Page 2 | Relocation: help needed to find a good secondary school

Slubulino · 2024-01-19T14:30:39+00:00

Hello there! We are relocating from Sweden to UK with a 12y old boy. Please help suggest small towns, villages around London or London neighbourhoods that I should look at when moving that will give the best chance for my 12y old boy to enter in a good sencodary school. Is it worth paying a relocation consultant to help with the school registrations and appeal? Thank you!

Marchintospring · 20/01/2024 11:01

Maybe look at Sussex if you need to get to Victoria. The big towns like Crawley are horrid but Horsham and Reigate are better. If you can find a village nearby so much the better.
Schools are a lottery. My nearest is sought after and has kids who parents were in a position to have gone private. Plenty of high achievers, Oxbridge candidates and business successes. From the Facebook chat you’d think the school was in the Bronx or something.

Phineyj · 20/01/2024 10:50

blog.poormansmath.net/images/london_borough_tube.png this may be handy. Shows London boroughs and train lines. Windsor's off to the west - near Slough.

Phineyj · 20/01/2024 10:45

I stand corrected! Got to be a better commuting option than deepest Bedfordshire, however.

Meredusoleil · 20/01/2024 10:38

Phineyj · 20/01/2024 10:27

Looks like Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire and Windsor/Maidenhead is the answer. Thank you Wikipedia!

en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_middle_schools_in_England#:~:text=Statistics-,In%202019%20there%20were%20107%20middle%20schools%20remaining%20in%20England,Biggleswade%20Academy%20in%20Biggleswade%2C%20Bedfordshire.

Beds and Herts are north of London but good commuter links by train. Windsor is a London Borough so you have more options there due to population density (but getting a rental will be hard and expensive).

Windsor is most definitely not a London Borough. It is part of Windsor and Maidenhead which comes under Berkshire (not even Surrey like I first thought)!

Phineyj · 20/01/2024 10:34

I have been! Also to Finland and Norway and Canada and Northern China near the Russian border.

Well, you will be most entertained to watch us softy Londoners run round panicking when we see a flake of snow on the roads.

Original poster

Slubulino · 20/01/2024 10:32

@Phineyj pff this winter is particularly hard. 60 days of snow and still counting but the worst part is -20C and the darkness 😅

Relocation: help needed to find a good secondary school

OP posts:

Phineyj · 20/01/2024 10:29

I live in the London Borough of Bromley. It takes 1 hour 15 mins to get anywhere else in London from here! (unless it's directly on the correct train line). On the plus side we don't have Swedish winter weather...

Phineyj · 20/01/2024 10:27

Looks like Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire and Windsor/Maidenhead is the answer. Thank you Wikipedia!

en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_middle_schools_in_England#:~:text=Statistics-,In%202019%20there%20were%20107%20middle%20schools%20remaining%20in%20England,Biggleswade%20Academy%20in%20Biggleswade%2C%20Bedfordshire.

Beds and Herts are north of London but good commuter links by train. Windsor is a London Borough so you have more options there due to population density (but getting a rental will be hard and expensive).

GreenGermany · 20/01/2024 10:21

Such a good idea about the 3 tier whoever suggested that. Good luck op

Original poster

Slubulino · 20/01/2024 10:03

Very good suggestion with middle school and upper school. I started looking at Windsor and it seems like a lovely place to live. I also started looking at houses close to the Windsor Boys School. We will go and visit the town when we have the next school vacation.

The commute will be close to 1h and 15min 😅. My office is close to the Victoria Embankment Gardens. But I only go once in a while … I should be ok.

OP posts:

Nonameoclue · 19/01/2024 22:00

How do you find out which areas have the middle school system? Is there a list somewhere?
Windsor do, & Leighton Buzzard, possibly? I think I read they were abolishing it in Leighton Buzzard.
I found this:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three-tier_education#:~:text=Three%2Dtier%20education%20refers%20to,progress%20through%20the%20education%20system.

Three-tier education - Wikipedia

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three-tier_education#:~:text=Three%2Dtier%20education%20refers%20to,progress%20through%20the%20education%20system.

Phineyj · 19/01/2024 21:44

Sorry - meant to add that I've got an 11 year old who will be starting secondary in September and her year group is the peak of the 2012 baby boom. The schools are really full.

Phineyj · 19/01/2024 21:43

How do you find out which areas have the middle school system? Is there a list somewhere? I'm UK born and bred and have lived in a few different places and have never come across a 3 tier system, so it must be very area dependent.

I think it's smart advice to go for middle school though. The school system and the rental market are both really overstretched here. Better to choose a senior school when you've got more idea of the country, the transport routes etc.

Meredusoleil · 19/01/2024 20:53

That data is not for in year places though!

dizzydizzydizzy · 19/01/2024 20:53

@Slubulino I wouldn't take that much notice of the actual results because they depend on the quality of the intake.

My kids went to a school with an average intake and slightly above average results. But the school was good and they were motivated so they did well and are now both at top universities.

Meredusoleil · 19/01/2024 20:52

Slubulino · 19/01/2024 20:35

@tennissquare@Meredusoleil I see the school has a good rating https://reports.ofsted.gov.uk/provider/23/143420

but the results are lower compared with other schools in the area https://www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/school/143420/twickenham-school/secondary

Edited

Have a look at this, to give you an idea of how hard/easy it might be to get a place at the Richmond secondary schools.

FraterculaArctica · 19/01/2024 20:50

Yes - in three tier areas (much less common than they used to be) schools are structured age 4-9, 9-13, 13-18, so everyone is applying for places for the 13+ move in a single admissions round, and it is therefore not just down to which schools have places. Factors such as distance from home and feeder middle school would be likely most important in your chances of getting a place at your preferred Upper school (13-18), but at least you'd have some control over these.

Original poster

Slubulino · 19/01/2024 20:35

@tennissquare@Meredusoleil I see the school has a good rating https://reports.ofsted.gov.uk/provider/23/143420

but the results are lower compared with other schools in the area https://www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/school/143420/twickenham-school/secondary

Twickenham School - Open - Find an Inspection Report - Ofsted

https://reports.ofsted.gov.uk/provider/23/143420

OP posts:

Petrarkanian · 19/01/2024 20:23

TN22 postcode, 3 good secondary schools in the area, Uckfield, Heathfield and Beacon Crowborough. Slow train to London from Uckfield, but lots do commute from here.
Lots of lovely villages, low crime rate, 30 mins to the sea.

tennissquare · 19/01/2024 20:16

@Meredusoleil , yes sorry I agree Twickenham school would be top of the list for places and I meant RPA.

Meredusoleil · 19/01/2024 20:07

tennissquare · 19/01/2024 17:24

@Slubulino , I live local to Richmond, if you move to Richmond/ twickenham / teddington your ds will probably be offered Richmond Academy or Hampton High as these are the schools more likely to have space. You could move right next door to Orleans Park school and wait years to get a place. In year 8 you are dependent on someone leaving and being top of the waiting list on the day the space is offered.

By Richmond Academy do you mean Richmond Park Academy?

I would argue that Twickenham School would be the one most likely to have an in year place first!

Mumaway · 19/01/2024 19:54

Winchester is expensive but an hour on train from London Waterloo. 3 excellent state senior schools, so you would be 'safe' with any of them. Also a very lovely place to bring up a family.

Original poster

Slubulino · 19/01/2024 19:53

@Aigh I did look at Swedish school but I want my kid to fully integrate in the new country. 😅 Also is about £14000 😅.

OP posts:

Original poster

Slubulino · 19/01/2024 19:51

@MrsMitford3 awesome that the school also has support for music. My kid plays drums, classical guitar and electric base. 😅💪

Thank you @Grimbelina , I am bookmarking it.

OP posts:

MrsMitford3 · 19/01/2024 19:34

Grimbelina · 19/01/2024 18:46

An option could be moving to Windsor as a three tier system and this school for year 9:

https://www.twbs.co.uk

Very close to London too, quite like Richmond in some ways.

Was just coming on to say Windsor!!!

Ideal from your criteria!
Windsor Boys school a great option-with outstanding sport and music.