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Original poster

Which Devon grammar for DD?

58 replies

Tabbyabby · 23/10/2018 10:45

Help! Trying to decide by the weekend which of the South Devon Grammars to go for but we currently live in the West Midlands - very last minute as DH only got new job at the end of August.
We are relocating to the Exeter area for DH's job and DD, currently yr6, has passed the 11+ with eligible scores for both Colyton and Torquay Girls.
We have visited both schools, but have only seen each one for about an hour and cannot revisit as this week is Devon half term.
It would be really helpful to hear how girls , particularly, fare at Colyton - we weren't able to speak to any pupils when we were there - and what the extra-curricular offer is like there. DD is academic, esp languages and sciences and loves reading, but also loves the outdoors, climbing trees, swimming and singing.

Wonder also about the pastoral side?
Re Torquay Girls - most comments on MN very positive and seemed a happy school but noticed skirts turned over at waistband, immaculate hair and make up etc ( though didn't meet many girls) and wonder if there is much pressure to conform or bullying or whether all types of girl are included and supported by their peers as well as staff?
And any other advice/comments welcome! It's very difficult making the choice from a long distance without any prior knowledge of the schools.
Thanks in advance!

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Original poster
Tabbyabby · 24/10/2018 12:59

namechange and stellar - thank you, good to know you have fond memories! (Maybe all schools have a hangout called The Grove? Mine did, and it's a LONG way from Devon)

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Original poster
Tabbyabby · 24/10/2018 12:58

Thank you all so much and sorry for delayed reply (we go to bed early in our house!).
Malbecfan, thank you for the insight into the school and info on the surrounding area. It sounds less pressured than it's reputation and what I'm reading on here is backing up my gut feeling that co-ed is probably best for DD. From photos online (admittedly a random selection of evidence) the girls seem to have no more body-image concerns than anywhere else and noticeably fewer than some schools.
If it were possible we would absolutely visit for another look round and to meet some of the students, but we are really up against it timewise as applications must be in before next Weds and this week is Devon's half term (though not ours!) - hence the desperate plea on mumsnet

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Malbecfan · 23/10/2018 23:23

Both DDs have gone through Colyton - DD2 is in y13. There isn't any bullying I have been aware of. There are loads of extra-curricular activities on offer whether you want sport, music, reading, robotics etc. The Parents' Association is pretty active and has just held a big art show. Pastoral care is fine - we haven't needed much beyond what is provided but staff have got back to me quickly and niggles have been rectified promptly.

Both DDs are scientists and there is absolutely no pressure on them either from staff or the boys not to be. They both have wide circles of friends, male & female, and this is one reason we chose the school.

We used to live in Exeter but moved 10 miles to the east as it suited our work at the time. Yes, Sidmouth and Budleigh Salterton have a lot of older people, but there are younger ones too. We are near the beach and live in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Buses serve Colyton from Exeter, the villages round Ottery like Whimple & Feniton, Honiton, Exmouth, Budleigh Salterton and Sidmouth as well as closer places like Branscombe.

Can you come down on a weekday and book a tour round? Wherever possible, they get 6th form students to show people round and chat with them, so at least you would get to meet some and chat to them.

goodbyestranger · 23/10/2018 23:19

Yes well it's just not appropriate Gemma and doesn't reflect the reality. It's an incredibly thoughtless thing to post.

Branscombe is far more beautiful than Beer but prices are relatively high property wise. It has the advantage of a free school bus for Y7-11.

notsureIsignedupforthis · 23/10/2018 22:55

Torquay girls will party in Torquay when older and is next door to Torquay boys with the (out dated) reputation it has re drugs

Stellarbella · 23/10/2018 22:48

Miss Pickersgill is still teaching!

Namechangeforthiscancershit · 23/10/2018 22:47

Well that is devastating news. A whole generation of kids missing out. Next you’ll be telling me you can’t get the pink Bacardi breezers.

Stellarbella · 23/10/2018 22:46

Ah, the grove! The best of times. I don’t think it’s there anymore.

Namechangeforthiscancershit · 23/10/2018 22:40

Stellar no nightlife? But surely you have happy memories of the Grove and hanging out behind the Co-Op car park*

note I do not know Stellar* and am not casting any aspersions

Excited to see basically all my favourite teachers are still there Grin

Stellarbella · 23/10/2018 22:38

I was at colyton 13 years ago (eeek!) and it was fantastic. Far better than Torquay - my mum went there. Colyton is also far and away the better school league table wise. I also think there’s a lot to be said for a co-ed school.

In terms of where to live, colyton itself is great community-wise. Also branscombe and beer. Frankly, outside of Exeter there is nothing much going on in Devon of an evening - it’s not really somewhere you go for the nightlife!

GemmaB78 · 23/10/2018 22:34

I'm directly quoting both the mother and the daughter who used it on a number of occasions. I don't know whether they coined it themselves or it came from another source.

Namechangeforthiscancershit · 23/10/2018 22:33

Oh yes the numbers have increased haven’t they? 155 year sevens, I think we would have had about 110. Off to stalk which teachers are still there now. I notice the uniform hasn’t improved at all!

I don’t want to be to specific when I’ve already said what year I was in, but eating disorders in my cohort were a lot less of a problem (in numbers terms) than in other schools in the area where friends went, and I think the same goes for general pressures. One of the nice things about being so rural I think is that most people were still really good friends with primary school people from where they live so your social network was pretty wide- stopped things getting too insular and I certainly never noticed us working any harder. But as someone said, there are very good local comprehensives so lots of high achieving kids all over the place.

goodbyestranger · 23/10/2018 22:25

With the greatest of respect Gemma, Colyton has never had a nickname of Anorexia High, certainly not in the forty years I've had of living in the immediate area. That's a totally unfounded comment given the numbers of DC in the school with health issues of that nature compared to other schools with a similar intake in other parts of the country. I'm very aware of the numbers involved and think it very unwise for someone without even a single child at the school to toss out such a silly comment without regard to the damage it could do.

Namechangeforthiscancershit · 23/10/2018 22:24

Ottery and Sidmouth are both nice in their own way. Sidmouth was actually our Big Night Out venue embarrassingly Blush. Well there or Seaton. It does have an older population but lots of teenagers too, and the beach is nice.

GemmaB78 · 23/10/2018 21:29

I lived in a small village just outside Sidmouth which had a lovely community feel once you were welcomed in (as much as a grockle can be in Devon!). A friend's daughter was at Colyton until recently. Nicknamed Anorexia High due to the pressure it can put on its pupils, though as an alumni from a Kent single-ed grammar school I'd say that's fairly common. My friend was very happy with Colyton as a school and her daughter thrived. Sidmouth is a lovely little town but it does all shut down by 9pm! Husband and I had easy commutes to work in Exeter. I also lived in Ottery St Mary for a few years which is a fantastic little town. More going on, but easy to get to Colyton from there. And king's is a good nongrammar option.

I've no experience of Torquay girls, but as others have said, East Devon is much nicer than Torbay.

folduptheocean · 23/10/2018 21:19

That's great news. If my dd does get a high enough score I would relocate. We would go for Colyton.

goodbyestranger · 23/10/2018 21:04

People can get in from the moon if they want. It's done on scores only.

HighOverTheFenceLeapsSunnyJim · 23/10/2018 20:58

So how do the grammars distinguish between candidates if it isn’t catchment - is it scores & distance? Do people really get in from the midlands?!

Original poster
Tabbyabby · 23/10/2018 17:36

Onewhitewhisker - thank you, we'll go to have a look at Sidmouth. My daughter would really like to be near a swimming pool and other activities but she's desperate for us not to live in a "big city" ie Exeter (where we live now is a lot smaller!) so she might like Sidmouth.
Blarney - we like the look of the grammars, but I know that Woodroffe and King's in Ottery are good too. The big snag is that we are not yet in Devon so can't put Devon (or Dorset) schools with catchment areas on our form at this stage. We can only do that on a revised form once we have actually relocated... It's a minefield.

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Blarneybear · 23/10/2018 17:23

Does it have to be grammar? Woodroffe is great and lots more extra curriculum than Colyton

onewhitewhisker · 23/10/2018 17:21

tabby you're not wrong about sidmouth, it does have an elderly population and a bit of a retirement feel and i'm sure it's not exactly teen mecca!. But it also has a cinema/swimming pool/beach/branch of costa/quite a few sports clubs/places that offer saturday jobs... People i know moved from a small village partly in order to give the DC a few more ways to have an independent social life without endless lifts when they were around the 11- 14 age bracket - now they are a bit older, they go into exeter more.
Also colyton has a Friends/PTA group.

Original poster
Tabbyabby · 23/10/2018 16:33

If anyone out there has knowledge of Torquay Girls, it would be really good to hear your insights.
(And any more thoughts on Colyton!)
Brilliant help so far - first time I've posted on Mumsnet for this kind of advice and so chuffed with responses - thank you

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Original poster
Tabbyabby · 23/10/2018 16:26

Namechange - thank you! I imagine it has changed, think numbers have increased for sure, but always encouraging to hear someone has happy memories!

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Original poster
Tabbyabby · 23/10/2018 16:16

Thanks for all the replies everyone - really helpful.

Coldagain - no, she herself doesn't mind if single or co-ed but isn't a very girly-girl and currently has both boys and girls as friends. Has had a few problems with exclusion from the cool clique of girls at primary and obvs we would like this to be avoidable at secondary - so maybe co-ed, although Torquay Girls would be a much bigger pool of girls and haven't heard of bullying problems so far....
Onewhitewhisker - that's interesting about Sidmouth - we haven't visited yet but I'm embarrassed to say I had a preconception that lots of people retired there and that there wouldn't be much for teens.
Foldup - you can take the Devon 11+ regardless of where you live as the grammars don't have catchment areas, but you have to travel to Devon to do it.
Thanks for the tips on where to live - can anyone recommend villages on the Colyton side which have a good sense of community? I think buses go from Chard and Axminster as well as Exeter, so a really wide spread.
Another thought - does anyone know whether Colyton or TGGS has a thriving PTA or friends group? Perhaps it's tricky with students' living over such a wide area?

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Namechangeforthiscancershit · 23/10/2018 13:53

Oh and yes when I was there you didn’t have to have any skill or talent in order to be involved in extra curricular stuff Grin