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Original poster

Holland Park School

29 replies

MN164 · 20/09/2015 10:52

Not likely we would get a place here but I was very interested in what an £80m new comprehensive intake academy with an 'elite-head' was like, compared to the many other London schools I've seen, so I went to the Open day last week.

I must say I was impressed and also happy that state schools can be of such quality, but also saddened that this isn't anything like to norm for state schools.

The one thing that rang alarm bells was just how committed the head and his senior team were. He was so committed he could be "committed". When he mentioned that his deputy only sees his twin baby daughters fleetingly at weekend because they all work so hard, I wondered if such a unbalanced work life was a bad thing.

Anyone else go and have different views or indeed actual experience with their children there?

OP posts:
Original poster
MN164 · 20/09/2015 21:28

That's helpful insight. I assume she was uncomfortable and /or unhappy there hence the move.

I got the impression that whilst they made a big thing about the high achieving students, a) There were not that many and b) lesser students were not celebrated for achieving improvement.

Any other parents there care to add comment or balance the picture? Sometimes only those with a gripe comment, masking many who are happy but don't comment.

OP posts:
Fatfreefaff · 20/09/2015 18:14

My daughter left this year at the end of year 11. The school has an extremely high turnover of staff because they are treated like shit in my opinion. The commitment is coerced I think. There are very few women in the SLT unlike other local schools.

I think most of the local schools in the Triborough area are ok with a couple of exceptions. HP excels at hype and putting a spin on everything.

DD was in the highest group throughout and found it extremely pressurised. She has moved to another local school for sixth and found that it is NOT NORMAL to practice favouritism, to shout continually and to tell pupils they will starve on the street unless they get A* at everything. There is a cult around the head and a cult built around certain children which is creepy and weird.

DD also finds the pupils in her new school 'normal'. HP is all about cliques. She made some nice friends there but that is all she got out of it.

KingscoteStaff · 20/09/2015 13:28

I'd send a bright child there.

I wouldn't send a lower achieving child there.

I wouldn't work there.

Giraffe44 · 20/09/2015 11:23

I felt very much the same at the Open Day and would love to hear from parents with children there. I found it very difficult at the open day to see beyond the hype and work out if it was a happy school.

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