How to choose The Right School

[chocolategrasshopper]

Hello.
I'm French, and in France, there is only two types of schools, state (mixed gender, no uniform) and private (mostly mixed gender and no uniform).
I'm also a mum living in England and I'm supposed to choose a school for my son but I'm getting quite confused over all the different types of schools available in England.
I don't know any mum with children in school age, so I'm feeling a bit lost.
I checked the website direct.gov.uk but it's a bit basic.
Can you help me to make the right choice for my son?
Merci.

[thisisyesterday]

2 types of school here too chocolategrasshopper.

state schools (most with uniform, some without) and private schools (mostly with uniforms)
most schools are mixed gender, but some private schools are same sex

some schools (both state and private) will be church schools.
state church schools are allowed entry criteria based on your religion and whether you attend a local church etc etc

so basically you need to decide whether or not you want state or private- so whether you can afford the fees for private, or if you'd prefer to send your child to a state school.

then visit them! my biggest piece of advice to anyone looking at primary schools is to visit all possible sites and get a really good feeling of what they're like.

[ShoshanaBlue]

Religious schools can be voluntary aided (like RC, Jewish etc and some CE) - these have their own admissions criteria and rank their admissions criteria accordingly. Some religious schools (usually methodist or CE) are voluntary controlled and I think aren't meant to be very religious and have the same admissions criteria as state community schools (usually siblings/distance/catchment area etc).

Hope that helps.

[smee]

where do you live chocolate? If you put that on here, you'll get wisdom from people who live near you who know the schools/ options local to you. How old is your son? You have to be careful not to miss deadlines for application in both state and private sectors, so beware..