Very small secondary school

Thanks so much @blanketsnuggler - this is all so helpful 🧡

DD went to a tiny - 20 per year group, (private) secondary school and it worked out really well.
For any others contemplating the pros and cons of small schools, this is what we found….
Good points:
-Any bullying is much more prominent and dealt with quicker.
-Teachers genuinely know each pupil's learning styles.
-Pupil's can't get overlooked or left behind.
-More opportunities for extra curic stuff they wouldn't normally get selected for like public speaking, sports, drama etc
-school runs subjects even if only one pupil wants to do it
-site not overwhelming
-pupils have to learn to get on with each other
-trendy/popular cliques tend not to happen

Bad points:
Sport teams not competative
Drama/music not always a great standard

That's about all we found really! Neither of which were too important to DD.
She picked a small university as a result of going to a small school, as she knew it worked for her, and she was, and is very happy in smaller invironments.

Good luck to anyone choosing schools - glad were through it all now!

Thanks so much @SheWoreYellow @twistyizzy @TizerorFizz this all really helpful and reassuring. I'm really excited for him to go and visit after a lonnng time worrying if he'd be ok ☺️👌

At this age, can you be confident about that? A lot of students change a lot between 10/11 and 14 when they are picking options. He might well develop a passion for photography, for example. Obviously he doesn't need a GCSE to pursue that, but he might want to?

Do most students stay on for the sixth form? If not, I would imagine that is really small which can be limiting in lots of ways. Would you be open to him moving post-16 if he wanted to?

I would ask what the minimum number of students is that they will run a GCSE or A-level option for.

DD is in a approx 60-70 pupil entry split into 3-4 forms per year. She loves it as went from small rural primary so the move to 150 per year just felt too big. It was 100% the right choice for her. The Headmaster knows every child by name and it is incredibly nurturing.
The school has an amazing sporting reputation, especially for Rugby (think England team across many generations), so smaller schools don't always = bad at sports.

@Festivfrenzy They ran tennis “teams”. I think they had 27 tennis courts! Obviously not all schools can have a couple of specialist sports but for a small school it can make sense to coach in a couple.

So @SheWoreYellow is he in year 8 now then? Do you think he's more involved in extra curricular stuff because it's smaller and they all have to contribute more?
I think my DS would love all that if he was pushed, but wouldn't bother in a bigger school. Plus I think he'd like getting to know kids from other year groups too. Less scope for meanness/bullying I guess too as they get to know each other better and teachers can more easily see what's going on?
Thanks - so pleased your DS is enjoying it.

Thanks @SheWoreYellow that's great news!
I was wondering whether for sports teams they'd be able to pilfer kids fro. The years above/below to boost numbers?
But agree with @TizerorFizz that it doesn't necessarily mean sports won't be good as there's always scope for individual players eg in tennis to shine.
I'm excited for him - the school looks so lovely 🥰

@SheWoreYellow My DDs went to a school with 60 in a year group and it streamed for maths. It was also a sporting powerhouse. Especially tennis and hockey. National champions at tennis frequently. So if a school wants to coach to a high level they will attract dc that want sport. Rugby might be difficult but other sports should not be. The key is to choose one summer and one winter sport and coach it well.

Hello OP

I'm in a similar dilemma to yours- what did you decide in the end?

Any advice you can share? I'm utterly torn! But probably leaning towards the smaller school!

Thanks!

Smaller size can be good or bad when it comes to things like sports teams or musical ensembles. Less likely to be a really strong team or group as they won't have as many to select from but more chance of being in one of those teams or groups if you're only average.
I went from being 1 of 120 to 1 of 30 at 13 and went from being the reserve's reserve for the hockey team to always being in the starting line up. It was the same across other sports and activities. I was fortunate and some of the other girls were just amazing so we still had a good team.
Also, perhaps less likely to find your tribe but more likely to mix with and get to know everyone. At a bigger school, you may simply not get to know chunks of the year meaning you could miss your tribe due to timetable logistics

In a private school, you probably know what the tribes will be! You are not going to find breadth of background by and large. Some teachers relish small private schools. Some definitely don’t want the angst of difficult to teach children. Like most schools, you can get a mixed bag!

Less likely to find his tribe. Lack lustre teachers looking for a quiet life.

Is the small school financial secure?

I'd add limited number of teachers per subject as a potential con. If there's only one teacher of [insert your DS's favourite option] and they're not great, then he could end up not choosing something he previously loved for GCSE/A Level. In a bigger school, your DS would have more chance of not getting the weaker teacher, and the weaker teacher would have colleagues teaching the same subject to bounce ideas off/provide peer feedback.

I didn't think that was actually that small for a private school?

My DD had about 50-60 in her year group. Don't find it very small.

Is it co-Ed?

Doesnt sound like this private small school is offering more than state if they're not even offering standard gcse choices....

Financial security would be a concern, and staffing. A large school will have enough classes to recruit several full time Music, Spanish, DT teachers. A small one might only have one which can be an issue if they leave, or with the lack of team to bounce ideas off.

My DDs went to private schools with 60 intake. Lots of subjects. Lots of friends and sport was top notch. Very expensive though. 6th forms offered lots of subjects. It totally depends on the school. Private small schools offer more than state schools. If they do not, why pay? They also had amazing drama and music.

😂 my DC are in a secondary school with fewer than 50 in the entire building!

Rather than “fewer friendships” and only socialising with their own year, they cultivate friendships with children of ALL ages. Makes the teens less arsey too.

Way are the gcse options?
Do they have computer science, tech, pe, photography, drama?
What is he interested in now?