled with the many opportunities that exist for boys and girls to interact with one another through extra-curricular activities, offers an optimal environment in which to nurture young people during these critical years of their development.

The school supports children at every level to develop a broad range of interests. From exploring our fantastic woodland environment at pre-prep to ensuring every child has the opportunity to spend a night under canvas at senior school, we allow our pupils to learn and grow through the vast array of educational experiences we make available to them.

St Columba’s College

Established: 1955, Pupils: 865, Age: 4-18

Boarding/Day: Day, Girls/Boys: Boys

Open days: February 26

St Columba’s College is an independent Catholic day school which uniquely offers a seamless, high-quality education for boys from four to 18.

At each phase of education, St Columba’s strives for academic excellence, while realising that it is ‘whole-person education’ that best prepares boys for the world and workplace of tomorrow.

Students of all ages and abilities are encouraged to achieve the highest possible level of academic success and personal growth.

The college expects its students to extend their learning through the extensive extra-curricular programme. Activities including art, music, drama, languages and sport, complement the core curriculum and enable each boy to broaden his experience.

All students benefit from opportunities for service and leadership, and are encouraged to participate in charitable, business and enterprise initiatives.

The senior school offers a comprehensive careers and higher education programme, incorporating work experience.

St Columba’s is proud of its reputation for strong pastoral care and promotes fruitful relationships between students, parents and staff.

The well-developed house and tutor system also generates healthy competition and allows students to be rewarded for their successes.

Edge Grove

Established: 1935, Pupils: 420, Age: 3-13

Boading/Day: Both, Girls/Boys: Both

Open days: January 23 and March 11

At Edge Grove, we are responsible for the formative years of a child’s education and firmly believe that all children can and will excel at something. We are ensuring children acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to develop a life-long love of learning and also teaching children essential social skills so that they learn how to treat people with kindness, respect and consideration. We want our pupils to be confident, articulate and well-rounded individuals.

We were rated 100 per cent ‘excellent’ in all areas at our Independent Schools Inspectorate inspection and praised for demonstrating that pupils feel ‘valued, known and respected’ and develop ‘excellent moral awareness, and have a strong sense of right and wrong’.

Having positions of responsibility such as head boy or girl, prefects, house captains, eco-warriors, pupil council reps and charity committees teaches leadership and maturity and enables pupils to develop confidence. Personal, social and health education, circle time, peer reading and vertical mentoring all help to ensure that children develop socially.

Our innovative curriculum helps develop academic excellence, alongside the many overseas trips we organise to expose our pupils to new experiences and different cultures.