How are Grammar schools so much better than comprehensives if they get the same funding?

More teaching time, as far less disruption. In a non-selective school, teachers could spend most of the lesson telling kids off and trying to engage them and keep order. There's also less of what you might term an underachievement culture as kids know they've been sent there to learn and do well, whereas at a secondary/comp, it's far more likely that kids, particularly boys, may be reluctant to realise their potential as they might get taunted for it, which is pretty sad really tbh.

Your children have not even started primary school yet, but you are trying to anticipate what any particular secondary school might be like in 7,8,9 years time. That’s not a good idea. A poorly performing school can get a new headteacher and really turn itself around in the space of 4-5 years. You don’t have a crystal ball and I agree with a previous poster that you are getting ahead of yourself. I would say relax a little, you have plenty of time. You don’t even know what kind of primary school would be best for your particular children, let alone secondaries. Plus the same kind of school might not suit both children. One of mine went to highly selective grammar school and the other didn’t, because it wasn’t right for her.

Only if you think your kids will pass the entrance exams and score high enough to make the cut - most kids who get into grammars are tutored within an inch of their lives from the middle of junior school and still many of them don’t get in.

Personally I think you would be insane to move jobs and houses on the hope that your child is in the top 10% of those who sit the entrance exams in any given year. Seriously. You’d be better off aiming for the best performing local secondary and hiring tutors. And being very present, engaged parents in terms of monitoring homework etc.

I would suggest you research areas with grammar schools and also good comprehensives. I live in the East Midlands, and the nearest grammar is about 20 minutes drive. It’s highly selective, but for the kids who don’t get in, there are 2 very good comprehensives nearby.

I would be wary of moving somewhere just for a good grammar schools, without knowing how academic your kids are going to be.

My DC are benefiting enormously from grammar school education. The whole ethos is different and every child there wants to be there, unlike at the local comp where a not insignificant number of children don’t want to be there and are determined to mess up the lessons for everyone else. These ‘don’t want to be there’ children are usually the less able (whatever their innate ability because their acting up means they miss out on learning).

So grammars have accidentally ruled out those disruptive children because they wouldn’t pass the 11+. Related to that is the fact that many teachers would prefer to work in a grammar school where children want to learn and are keen to be stretched academically, so grammars often have excellent teachers, and teachers who stay.

My DCs’ grammar is quite traditional - in a good way. That ‘old-fashioned’ ethos helps too. That’s not to say there aren’t good comprehensives but many, including our local one, aren’t that great. The driver for the grammar school choice BTW wasn’t me but my eldest DC who visited the comp and said they didn’t want to go there. So, no, it’s not always pushy parents as someone implied above. In addition, our grammar school does a number of subjects that the comp doesn’t, including more modern languages.

I work in a girls grammar school. They have to take two entrance tests to get in, it is very competitive. The students achieve very high grades almost all 8’s and 9’s. Most are naturally very intelligent, some have a lot of tutoring to keep up.

My youngest brother grew up in Kent.. He didn't pass the test and had to travel miles to nearest comp

This, behaviour is king when it comes to driving academic progress.

If you don't like pressure and rules in the school system then do not touch a grammar school - they are all about rules and pressure.

Isn't it obvious? If you select academic kids (and in most cases, academic kids who happen to have aspirational aka pushy parents) then you will get better results than the comprehensive schools which take everyone.

And yes, there probably is less disruption in the grammar schools, but the same applies to top sets in comprehensive schools. Kids who do well at school are much less likely to act up.

I suspect that, in most cases, the kids that do well in the grammar system would do equally as well in a comprehensive. There is just a higher concentration of them in grammar schools so it looks like the schools are making the difference.

Sending our child to a grammar is one of the best things we have done, especially when we hear toe curling stories on the regular about what goes on at the supposedly ‘outstanding’ local comps. The Grammar school is traditional, hard work is rewarded / respected and poor behaviour is not tolerated. The whole focus is not on SEN or poorly behaved kids and it is not run like a military boot camp (only way the non-selective across the road manages to get anything done at all). Teachers are subject specialists who enjoy being there. Extra curricular activities are amazing. Children are not held back by all the focus being on the 3/4 borderline kids - they are engaged and work at a fast pace. Both myself and my DH are Oxbridge educated. He went to private school and I went to a very low performing comp where less than 20% of children managed passes in English and Maths. I succeeded in spite, rather than because, of the environment I found myself in. I vowed that this would not be the experience of my own very bright and motivated children.

If you’re considering moving anywhere in the country for grammar, why not do loads of research and move near one of the best comprehensives in the country instead? As it’s too early to know how academic the kids are. Look at the Good Schools Guide etc

That said, we have one at grammar. The main difference compared to their state primary is there are near to zero behavioural issues. Teachers just seem to breeze through the material with no interruptions.

The other option is becoming one of those exam tourists and taking every grammar test to see if you pass then moving there. However obviously means moving primaries for the others.

@Karma1387 you never know but your DC could be the disruptive or the less able academic ones

You don't want kids pressured but are going along with grammar schooling? The pressure for that needs to start by year 4!

100% this. No other reason in my experience (parent of two kids who have just finished grammar). Also, the more selective they are, the more it applies. By that I mean the part of Kent (I believe the only county to have grammars as a policy, ie they are county-wide) I'm in has quite a few grammars, so if you pass the Kent test - what they call the 11+ - you're in. I believe in areas where grammars are more sparse, passing it doesn't necessarily guarantee you a place, so the school really gets to only have best of the best academically. Therefore, the grammar my kids went to is quite good, getting better results than the secondary schools, but not miles and miles better, whereas in some grammars that can be more selective, results are sometimes amazing. Hope that makes sense?
Just reading other answers, about smaller classes, more invested teachers. Neither true for my kids' grammar school.

In the kindest possible tone: OP, you are coming across as very foolish. Firstly, your question as to why children do better at grammars and then the later post that your eldest is 2! Enjoy your children and dont worry about the next 9 years. A lot can change.

Schools that were ranked Outstanding can decline and the opposite is true.

Grammars in the southern half of Lincolnshire are not highly selective, they take about 25%. However, although this means they are easier to get into than the super selective, it also means that the non grammar schools have a very hard job to get anywhere near the results of the grammars, but they don’t do a bad job and they are well regarded locally ( one has turned itself around hugely in recent years) Also, if you want to do A levels, there is no option but to go to the grammars for sixth form- unless you travel 20 miles in either direction to go to a local college.

First off I do have grammar experience having seen DD through it (she has left now in year 12) and it isn’t for everyone it is an intense experience that suited her until year 11 but not her brother who is thriving at a local comp

their paths suited them but would not have suited the other

what strikes me @Karma1387 is that so much of your posts are about you and your partner and your issues with things and not your children - you are making decisions based on you and not your children

Only if you can be sure your kids will all comfortably pass the 11+ and that the location of the property you're proposing to buy guarantees that you fall within the grammar school in question's geographical selection area.

It concerns me that you don't already know/understand why grammar schools produce better results than bog standard comprehensives.

we found they stream in comprehensives anyway so the disruptive behaviour isnt in the top sets.
selective schools also look amazing but they are basically just the top 20% of a comprehensive school. my two kids came out of a comprehensive school with 7-9s and A* in alevels. as long as the school stream the kids the disruption shouldn't be a worry to bright kids. if your kids end up the bottom sets then consider home schooling them

@Karma1387 you are at the opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to education if you don't want any pressure and your DH wants grammar school. Your child will probably need to be tutored from Y4/Y5 if you want to get into a selective grammar school.

There's a certain breed of teacher who only really likes teaching the bright pupils who are really interested in their subject.

There are also teachers who get satisfaction from the pastoral side of supporting "difficult" kids.

And teachers who like getting less bright children to get the subject matter.

The first gravitate to grammar schools.