Secondary school with no setting and almost no homework

Look at the results (not just progress and attainment 8, but EBACC, A Levels and HE destinations) and the latest Ofsted report. Given that she has passed the entrance exam for grammar, ask what the offer is for pupils identified as gifted and talented.

The "shambolic" education of 30 years ago has already been improved upon.

And not by ensuring that 60% of children aren't clever enough.

it's early days, it might get better. astonishing they don't set for maths though that is very unusual even in schools which are anti-streaming they usually do set for maths from year 9 if not before.

How many GCSE A or A* grades do they get each year?

if it is low i would be moving her regardless of commute.

You can't bump your position up on the league tables by cheating on controlled assessments, because the headline measure is both Maths and English. Maths is exam-only, so even if they cheat and get everyone to pass English, their % will be determined by how many they get through maths, and it's first entry only counts so they can't even go the old route of entering kids every session from Y9.

A school that does well in league tables (unless you just mean the number that Grade C or above ...?) is unlikely not to stretch its most able students.

As I wrote above, some schools have been cheating heavily on their GCSE controlled assessments, and bumping up their position on the league tables that way.

Also, even an honestly earned A* in some GCSEs is by no means "stretching" for the most able pupils. Modern languages is perhaps the best example of this.

O.K . The best Comprehensive schools set and try to ape Grammar Schools, hence why the best ones use artificial methods to select their pupils.

Four. It's not about my standard of punctuation , grammar or numeracy but about how we can improve on the shambolic education that was typical thirty years ago .

Under a hardly changed original name i advocated for grammar schools to be available to access in all areas.

I have stated a preference for a 40% grammar system, so any school that does not separate the strongest students from the weakest will be scorned by me.

DS's school is the same. Their results are virtually identical to the nearby school (with broadly similar intake) that sets in every subject from day 1.

You don't mention that there is actually a problem with the school - just that you are worried they might be. A school that does well in league tables (unless you just mean the number that Grade C or above ...?) is unlikely not to stretch its most able students. What does the Ofsted report say (again, they will look for progress of most able students)?

bog standard comprehensive

That's three words. Clearly grammar standards are that high.

One word 'Bog Standard' Comprehensive ! and.....?
Most bog standard comprehensives set/stream and give homework, what's your point?

How do you know Bog standard?!
Such a rude term by the way....

One word 'Bog Standard' Comprehensive !

I am sorry you DD was not able to benefit from the grammar school education that she warranted !

If you are concerned that they don't get higher grades for brighter children, what is their progress 8 score like?

Whether they set or not, it is down to your daughter teachers to meet her needs - i.e. stretch her. If you can't get anywhere talking to the school, I'd give her lots of extra work at home. Also, is there definitely no school that she could commute to? She might prefer to spend 30min on a train but be surrounded by like mided children + more challenge in the classroom.

Zebra Our local secondary is like this, except that they do set for maths. They have a 'good' reputation too, but they also have a culture of massive cheating on GCSE so-called "controlled" assessments. It will be interesting to see what happens to their results once the first cohort of GCSE students with no coursework/controlled assessments comes through.

How bad it is will partly depend on the intake of pupils. Ours is the only secondary in a market town, so is very mixed ability-wise. Science-oriented children seem to have a better time of it, because of the maths setting and because triple and double science means science to some degree sets itself. Also, it's easier in science subjects to work from GCSE revision guides. However, my daughter is keen on humanities, and was badly let down; the kind of higher-level discussion and writing pratice needed for humanities was seriously lacking.

You can get tutors, of course, but my DD would come home from school exhausted from the boredom and the social demands of constantly "working in groups" with lower ability and uninterested children. I would advise talking seriously to your DD about the need to work outside of school, and to have regular set periods where she does independent reading or revision.

I find it incredibly irritating that so many people will tell you (for instance when talking about grammar schools) that "all comprehensives set". They bloody well don't.

Sounds completely bizarre, and I'm surprised OFSTED aren't all over them! I would think that there must surely be some differentiation in the work given, even if there is no formal setting or streaming? What are the school's results like?

Have a chat to her tutor or email.
Some schools don't stream straight away in year 7 and if they do may just do core subjects at first.
Ask what school policy is. If mixed ability, ask how they differentiate in lessons.