How can I get over my disappointment?

Why does Ofsted say it is good? Ofsted ratings can be unreliable but they can five indications of strengths and weaknesses to see if they align with your thoughts.

Might be worth checking if he has any chance of getting in before visiting.

My dd went to an excellent secondary school where they had to put buckets under leaks when it rained. And that was 10 years ago. God knows what it's like now.

I would be wary of placing too much importance on going where friends go. They tend to drift apart once they start secondary and there can also be bullying/social exclusion between primary friends if some pull away early on. IMO 10 Yr old shouldn't be making the decision aa they haven't got the maturity to make decisions about their future. We didn't let DD choose her secondary school, she was the only one from her primary to go, but after 4 weeks she has settled and made friends.
Visit them all, compare them according to your criteria and make the decision that feels right for your child.

You won't be spending much (any) time in the school. The children won't notice that the place is slightly run down and will make their own friends amongst a smaller subset of the many children at the school (280 pretty standard for a secondary school) and ignore the rest.

What's important is the teaching and the pastoral care and where your child will be happy and do well. The surroundings only matter to a certain extent.
A school that has turned itself around from special measures sounds like one on the up - which is a good thing.

But yes, go and see the other school. If you do massively prefer it, then by all means put it as first preference. But you may find the schools are not as dissimilar as you think.

All schools have bullying. It's how the school tackles it that's important.

I agree with all the above. And I also think there is value in visiting the potential alternative 20 mins away. It will give you and you child a point of comparison. You might be surprised by how much your child likes the alternative or how many of their friends are actually considering it too. Or the alternative will appeal to you even less, which will provide some comfort about your original choice.

I think that parents are often surprised by secondaries. They are often short of cash plus the emphasis is not on displays in the same way as primaries. You really need to focus on whether it has good discipline and teaching as these are the important things, not its drab decor.

Hi OP - tbh a lot of schools are rundown - there has been a massive lack of investment of late in school buildings unfortunately. I'm blaming the Tory govt myself. I agree it's not great, but it's not the end of the world.

A large intake - how large? 200-240 in a year is a fairly standard secondary. It gives more options for GCSE, a better range of clubs, a bigger pool of possible friends.

By all means go and see another school for comparison. But while buildings are important, remember it is the quality of teaching, the behaviour in school, and the attitude of student and parents that matter the most IMHO.

Well it can’t hurt to take them to see it. Are their exam results rubbish? What about ofsted? You seem surprised about the secondary school.