The school was located at Headfort House, outside the town of Kells, County Meath, some 75 km north west of Dublin. The main part of the house was rented by the school's operating company from the charitable Headfort Trust; the East Wing of the house forms a separate residence. The school utilised the bulk of the remaining gardens and grounds. Headfort House is over two hundred years old, having been built for the 1st Earl of Bective. It was designed by the Irish architect George Semple, using Ardbraccan limestone for its exterior construction. The interior was designed by Scottish architect Robert Adam: Headfort has the only intact Adam interior in Ireland. Much of the original furniture is still in place.
Pupils
Headfort catered for both day and boarding pupils from the ages of seven to thirteen. In 2002 the school started a Montessori school division, which catered to children from the age of three to six.
Curriculum
The prep school curriculum included the core subjects of the Common Entrance Examination, while also meeting the requirements of the Irish national curriculum. English, Maths, French and Science were heavily timetabled. Science included practical work in the laboratory once a week, as well as theoretical work and half an hour’s prep a week. In addition, parents were offered a choice between Latin and Irish. History and Geography classes met three times a week for most forms, Scripture and Computer Studies once. Singing, Art, Design and Music classes were also regularly timetabled, while afternoons were devoted to Games, including hockey, rugby, cricket, horse-riding, squash, tennis and swimming.
Ethos
Headfort aimed to inculcate in its pupils a robust self-confidence, encouraging them to express their own individuality whilst balancing these individual rights with a sense of duty and obligation to the wider community. The school was non-denominational, respecting all religions and the right to have none.
The school, which had had financial issues for some time, closed in 2020, with the senior master, Neville Wilkinson, commenting that COVID-19 was the "final nail in the coffin" and that "liquidation was the "best of the bad options." Liquidators were appointed in May.
Possible re-opening
From May 2020 efforts were made to prepare to reopen the school from September 2020, with a new operating company registered and applying for charitable status, and other two trusts acting to support fundraising meantime. A former principal of Aravon School, Bray, has been appointed as Head for the proposed relaunch.
