Aylesbury High School (AHS), any thoughts......?

Oh I'm very aware of the pecking order ;-) I do wonder though whether the two recent leavers I know who felt like failures (whether from their own self esteem or through the school's influence) would have had a happier time at SHF. Elite does not suit everyone :-)

SHF has a different vibe and tends to get shunned by the elite. Or those who think they are the elite. Also lots from MK. There is a pecking order in Aylesbury!

I know several girls who are there or who have just left. As you'd expect from many schools it's mixed. Some seemed to feel the pressure: 'We get told a B is a failure', 'I'm in the bottom set for science and the teacher says we're thick'. Obviously take these with a pinch of salt. Others seem to be happier, but in general the girls I know at Henry Floyd seem more relaxed about life than those at AHS.

We live in catchment and I know loads of girls that went there. From the families I know, it is the parents who are ultra competitive for the girls! But not all! There are fewer at AHS that could afford top notch private so they are ultra keen for their girls to do well at the school. It's Progress 8 is above average so they are not all gifted on entry. Definitely not - but even the ones that scrape in on appeal with below 121 progress well if they put the effort in. There are some girls who like to compete - it is in their genes and the parents expect it, but generally I would say it has very well rounded girls.

Some girls I know who are are bit older now could have had better university advice and aimed too low and took niche courses. A very good friend's DD dropped out of university because she took the wrong course. Several I know have gone to Oxford and Cambridge and, surprisingly, had the least pushy parents.

We didn't tutor. Lots do. There are areas of Aylesbury that are not remotely well to do, so there is a mix of girls. Some will have medical consultants as parents others will have Mums that are cleaners and nannies! (My cleaner and my nanny had DDs go there). Few parents in Aylesbury are city whizz kids. They are at DrC and Beaconsfield - very different areas of Bucks.

I went and so did all my sisters. I loved it but yes, it was competitive and single-sex all-girls can get fairly intense emotionally at times. That said, we all achieved extremely well academically and have all gone to RG universities for our chosen subjects.

Wow blast from the past. I went there and my mum was at Challoners. Had a good time there but was many moons ago. Sorry not constructive I know op.

Second all the positive comments above. My daughter and all her friendship group enjoyed their time at the school, were encouraged but not pressured, took part in extra curricular activities and all have gone on to have interesting and varied careers.

My DD was there from year 7 and finished in the sixth form last summer. In my experience there were very clever and competitive girls there but also some of lower ability. MY DD would have been in the lower ability range but she loved the school, had good teaching there and made great friends. A lot of clubs run at lunch times rather than after school due to distances the girls travel to get to the school. There are musical productions with Aylesbury Grammar school next door, and competitive house events in music, dance and drama. There is a high proportion of girls doing Duke of Edinburgh awards, my DD got a lot out of that and achieved her gold. My Dd's A level results were lower than her predicted grades, but she is at her first choice university doing a degree with a foundation year. I would recommend the school.

It is a grammar school and that, of course, will mean that there will be pressure to do well - and a lot of this pressure will come from the girls themselves.

That said, after visiting AHS, Dr Challoners and Beaconsfield High in the last round of open days (we were considering moving house), AHS was by far the least pressurised and most relaxed of the three. I actually thought the girls there were very down to earth and a lot more "real world" than at the other two schools. They also seem to have a healthy relationship with the boys school, particularly in the sixth form, which to us was quite important.

I could really see my daughter there but not at the other two schools. I am, perhaps rather naively, very anti tutoring though. Sure we'll do practice papers at home to familiarise her with the style, concentrate on speed and accuracy, but this is exam technique. If she can pass the exam without formal tutoring then I would feel very happy about sending her there - it's a great school. I would, however, worry about her being able to cope there if she scraped in.

Three of my friends send their daughters there - one very gregarious and outgoing, three very kind of "normal" and one wouldn't say boo to a goose. All are very happy and doing well.