King Edward's High School for Girls, Birmingham

[crazycrofter]

Does anyone have any experience of or inside information about this school please?

[caramelgirl]

Went there, loved it. Pretty much all of my classmates did too. Was weak on drama and art (private domains of teachers) and I thought chemistry and physics too, but has massively improved there apparently.
Good old girls network and really nice gentle "cool blue stocking" place. I wished I'd chosen a girls college at Oxbridge too, found it a shock to be competing with boys (did best them and win awards etc., but we were a lot less brash and assertive). So guess that might be a downside.
One perspective anyway.

[BackforGood]

What do you want to know ?

[crazycrofter]

I'm not sure really! We have an offer of an assisted place for our daughter and she is really keen to go there. We loved it on all our visits. I'm just wondering if there's anything we're missing. I suppose I'm worried about her being the poor girl at an independent school and about the extra costs. She will hopefully also be offered a grammar school place, but at a school further away and one that wasn't originally her first choice grammar.

[SpikeStoker]

I'd take the offer unless there are extras which make it financially unviable, but the school can give you that information. It's the best school in the area for girls and your DD and you love it. No school is perfect, but it has an unsnobby reputation which should suit you. Also the opinion seems to be that girls are more likely to take STEM subjects at an all girls school. Congratulations to your DD for getting an offer.

[Tiredemma]

My son has an assisted place at Solihull School- I cant say that the 'poor kid' thing has come up at all. From what I have seen on the car park- not everyone appears 'rich'. It is something I was very worried about - but really nothing has come of it at all.

[senua]

Bite their hand off!
The only reason you would go to one of the Grammars was if you wanted co-ed, but that one isn't so hot on results.

[DoItTooJulia]

Senua, Camp hill is a Girls grammar, just down the road, so grammar education in Birmingham most certainly isn't all co-ed.

Which grammar school has your dd been offered? It might be useful to compare them?

I know a lot of old girls that went there and they mostly had a fabulous time, including the one who got an assisted place. Other then that I can't help, sorry!

[senua]

I said "that one [co-ed] isn't so hot on results."

[arna]

My alma mater albeit I attended in the 80's and I loved my time there.

It has been and is the top independent girls' school in the Midlands for the past few decades A quarter of the pupils have assisted places and it's not that posh imo - it's a day school after all with an extremely generous bursary scheme. The fees are good value in relation to its fantastic facilities and its results. If I lived anywhere near the Midlands, I would not hesitate to send my DC there or to KES boys' school next door.

Certainly, if it is easier to travel to it than say KE Camphill simply because you live on that side of the city, I would snatch that assisted place offer.

Solihull School is co-ed and not in the same league as KEHS. My niece attends Solihull School at the moment and is awaiting to hear whether she has definitely got a place at KE Camphill before jumping ship. Her parents is prioritising exam results/slight commute over school fees though. HTH

[WiIdfire]

I went there. Although I knew who a few of the assisted girls were, it was never an issue, just came up in normal conversation.

I wasnt assisted but never went on any of the extra trips/holidays or paid clubs or anything, so there wasnt a divide that way either. (If that makes sense)

Great for grades - my year (20ish years ago) had 100% A-C pass rate at GCSE, most people got 10-12 GCSEs. Similar for A-levels, something like 98% A-C grades (no As then) with 4-5 A levels each.

Personally I felt I was socially disadvantaged as it is all girls so had little interaction with boys, but there is the boys school next door with lots of joint activities in the upper years (and everyone else seemed to manage fine...) so maybe not a big issue.

What else would you like to know?

[WiIdfire]

Oh and it always came in the top 5 schools in the country, which is good. (Always behind Cheltenham Ladies College... Bah!)

[myrtleWilson]

Another ex pupil here, with an assisted place but equally was 30yrs ago when I started there. Didn't feel any disadvantage with assisted place, did enjoy my time there, felt it was academically strong but also keen to ensure young girls developed into confident, socially aware women so not just academia at all costs.

[crazycrofter]

Lots of old girls here! Thanks for all your comments. She will probably be offered Sutton Coldfield Girls Grammar next week. KE Handsworth was just too awkward a journey and she didn't quite score well enough for Camp Hill or Five Ways. Sutton will be a longer journey for her and while we liked it, it seemed much more ordinary somehow than KEHS! But KEHS isn't free- with the AP, we'll be paying 20-30% fees. I'm pretty sure it's worth it for us, but I do have the occasional doubt...

[yellowtaxi]

crazycrofter I went to Sutton Girls so feel free to ask anything about it if that is the school you are offered. I loved it there and would highly recommend it However I do know someone who went to King Edwards High and I think she would say the same about her school so I think either would be a good choice .

[crazycrofter]

Thanks yellowtaxi. We really liked Sutton when we went round on a normal school day and we were quite happy with the thought of her going there, but that was before the KEHS offer. Maybe she won't even get offered Sutton next week, who knows!

[Dancingdreamer]

I wouldn't hesitate to take the place. KEHS is a great school. Certainly not just a rich kids school. Here are the good and bad points if that helps.

Science is very strong but have heard lately that English and history teaching can be patchy

Music is amazing

Get benefit of all girls with boys next door and sharing buses so girls not too isolated

Whilst school does not put pressure on girls the school attracts a lot of DDs who put themselves under pressure. Hear lots of stories about girls predicted straight As and A*s crying because they are convinced they will fail!

Some not been happy with university application support.

PM me if you want more info.

[MauriceTheCat]

Another old girl here too then onto Oxbridge. I was assisted and loved it, I got to do so much and met so many wonderful people.

Go for it it's one of the least snobby schools around.

[simplydimps]

My DD has been offered a place at King Edward VI Handsworth Girls. Is in waiting list for Camphill but doubt she will make it.
She also has an offer from Solihull School and Saint Martins (non-assisted)
Are the latter 2 the snobby schools? Have to decide about the independent schools by tomorrow. Would be grateful if anybody can share their experiences about any of the 3. We are middle class so don't want her to feel like she misfits in the independent schools.

[myron]

KEHS is the independent selective girls' school in Edgbaston, NOT KE Handsworth girls grammar school. Completely different locations as is Solihull School and Saint Martins.

What is your priority? Location, non fee paying, single sex or the best academics?

[Theas18]

Take the KEHS place over Sutton if you can afford it with the assistance. Great school, my 2 got places but went to Camp hill.

Great school. Know many alumni and several current girls.

Simplydimps re Solihull - we let it was too posh for us and iirc when we looked was in the proscess of becoming co ed. Have a friend who has girls there who are happy though. No info re St martins im afraid, but I'd say it's probably too small and probably not ideal for a girl who is suitable for the fast pace of a superselective grammar education maybe? It might be different from a Solihull view but from the brum side, very few take fee paying placed if they get grammars as well.

Pm me if you want more details - been through the brum proscess 3x!

[simplydimps]

Crazy crafter, didn't mean to steal your thread. Realised later I should've started a new thread with my query. Apologise for the same.

myron, our priority is definitely academics first and all the 3 schools we are looking at are good academically. Second fees, State Grammar wins here.
Third, distance, the independents are 10 mins away.
Fourth, co-ed or all girls, we don't mind either as she is currently going to a co-ed primary school.

Theas18 we like Handsworth Girls. It's just that the distance is too much from Solihull. It's going to be a very long day for her. Moving around there would be an option, however, we will need to change DS's school.

Was hoping to get some info on Handsworth Girls from parents whose children are already going there. I will create a new thread.
Thank you!

[simplydimps]

Sorry 'crazycrofter' it was auto correct doing what it does.

[Tiredemma]

MY Ds1 has a Sports Scholarship and assisted place at Solihull. We are in Four Oaks so it is a bit ofa trek every day. Its a fantastic school- certainly for him anyway.
Not sure if its 'very posh' - we have only met other scholars parents and they are not posh and stuck up at all

[Dancingdreamer]

Theas18. Interesting feedback on St Martins. Both Solihull and St Martins have similar exam results. Most who choose these schools enter in the junior years and select them because they want a more rounded education than the grammars offer. Given they have a wider intake, the results across all streams are excellent.

In particular St Martins. As they are a smaller school with a small 6th form they don't have enough Alevel entries to feature in the main school performance tables. However, academically, they have been the Top Performing Small School in the country for the last 2 years. I believe in some years their exam results have actually been better than some of the local grammar schools. Their added value, therefore is very good.

[crazycrofter]

Well we have accepted the KEHS place! She was offered Sutton too but KEHS was a clear favourite for her.

Simplydimps, we went round Sutton and KE Handsworth after the results came out as these were the two options for our daughter. My husband and I both loved Handsworth. It's a beautiful building/campus and we were impressed by the wide range of extra-curricular opportunities. The results are excellent too, pretty similar to KEHS and Camp Hill I would think? For us, the travel would have been awkward and as our daughter preferred Sutton, we put that first instead. Would your daughter be able to travel to Handsworth from where you live now?