School Advisory

The Advisory Consultation

Fees on application

We offer expert one-off advisory consultations to help you make confident, informed decisions about your child’s education or upcoming school admissions. Tailored to your specific needs, The Advisory Consultation provides clear, actionable advice based on our extensive knowledge of the UK education system.

We guide families through their child’s school career, advising across a range of school systems, including independent, state, and UK-based international or bilingual institutions. We also offer expert advice on school admissions across London, Surrey, the Home Counties, and the South West of England.

Our services are designed for families relocating to the UK, moving within the country, or seeking advice on local schools. For those who don’t require a comprehensive school search, the Advisory Consultation is the perfect solution.

Should you need further support at the culmination of your consultation, additional services are available, and the cost of The Advisory Consultation can be credited towards one of our more in-depth school packages: The School Search and The Bespoke Service.

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The School Search

Fees on application

This service is perfect for families looking to identify the most suitable schools for their children within a defined location and without requiring further assistance beyond their shortlist of schools.

Following an initial consultation to discuss your family’s priorities, educational goals, and your child’s academic potential, we conduct comprehensive research into all available and achievable school options within your specified search area.

Where age-appropriate, The School Search utilises our bespoke assessments, such as The APT or The ESB Assessment, alongside a review of your child’s most recent school reports. This provides a comprehensive understanding of your child’s academic qualities, serving as a key indicator – along with your qualitative feedback – when narrowing down your list of potential schools to a final shortlist.

During the final consultation, you will receive a maximum of 6 to 8 carefully selected school options that best match your search criteria. Each recommendation is thoughtfully chosen to align with both your aspirations and your child's academic abilities, character, and broader interests.

Once you receive our recommendations, you'll be fully equipped to navigate the admissions process on your own. However, should you require additional support, we are always available for further consultations through The Advisory Consultation. Alternatively, you can opt for an upgrade to The Bespoke Service for more personalised assistance beyond your shortlist of schools.

book a discovery call Contact Us

The Bespoke Service

Fees on application

Let us expertly plan and manage your entire school admissions journey with our best-in-class service.

This service is perfect for expectant parents in central London wishing to register their child at birth (a service we also offer), families considering schools across multiple locations, or those planning their child’s long-term educational pathway from 2 to 18. It is also suitable for international families or UK-based families unfamiliar with the British school system, as well as those facing complex admissions challenges or requiring intensive support to secure a school place at short notice.

The Bespoke Service places no limits on the number of schools we review or locations we consider – our sole focus is on identifying the best-fit schools for your child. For older children, we conduct a comprehensive analysis of their academic potential through The ESB Assessment or The APT, ensuring that our school recommendations accurately reflect their academic ability, character, and broader interests.

After narrowing down a longlist to a shortlist of 4 to 6 schools, we guide you through every step of the process until your child secures a place at their future school. Our support includes assisting with admissions forms, creating a personalised school admissions planner, maintaining ongoing communication with your shortlisted schools, and advising on both accompanied and solo school visits. We also offer guidance on competitive entrance exams, interviews, and group sessions (including tutor introductions, if needed). Additionally, we will be there to assist you in making your final decision if you are fortunate enough to receive multiple school offers.

book a discovery call Contact Us

The School Search

Fees on application

Offered at a fixed fee, this service is ideal for families looking to identify the most suitable schools for their children within a defined location and without requiring further assistance beyond their shortlist of schools.

Following an initial consultation to discuss your family’s priorities, educational goals, and your child’s academic potential, we conduct comprehensive research into all available and achievable school options within your specified search area.

Where age-appropriate, The School Search utilises our bespoke assessments, such as The APT or The ESB Assessment, alongside a review of your child’s most recent school reports. This provides a comprehensive understanding of your child’s academic qualities, serving as a key indicator – along with your qualitative feedback – when narrowing down your list of potential schools to a final shortlist.

During the final consultation, you will receive a maximum of six to eight carefully selected school options that best match your search criteria. Each recommendation is thoughtfully chosen to align with both your aspirations and your child's academic abilities, character, and broader interests.

Once you receive our recommendations, you'll be fully equipped to navigate the admissions process on your own. However, should you require additional support, we are always available for further consultations through The Advisory Consultation. Alternatively, you can opt for an upgrade to The Bespoke Service for more personalised assistance beyond your shortlist of schools.

The Bespoke Service

Fees on application

Let us expertly plan and manage your entire school admissions journey with our best-in-class service.

This service is perfect for expectant parents in central London wishing to register their child at birth (a service we also offer), families considering schools across multiple locations, or those planning their child’s long-term educational pathway from 2 to 18. It is also suitable for international families or UK-based families unfamiliar with the British school system, as well as those facing complex admissions challenges or requiring intensive support to secure a school place at short notice.

The Bespoke Service places no limits on the number of schools we review or locations we consider – our sole focus is on identifying the best-fit schools for your child. For older children, we conduct a comprehensive analysis of their academic potential through The ESB Assessment or The APT, ensuring that our school recommendations accurately reflect their academic ability, character, and broader interests.

After narrowing down a longlist to a shortlist of 4 to 6 schools, we guide you through every step of the process until your child secures a place at their future school. Our support includes assisting with admissions forms, creating a personalised school admissions planner, maintaining ongoing communication with your shortlisted schools, and advising on both accompanied and solo school visits. We also offer guidance on competitive entrance exams, interviews, and group sessions (including tutor introductions, if needed). Additionally, we will be there to assist you in making your final decision if you are fortunate enough to receive multiple school offers.

book a discovery call Contact Us

Onboarding

At the point of contacting ESB, we will book a complementary discovery call to introduce ourselves, learn more about you and your child, and discuss our services as well as our fees and any further questions you may have about our school placement service.

Getting to know your child

If age appropriate and desired, we will arrange for your child (ages 6 and above) to complete the APT free-of-charge to give us an up-to-date indication of their academic potential and their suitability to their future schools. We will also request to see your child's latest school report (if available).

Ongoing consultations and monitoring

However you choose to prepare your child for their entrance exams, we will be on hand to meet with you and your child, or your child and their tutor to discuss and review all aspects of their ongoing school admissions preparation. This will include creating a long-term framework to plan your child’s entrance exams journey, resourcing their learning, ongoing assessment via the APT and our bespoke written school entrance exam papers, and meticulous monitoring of their progress.

Year planner

Should you require one, we will create a comprehensive year planner, outlining your prospective schools’ deadlines to register your child, when you can attend their open days and/or small group tours (where offered by the school), and your child’s likely exam and/or interview and activity day dates.

Non-examined admissions preparation

If required by your child’s future schools, we will personally prepare them for their interviews and/or activity days.

ESB’s Directory

As part of our placement service, we can direct you to our trusted affiliates:

  • The country’s leading educational psychologists and SEND assessors.
  • The best local and national property finders and buyers’ agents (purchase and/or rentals) or relocation agents (personal or corporate).
  • Outstanding online and face-to-face tutors.
  • The top nanny and household staff agencies and recruiters.
  • Specialists and experts in a wide range of fields, from lifestyle concierge services and family lawyers to private banking and wealth management.

Testimonials

We are incredibly grateful to Edward for his expert counsel and guidance helping us navigate the UK education landscape. His evidence-informed, bespoke approach ensured that every recommendation was uniquely tailored to our family's needs. Edward’s deep expertise, thoughtful insights, and unwavering support made what could have been an overwhelming process both seamless and reassuring. We highly recommend his services to any family seeking clarity and confidence in their educational journey.
An American family in Central London.
Navigating the competitive London school admissions process felt daunting, but Ed’s guidance made all the difference. His deep knowledge and strategic approach ensured our son had a strong application for top schools, with carefully considered backup options at every stage. He took the time to understand our family’s priorities and provided invaluable insights that gave us confidence in our choices. Thanks to his expertise, we now have a clear and well-structured educational path ahead. We couldn’t recommend his services more highly.
An American-European family in South West London.
We are incredibly grateful for the outstanding guidance we received during our school advisory consultations. The expertise, insight, and personalised approach made the entire process seamless and reassuring. Every recommendation was thoughtful and tailored to our child’s strengths and aspirations, ensuring we felt confident in our decisions. The level of care and professionalism exceeded our expectations, and we wholeheartedly recommend this invaluable service.
A European family in Surrey.
We spoke to Ed at the end of March last year as we were moving back to the UK in the summer and needed a school for our boys to start in the autumn. Our eldest was going into Year 7 but had missed the standard assessment period and our youngest was going into Year 4, not a standard intake year for British schools. We knew we wanted the boys to go to school in Bath but needed a lot of information quickly to help us make a decision about which school to choose. We were in Singapore so couldn’t visit the schools ourselves. We had three online consultations with Ed. These were very informative and detailed discussions, which helped us make a balanced decision about our children’s future in a short period of time.
A British family relocating from Singapore to Bath.
We reached out to Ed after I saw a recommendation online. I wanted a professional with experience to challenge and reassure me that the decisions we were planning to make for our children made sense. Ed walked me through the pros and cons of the schools I had shortlisted ahead of our move from London to Surrey, and our discussion allowed me to understand in greater depth how the paths we had chosen made sense for a variety of reasons, but also he provided alternative routes we hadn't considered. Ed's time proved invaluable very quickly and we have and will certainly continue to recommend him to anyone seeking schooling advice.
A British family relocating from South West London to Surrey.
Having never been educated in England, navigating the British school system has felt daunting to say the least. Ed helped demystify the process, and clearly explained the pathways and options available to us so we can make informed decisions. His insight has been invaluable.
A British-Asian family in West London.
We contacted Ed from ESB Consulting for expert advice on local state and independent schooling options for our primary age twins. Ed provided us with a balanced, pragmatic, and personalised advice based our criteria, means and the objectives we have in mind for our children. After the consultation session with Ed we are more confident and well informed about choosing the right educational path for our children.
A British-Asian family in South West London.
We found Ed extremely approachable, friendly and professional. He was able to guide us using his knowledge of the schools we were interested in and helped us come to a decision with confidence. We will be back in a few years when we will have our children assessed to see if any gaps in their learning exist. 100% recommend ESB Consulting for any parents who need a helping hand deciding on their child's educational path.
A British family in South West London.
We recently consulted with Ed to assess our options for our Year 2 son, as we faced the decision of whether to move him at the end of Year 2 or Year 3 from our current school. While we were aware of the potential school options, it was incredibly helpful to hear from Ed about how their assessment processes work and the types of criteria considered when evaluating a 6-year-old. Ed is extremely knowledgeable and took the time to expand on his answers to our questions, ensuring we gained a full understanding – even in areas where we didn’t know enough to ask the right questions. Ed came highly recommended by other parents at our son’s school, and I would not hesitate to recommend him to anyone else, as I have already done with several friends.
A British-European family in South West London.
Ed was incredibly helpful and knowledgeable about the whole process, possible options, as well as each school’s strengths and weaknesses. He managed to distil and simplify what otherwise is a complex process to navigate. I would highly recommend ESB Consulting - absolutely worth it!
A European family in South West London.