Orleans Park, Grey Court , Richard Reynolds Secondary school

What I am trying to say is that wealthy people send their kids to great selective private schools and not to state schools. We are lucky to have good schools around but they are all very limited with the budget. An affluent person would consider a great school with a swimming pool, polo and god only knows what else and not Grey Court, Orleans, SRR, Turing or Waldergrave where there is a minimum of 30 kids per classroom and few of those schools don't have even proper grounds for kids to enjoy

Yes. I live in Hampton Hill. I wasn't sure which one to make as our first preference as they both are great schools witg similar results. St Paul's have a bit better progress 8. The way I did it will give us still some time to think about it and see who is going to which school ( friends or frenemies). Both schools have pros and cons in our eyes.

Well clearly wealthy is a relative term. I think you did say up thread that you got your second choice of school, not your first (and presumably for a boy, as Waldegrave wasn't mentioned) 🙂

If I was very wealthy I wouldn't certainly live in London at all but in Home Counties and send my son to e.g. Bradford College. :)))

As a matter of fact I do actually live in the distance/catchment of Waldergrave and Turing that has had top results in borough for GCSE exams for the last two years. A vast proportion of the kids from our school joins in y7 those two schools.

If you were wealthy, mobile and wanted your child to go to a grammar school, but also have the backup of an outstanding community school, would you live in your street?

The wealthiest migrants to Richmond Borough are renting/buying in the catchment of Orleans Park, Grey Court and Waldegrave. There are equivalent areas in Kingston, Sutton and Barnet (which were the other three boroughs listed in the report as having high concentrations of HK migrants). All 4 areas are within grammar school catchments.

In contrast, most Ukrainian migrants have settled in areas where there have been sponsors to host them, so the fact that there are more of them is irrelevant to this thread. Their economic profile is different to HK migrants.

Why the comparison? Not sure what point you're trying to make.

Because so far more people ( and kids) arrived from Ukraine than Hong Kong . Yes it may change in the future ..
either way. From my observation: There are no families from Hong Kong on my street. But a lovely Ukrainian family lives few houses away. There are 1, sometimes 2 Ukrainian kids in each class in our primary. I have not noticed any kids from Hong Kong in similar number. Maybe an odd one. Yes, this is Richmond street and school experience. Unless they buy those houses in one specific area

I’m struggling to recall the last time I read a thread on Richmond borough secondary schools and it didn’t get massively derailed by a debate about the minutiae of admissions statistics or results…

Why the comparison? Not sure what point you're trying to make.

This thread is about schools in Richmond Borough and North Kingston, which are two of the four London boroughs that the bulk of HK families are locating to. National numbers aren't relevant to the discussion.

44 in one borough in one year - a total of 420 in Richmond Borough primaries since Sep 2020.

compare it with 10k kids UK wide from Ukraine only in 2022...

Ukranian families are often dependent on where their hosts live. HK families more often have the means to move within catchment of the most popular schools. For example, there are many in central Twickenham, living in the Orleans Park catchment.

Maybe they moved to North Kingston in particular with the thought of "Inner Catchment" of Tiffin. If you look at the ethnicity of kids in Tiffin, the vast proportion comes from South of Asia
But I don't see that many here in Richmond on the West side of the river. Unless... they established their domain in Ham part of Richmond, again... because of Inner Catchment of Tiffin. But I thought that Inner Area is only in Kingston and originated from Kingston residents complaining that the school serves the purpose of very wide catchment

44 in one borough in one year - a total of 420 in Richmond Borough primaries since Sep 2020. The report is a year old. It's an inwards flow that will continue while the policy is in place, and depending on how the political situation develops in HK.

I cannot possibly imagine why 44 kids would be a large number. Among all schools in the particular borough, it would be easily absorbed. And as I said, more Ukrainians joined my son's school than kids from Hong Kong - if any. Surely we would have at least one in one of the classes if that was the case?

And another quote from the same doc:

From the school place planning doc I referenced:

of course I remember :) but it doesn't mean that all of them travelled in particular to Kingston borough. The same with Ukrainians. There is a handful of Ukraininan kids at my son's Richmond primary that arrived early 2022 but I don't recall any child from Hong Kong joining. And the program is since 2020

You're forgetting this ...https://www.gov.uk/government/news/hong-kong-bno-visa-uk-government-to-honour-historic-commitment

I still believe these are very small groups. In 2021 census was showing following profile for Richmond Borough

Families migrating from relatively wealthy countries, such as Hong Kong, more often have the means to move into expensive catchments than families who are migrating from less wealthy countries.

If you read the School Place Planning doc linked up thread, it mentions that Richmond Borough is attracting many Hong Kong migrants. I expect Kingston is similar.

Sorry that was a response to youdeservecake.

There are several private schools that also attract people to Kingston. They try for the best state schools but then go private if they don’t get in.

I have my youngest at SRRCC. Oldest was in the 3rd cohort, and fortunately we got sibling priority for the DDs. DS was not very happy at the school, but that says more about DS than the school. DD1 left last summer, but only due to course choices. She had medical issues and SRRCC was amazing at providing a plan for her return to school within 3 days of developing seizures. DD2 still there and very happy,

My DC attended primary in Sunbury and the majority of their friends went to St Paul’s which is very popular. We have family with a DD at Orleans.

As far as sports is concerned, SRRCC use Moorhead, but also St Mary’s. There is plenty of sports provision and many extra curricular options.

The mystery of prices in North Kingston is driven by the Tiffin Girls. Tiffin Girls School is located in North Kingston, and around the school the so-called "Inner Area" for Tiffin Girls, a closest catchment within which it is much easier to get in than from the "Designated Area" that spreads really far. The "Inner Area" has a preference. North Kingston prices are driven by the Tiffin presence.
As for Teddington, I would say the opposite - for some reason, Teddington School is on the rise. It was our 5th preference, and as a result, my son is not going there. However, from my son's class, 13 kids put it as a no. 1 option, and 10 have already received the offer. It is different than last year when Turing and Hampton High were at the top of popularity. We will witness a shrinking catchment for Teddington as the local kids like it now.

I would argue that Kingston and Richmond (there are quite a few in Richmond that aren't so popular anymore - Teddington being one of them - although personally I think that unfair) are very similar in terms of number of Good schools versus not so good - there really isn't much in it.... hence, the house prices in North Kingston are definitely as high as many parts of Richmond..

I think in Kingston you have a lot of immigration and movement because you have such good schools.
I wouldn't say that in Kingston you have more immigrants than in Hounslow Ealing or anywhere else. Btw I live in Richmond Borough. 126 kids not received any of 6 choices in out borough, and in fact no offer at all.

I wouldn't say in Kingston are such great schools. There are much better comprehensive schools in Richmond. In Kingston Tiffins, Kingston Academy and then two listed catholic schools are good. Coombs schools, Hollyfield, Toolworth and Chessington are v average or below.

I can't imagine anything worse than buying near a school and then not getting in
I know somebody who moved to get a place in Waldergrave but the catchment shrank!. They didn't. They got Teddington.