Sharing Marketing Success at Holmewood House: Milestone Celebration: Nursery for the academic year 2025-6 already fully subscribed!
Something that we always love to see is our clients and trainees’ continued success, building on our work together even further for the benefit of the school and its students. Caroline Mulley, Marketing and Admissions Manager at Holmewood House School in Tunbridge Wells, has kept us updated on their (trend-bucking, incredible) marketing and admissions results and metrics, following our social media marketing training and management support for Holmewood House in 2023. Since Caroline took the reins, the school’s M&A has gone from strength to strength, which is clearly reflected in their results. Caroline and Suzy in the Marketing & Admissions department have upskilled, re-skilled, and worked effortlessly to achieve these results across multiple marketing platforms and avenues. In an independent school landscape plagued by the dreaded VAT, business rates, falling birth rates, and parents being stretched financially in all directions, they’ve managed to up enquiries 43% YoY, and their Nursery is already full for September 2025 start. Read about their trend-bucking results for yourself:
(By Caroline Mulley, Marketing and Admissions Manager, Holmewood House School):
In a challenging recruitment environment for UK Prep Schools, Holmewood House is making bold moves to secure its place as a leader in Early Years education: laying the foundation for long-term growth and success across the school.
Our focused marketing strategy on Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS)—filling the school from the bottom up—is delivering remarkable results. Our strategy provides consistency, stability, predictable fee income, and maximises the referral model.
Our Pre-Nursery is fully subscribed this academic year, and the Nursery has a waiting list for 2025-6.
Admissions enquiries for Early Years entry for 2026, from parents of children now aged under 3, have risen by 50% compared to the average (at the same point in time) of the previous four years!
The Reception cohort for 2026–2027 is on track for enrolment success, with an ambitious stretch target of 45 children well within reach. With 38 pupils enrolled to date and five terms of recruitment still to go, we are confident in surpassing expectations.
Passing this milestone demonstrates Holmewood’s ambition, resilience, and creativity - and ensures we have a solid foundation on which to build pupil numbers throughout the Prep School beyond 2029.
This has been achieved through enhanced website and strategic digital marketing (following training with Attenger Digital and AMCIS), the introduction of targeted showcase events (Early Years Group Tours), a structured follow-up process, and outstanding support and personalised service throughout admissions.
Our recruitment success highlights a broader trend of effective returns on investment in targeted marketing initiatives at Holmewood House.
Admissions enquiries to Holmewood for the period between mid-December and mid-January (since VAT was imposed on school fees) is the highest recorded since 2018. Enquiries for the period are up 43% on last year and are double the average for the period in 2018-2023.
This year, 2024-5, is set to break all admissions records. We have already fielded a record number of enquiries (well over 300) and there are almost two whole terms of recruitment to go.
Three exciting new initiatives will further amplify Holmewood’s reputation as the leading Pre-Prep in the area, sending a clear signal of confidence to our current and prospective families:
February 2025 Holmewood House Hedgehogs Stay-and-Play: Launching in our Forest School after February half-term, this initiative invites local families with children aged 0–4 to experience Holmewood’s exceptional Early Years provision. It will inspire future pupils and strengthen our community connections. (Attenger Digital’s note: this is a fantastic idea to bring not only extra revenue into the school, but support the admissions pipeline too. Talk to your Commercial and Enterprise colleagues about how best to approach this commercial opportunity. We can support strategically, with commercial brand and marketing consultation to make it a success!)
March 2025 First Steps to School: Head of Pre-Prep and Head of Early Years will host a session to guide current and prospective parents through the Nursery-to-Reception transition, offering practical advice to ensure children start school feeling happy and ready to learn. Open to all families, it highlights Holmewood’s commitment leading and supporting every step of the educational journey.
Summer 2025 Our minibuses are being transformed! We’ve partnered with a creative agency to design a bold new promotional wrap for our out-dated fleet, reflecting Holmewood’s energy, ambition, and warmth while showcasing our financial strength and investment in the future.
These projects are much more than practical enhancements or community events—they are symbols of our forward-thinking approach and ambition for the school. Holmewood House is not only responding to challenges but seizing opportunities to innovate and lead. We are setting a new standard in Early Years education, ensuring our school continues to thrive and inspiring confidence for generations to come.
We hope you found some positivity and inspiration in reading about Holmewood House’s journey so far. If you’d like to fill your Early Years spaces, and strengthen your pipeline for continued YoY growth - we can help. Click here to book a short 15-minute consultation.