Kings Edwards in Whitley, Duke of Kent or Reeds Cobham

[Flyingmum23]

I was wondering if I can get some thoughts on these schools. I have a bright and abke son but struggles in English and instead of going for selective schools thpught less academic might help to flourish and be at mid top rather than mid botton.

I am looking at the above schools.

Some questions that come across are:

Do any of the schools offer English ability sets?

How is the teaching?

How king edward cope with so many non native speakers?

What is the profile of the kuds that go to these schools?

[Teddingtonmum1]

My DS goes to Reeds and it's an excellent school, with great facilities and great pastoral care. Whilst it's not an academic hothouse I understand that entrance has got harder since the new headmaster took over. Sports & engineering are big here.

[Flyingmum23]

REEDS ..Thank you. That is what I have gathered. I understand that children achieve well in maths but their results are lower in English. Is this because there are a lot of children doing learning support? What is what you do not like about the school? Someone said that they get £5 when they achieve x amount of good job stickers or point. What type of children go there?. Someone said that parents prefer St Johns to Reeds. Is it very sporty if you have a non sporty child?

[Flyingmum23]

Is there any information on 13+ or 11+ preference among parents? The CE exams sems to be a lot harder as you have to take several exams plus French etc. It looks like it is the same process that RGS takes.

[Hia3]

My youngest daughter is at Duke of Kent Senior School. She is a bright girl- also passed entrance to Guildford High School and St Catherine's.
D of K is a mixed ability school- many bright kids, but also some that struggle. Learning support is available and English, maths , foreign languages and science are in ability sets.
GCSE results are excellent in correlation to ability- you can't compare to a selective school.
My daughter loves school, has fun and works very hard- much happier than her older sister who went to st. cats.

[Flyingmum23]

Thank you so much. There is not much info out there. I am visiting the school soon.

Do the school challenge the most able kids? I understand classes are small so I was wondering how they do this? What is the feedback from the parents on new introduced A level? And where do day pupils come from?

[Hia3]

Hi Flyingmum,

Reeds and King Edwards are day/ boarding.
D of K is day only - since 2014. It does not have a sixth form- look on website for example of where children go next- next steps.
Normal day is 8.20-4.45. Most students in the Senior school stay for activities , tea and prep- they can stay until 19.30( at no extra charge). Children can also arrive at 7.30am - lovely breakfast- also at no extra charge.
Most children are fairly local to the school between Horsham and Guildford.
Bright children are challenged e.g encouraged to do AS level Extended Project. The school has a challenge grade system - look under curriculum policy on the website.

[Flyingmum23]

D of K sounds excellent. My only concern is the fact there is no sixth form. I guess if the child started in the school early is not a big deal but starting at 11plus and moving at 16 could be separating from friends at a delicate age.

[Hia3]

Totally understand- I actually turned down a place at the school for my older son- in favour for a school with a sixth form.
With highsight I regretted that decision , as like quite a few children at his Surrey boarding school , he decided that he wanted a change for sixth form .
By the time they are 15/16yrs , your child can then be fully involved in selecting the next step. You can then choose a school or college that is strong in your child's A level options- we are looking at Christ Hospital, Hurst College( both schools have 35+ intake at 16+). My daughter was very shy quiet child at 11, but now she is an outward going confident child that is happy to consider weekly boarding in a much large school for sixth form.

I would guess that about just under half the children start at 11+ and a few join at 13+ from very local preps .

[groundhogmummy]

I loved DoK but was disappointed to learn that they only had 15 or so spaces for next year at 11/year 7, offered in order of registration and we simply weren't as quick as others who were in the know ! I would recommend learning from my mistake and speaking to the registrar.

Still have my fingers crossed that some current junior school children will leave and free up spaces, but am not hopeful. Not sure if it's an unusually big current year 6 or whether the school has just grown quickly in popularity.

[Flyingmum23]

groundhogmummy

Could I please as what is what you love about the school?

[Flyingmum23]

Thanks everyone. All seem to be happy with these schools so looks like you cannot go wrong with any. I gathered Reeds is changing towards the academic side so i am guessing the world of education is getting crazy. I feel dorry for our children that are under so much pressure to achieve and do well.

[groundhogmummy]

I thought it would be a good fit for my ds. I could imagine he would get stuck into everything there and feel a real part of a school community. I felt the environment was friendly and didn't try too hard - eg no one felt the need for the star harpist/soprano to be wheeled out for open day !!

That said I found Reeds friendly and smaller community feel than i expected.

I completely agree with you re the level of pressure, starting with gaining admission to some of these schools. The sheer numbers of pupils applying is clearly rising and I wonder where on earth the ones who now are unlikely to get into Reeds or St John's will go.

I wish I had looked at King Edward's as well.

[Teddingtonmum1]

Hey Flying mum ,
My DS is a weekly boarder , as I understand boys can eat all their meals at school which is good if your a commuter as you can drop off for breakfast & they can even have their evening meal there & do their homework before being picked up . The have about 5 school bus routes so getting in the morning is covered. It's a small school years 7/8 I think only have about 60 boys per year. Any questions let me know and I'll see if I can get the answer ...

[Flyingmum23]

Yes thank you. In the sixth form it looks like there are a lot of children joining. Where do they come from and if the majority board...is that a problem for a day pupil?. I have been told that 1/3 are boarders.