William Ellis — what's it like?

Any update on William Ellis? Thank you.

I’m sorry to say but my son’s experience at WE was so bad, we’re paying the price years later.
We were enticed by the plus points: the Heath, ex Grammar etc, but the reality was a hugely toxic atmosphere, felt immediately on entrance.
They try to bed year 7s in with a camping trip. DS was bullied immediately, his sexuality questioned as well his atheism. Back at school the bullying continued relentlessly, he was punched, shoved, pushed in the road, shown porn and snuff videos, filmed crying and told it was put on Snapchat. There were other things that he still won’t tell us about. It took a year and a half to get him into a different school and that was only possible with an EHCP.
Our experience reporting incidents was very poor, even with cctv evidence, it was obvious the school was more concerned with how these accounts would influence their Ofsted report so were minimised and we felt we were gaslit.
If I’m honest I’d say it’s a holding pen for boys who are brought up around misogyny and machismo as the norm.
We’re still working through the pain years later.

DS1 was there for 2 years having been excluded from another school. It is quite a rough environment (DS mentioned fights in the toilets) but the teaching is good and the teachers genuinely seem to care and go the extra mile for the students. The school gave my son a second chance and the HT and other heads of year were particularly good. My son really enjoyed his time there but he is quite confident and used to dealing with people from all walks of life. I know of several other parents with kids there who are very happy. The intake is quite heavily Muslim in case that's a factor.

Sounds very similar to my son's experience, took him a couple years to get over the trauma of being there. Such a shame as he had such a lovely primary school experience. He is back on track now and doing well, biggest regret sending him there.

Hi all,

My son has just been offered a languages aptitude place at William Ellis for September 2027, and we're deciding whether to put it first on form.

I've read the older threads from around 2023, when the Ofsted was "requires improvement", but I know the school was rated Good across the board in late 2024. I'd love to hear from parents with boys there now, especially in Years 7–9:

• How is behaviour in lessons and at break? Any bullying, and how did the school handle it?
• How do quieter boys get on?
• How are languages taught, and is the top set properly stretched?
• How good is communication with parents about progress?
• Any tips for settling in, e.g. the summer school or the Year 7 trip?

Thanks!

Yes! In the same boat here. My son is quite sensitive and academic. Not sure if he will get in to any grammar schools and other secondary schools around us are terrible. This had a good atmosphere and I like the school's focus on relationships with teachers and other year groups. We are seriously considering putting this school as a first choice and place him on waiting list for other selectives. I am hoping a smaller size will help identify kids that can be stretched/ pushed further but am worried about bullying and disruptive behaviours.