Laura Lamont

Ardingly College Prep School in Haywards Heath, West Sussex, has appointed Laura Lamont as the new head, replacing Harry Hastings who is standing down at the end of this academic year after more than 30 years as a teacher and headteacher to begin a new career as an executive coach.

Ardingly College Prep School caters to boys and girls from age two until 11, when most pupils transition to the college’s lower school at Year 7.

After graduating with a first-class degree in art history from Bristol University, Lamont spent two years travelling the world on cruise ships, giving lectures to international audiences on 19th century American and European Art. An opportunity then came up to work in the primary school on the Isle of Mull which she had attended as a child. She subsequently undertook a PGCE and a master’s in education, joining City of London Girls’ Prep School in 2012 where she was appointed deputy head in 2016, before taking on her first headship at Queen’s College Preparatory School in London in 2020. She has since gained a national professional qualification for headteachers from University College London.

Lamont said: “I was so impressed on my first visit to the school to meet such happy children and see how the fantastic team of teachers really get to know and value every child as an individual. I very much look forward to getting to know the whole school community better before taking up my post in September.”

Ben Figgis, head of Ardingly College, commented: “Our prep school has ambitious plans for the future and I know Laura will do a fantastic job of ensuring that the school continues to go from strength to strength as we enter this exciting next chapter of its history. I also want to say an enormous thank you to Harry Hastings, who has contributed so much to the college over the past six years as head of the prep school. Harry will be greatly missed by us all and we send him every best wish as he embarks on his own exciting new chapter.”