To board or not to board...

I?m not exaggerating at all. When my DDs attended the school the school had a large number of teachers from South Africa and Australia.
Edge Grove take boys and Girls, they may prep the boys in the later years but they most certainly do not prep the girls in any way shape or form for entrance into Grammar or private schools at 11, which is rather frustrating considering the fees are higher than any other school in the area plus not all parents want to send their children to boarding school.
The school assured me when we first joined that my DDs would be prepped but probably due to heads coming and going the ethos changed. DDs are now at Habbs we couldn?t be happier,thank goodness we had a fantastic tutor or I?m sure they would have failed the entrance test.

domestic goddess i have not seen a "large amount of young foreign " teachers, I've seen a couple of foreign teachers, and they weren't young, very experienced, I think you're exaggerating a little as you've obviously removed your children.

And did you do a survey of all the children that got into good schools then and they told you they all had external tutoring ? Because my dc are in the upper years so I know quite a few ( you said yours were in juniors) not one of them has been tutored externally so I'm wondering where you got this information from.

You also mentioned the Leavers list which I've just looked at, domesticgoddes if you look at the Leavers list regularly you would have noticed that this format has only been there since the Xmas holidays, till we broke up it's been on a yearly basis, I don't like this new format either and will definitely bring up when we resume.

I can assure you the children go to all the good schools including public schools, I actually have the yearly breakdown which was sent to me in september and if I wAsnt on an iPad (can't figure out how to attach a spreadsheet) I'd send it to you, as of early December we were celebrating with 3 of dc friends who just passed their Harrow pretest , those are just the boys I know personally who applied there, they have a very good record of good schools so really don't know where you are getting your information from.

As far as grammar schools go, just like maybe time said, Edgegrove is a boarding prep that goes up to age 13, so if you are planning on going to grammar school, it may not be the right place for you as they are more towards independent schools that require 13+ most of the other schools in that local area go up to age 11, so if I was contemplating grammar schools I'd probably go for those ones.

Domestic goddess, where did you move your children to? I did notice on their website that they don't mention sending children to any of the good state secondaries but is that because it finishes at 13 rather than 11? All the other prep schools in the area have a number of children going to QE, Dame ALice Owen, Watford Grammar, JFS but Edgegrove seemed to me to be much more geared up to boarding rather than day schools. On the tutoring, everyone tutors for 11+ and 13+ regardless of whether their children are in state or private school so I don't see that as an indication of failure on behalf of the school. Of course it is insane to spend all that money and then tutor but everyone does it so it is hard not to fall into the trap of doing the same.

There are a large percentage of young foreign teachers, why.... because its cheap hire. I had the misfortune of having 3 inexperienced teachers for my children; they learnt absolutely nothing for 2 years that?s why we left the school. I would just like to add that there are some very good teachers in the school that work incredibly hard.
The curriculum is weak in the junior years, the early year?s department is very good, I didn?t stick around for the upper years. The school will not prep the children for grammar schools and told me so. Also the children that have got into the good school have been tutored externally. Ask yourself why the school only publishes leavers destinations over a 25 year period and not year on year, I think the last person going to Eton and Harrow gained places over 10 years ago.
I hope the school improves with the new head. I heard he?s very young and has been head of a school in the Middle East.

By the way, Edgegrove prep is not that bad, yes the headmaster suddenly left back in the summer hols, but has had an interim HM since then, a very experienced and capable man, who has been doing very well, a new headmaster has now been appointed who comes into post next September.

What's diabolical about the curriculum, it doesnt have a D and T department at the moment which is a shame, BUT they will be opening one come september with the new head. Not sure what you mean by young backpackers ? Care to explain more ? My dc have fantastic teachers! the curriculum has helped send children to haileybury, habs, downe house, NCLS, Eton, Harrow etc with scholarships. It's a very family oriented school and most of the parents love it, so do the children. Its a very good school and the most racially diverse I've come across in the area.

It's not the most academic school in the UK but it has a very new head whose been brought in to push up the academic results. But I know from personal experience that nearly all are happy and that the able seem to do very well. It is very sporty so for that reason doesn't suit all.

HG what's the A grade pass rate for st edwards's ? or I might just go online, thanks.

I can highly recommend St Edwards Oxford as senior school; it ticks all your above mentioned criteria. It is in particular a very caring school with a very high standard of pastoral care. The only thing is that it is full boarding or day and the day children have to stay till 9pm.

Thank you Colleger. I am not even slightly interested in Habs / NLCS for DD, I know both schools well and they are not for her. I am actively looking for somewhere which is less selective and will nurture her other skills, allow her to be creative, take part in lots of sport and build her confidence so that I can either leave her there if she is happy or sit her elsewhere if she needs a change.

I like Aldenham. Those that poo poo it tend to do so because it does not rank in the league table like Habs or St Albans. But they are co-ed and non-selective so what does one expect in an area filled wi grammars and super-selecitves. I'd probably opt for Haileybury though because it is more well-known.

Thats zvery true that there will always be unhappy parents everywhere. Where have children been moved to from Aldenham? It is also interesting what you have mentioned about Edgeggrove. As I said, I am also in the area and I had never even heard of Edgegrove until a couple of years ago, Radlett Prep, Manor Lodge and occasionally Aldenham have always been the schools mentioned. Edgegrove's fees are in a different league to all the schools I have just mentioned which is the main reason I haven't looked at it but it is in such a beautiful settings with such great facilities that it is a shame that there appear to be so many issues with it.

I?m sure there are lots of happy parents and students at Aldenham, I just happen to have met parents that have moved their children and some that are unhappy..... but don?t let me put you off !! There are people that are unhappy in every school.

Thank you for that, very interesting. I also live in the area and whilst I am aware that it isn't considered very academic, and that is understandable when there are so many academic state and privates close by I have only heard excellent things about it pastorally at prep level and certainly have never heard that it is a last resort school. I shall look forward to my tour of the school and keep my feelers out amongst people I know who go there.

Opps I cant seem to edit my post. Does anyone know if its possible to edit ?

pateneras in life we all have different views whether it be schools politics or where to do our food shopping thats what makes our country so intersting. We cannot or for that matter should not like the same things and as between the two schools there are 2000 places we cant all beleive that one or other is the best. I repeat that these are my views and the views of many I associate with including parents with children at both schools and parents in general and teachers/heads at a variety of prep schools I have spoken to over the years. You or anyone else for that matter are at liberty to disagree with them but these are my views are therefore no less valid that yours.
You may be intersted to know that it clearly states on the Eton website that only 39% of the grades were A and that the Pre U is only offered in languages and music. The FT may currently not distinguish between A's and A's in its league table but then a few years ago it was lumping A and B grades together but I understand that universities are distinguishing between the A's and A's to quote "The A was introduced this year to stretch the brightest students and help universities differentiate between the best candidates." Secondly it is not me who states that the Pre U is a significantly harder exam the equivilant grades also atrract more UCAS points as well.

You believe that Eton is the best school and will hear no critism of it or accept that many are equally good if not better for an individual child. This is a very narrow vew on life and one that I work hard to avoid.
Finally I just want to thank you for drawing my attention to the FT league table. I have put a seperate posting regarding the dumbing down of A levels. I dont care whose getting 94% A grades I find it hard to accept that this has not been achieved wthout huge changes in the A level/Pre U exam format from when I and I suspect you sat it. I do not believe that this is the way forward for education in the UK or our children in particular.

Maybetimeforachange. I don?t have personal experience of Aldenham but I know quite a few parents that have moved their children from the school as they were unhappy with the standards there. It does have a reputation locally as being a ?last resort? school. I also know that children who have been expelled from other schools in the area have been accepted into Aldenham which has lead to there being somewhat of a bullying being a problem, for some children (new boys in particular)

I wouldn't worry about the university fees. Martin Lewis on the Money expert forums, has quite a lot of information showing that unless you have boys (less likely, still, to have lengthy maternity leave than are girls) AND high-fliers who will definitely earn above £21k for all their careers, university graduates may very well never have to repay all the loans they take out.

For instance, if one of your children is a girl who might well want to become a vicar or an artist who never receives commercial success (though this might be hard to predict) and have a few years' maternity leave, she will not have to pay the whole thing back as she won't be earning £21k plus all her career. If you pay her fees in advance, you've lost out.

On the other hand, if one of your children is a boy who shows an aptitude for money and will probably go straight into the City on graduating and stay there most of his working life, he will have to pay his loan all back. But then he'll be able to afford to, won't he?

I would also imagine that as fewer people are going to go to university following this market adjustment, costs will go down.

We have been paying double school fees for the last three years or so, but frankly, the children are on their own once they go to university. Though, if we're not broke and don't need to pump our small remaining funds into retirement planning (our private pensions having been ravaged over the years), we may help out with deposits/rent for their post-university accommodation.

Domesticgoddessintraining, Why doesn't Aldenham have a goodreputation? I have heard very positive things about it and am about to view it as a possible prep school for my DD. I plan on sending her until 11 and don't currently have plans to leave her there all the way through although would like it as an option.

Obviously there are a small band of schools which are very tough to get into, but the vast majority are not .

No need to be worried, let alone terrified. You have to try quite hard not to pass most of these exams, really.

Royal Masonic School for Girls would be a great idea for your DD it has just recieved a fantastic ofstead report.

I wouldn?t bother looking at Edge Grove the headmaster has unexpectedly left, it?s full of young backpacker teachers and the curriculum is diabolical. Aldenham does not have a good reputation either. I would look at Hayleybury, Heath Mount or Beechwood Park.

It's true, no other school can match Eton's societies and extra curric, nor it's facilities. From a value for money point of view it is the cheapest of all the boarding schools!