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Original poster

Meadowhead School Sheffield

115 replies

Ermintrudewasinnocent · 20/06/2024 14:15

Hello, any thoughts on this school - moving from London in-year transfers. I've noted the catchment is very "mixed" but I like large schools and they seem to have a lot of options and new buildings. I've also noticed they offer a lot of BTECS so was wondering particularly how they might be able to support More Able Learners at GCSE?

If anyone has any recent experience it would be great to hear

OP posts:
NewToAllThisStuff · 25/06/2024 21:03

TribeofFfive · 25/06/2024 20:54

You’re welcome.. I think?! There’s obviously a reason you didn’t send your child(ren) to Bradfield if that’s where you live…

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It’s not our catchment school

NewToAllThisStuff · 25/06/2024 21:02

All saints is another option

OLDboredom · 25/06/2024 20:54

I secnd, third and fourth avoiding Chaucer. I have a friend who was head of dept there and he does not speak well of it!

Meadowhead used to be awful. I thought it had improved in recent years with the addition of a 6th form - has it slipped again? Its immediate catchment area certainly has a lot of social problems but it's such a big school that a lot of its intake don't live in the immediate surroundings.

Mercia is the best school in the city by many miles, academically. It's a Marmite place - the most oversubscribed school in the city, yet you hear many, many people describe it as a "concentration camp" (often without actually knowing much about it). Perhaps surprisingly, it does have pupils who have entered the school at random points in their school career - not many, but even in y11 there are children who've arrived only that year. NB Although it has excellent exam results, it's poor on MFL provision (only French) and much better on STEM subjects/Ebacc.

Newfield Green is part of the same Trust as Mercia School (the trust itself is also called Mercia), and several of the Mercia teachers used to teach at Newfield Green. I understand though that the ethos at NG is very different from that at Mercia and academically they are also very different. NG has however improved massively over the last few years and I wouldn't write it off as a possibility.

TribeofFfive · 25/06/2024 20:54

NewToAllThisStuff · 25/06/2024 20:47

we live in Bradfield (not our school) but kids in our village do get into Tapton. But thanks for your feedback

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You’re welcome.. I think?! There’s obviously a reason you didn’t send your child(ren) to Bradfield if that’s where you live…

NewToAllThisStuff · 25/06/2024 20:47

TribeofFfive · 25/06/2024 17:53

Surely in NW Sheffield your options are yewlands, Chaucer, Stockbridge, bradfield etc. no way you’d get into Tapton from there.

forge valley and bradfield are awful!

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we live in Bradfield (not our school) but kids in our village do get into Tapton. But thanks for your feedback

Hallamlass · 25/06/2024 20:34

@TribeofFfive it's true. Sheffield has grown massively in the last 15 years, and there really aren't enough school places, and the pressure on the popular SW ones is enormous.

TribeofFfive · 25/06/2024 20:32

Hallamlass · 25/06/2024 20:17

No space at HSS, plus there's a waiting list.

😩 I really can’t think of any others. I don’t think we’ve missed any between us have we? From the options with spaces I really would be looking at private OP.

Hallamlass · 25/06/2024 20:17

No space at HSS, plus there's a waiting list.

TribeofFfive · 25/06/2024 20:15

Have you check High storrs?

TribeofFfive · 25/06/2024 20:14

Hallamlass · 25/06/2024 19:54

Don't send your child to Chaucer.

Couldn’t agree more. There’s a reason they have space!
Tapton, Chaucer, bradfield & forge are all part of TSAT but there are massive differences in catchment & provision.
Are Westbourne / Birkdale options?

Original poster
Ermintrudewasinnocent · 25/06/2024 19:55

Hallamlass · 25/06/2024 19:54

Don't send your child to Chaucer.

I did look at it but agree!

OP posts:
Hallamlass · 25/06/2024 19:54

Don't send your child to Chaucer.

Original poster
Ermintrudewasinnocent · 25/06/2024 19:52

Ecclesfield is full too - I tried them. I think Chaucer has space but nowhere else for year 8/9!

I'm not really wedded on S11 but would be working SW Sheffield so its more convenient.

OP posts:
Hallamlass · 25/06/2024 18:49

TribeofFfive · 25/06/2024 18:43

I know. I said so earlier in the thread but PP didn’t put that in her list.

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👍

TribeofFfive · 25/06/2024 18:43

Hallamlass · 25/06/2024 18:32

As is Chaucer

I know. I said so earlier in the thread but PP didn’t put that in her list.

Hallamlass · 25/06/2024 18:32

As is Chaucer

TribeofFfive · 25/06/2024 17:53

NewToAllThisStuff · 25/06/2024 14:39

Are you fixed with moving to S11? You could live NW and still have plenty of options (we are at UTC OLP but close enough to manage King Eds/Tapton/Bradfield/Forge/Stocksbridge/Girls High/Birkdale)

Surely in NW Sheffield your options are yewlands, Chaucer, Stockbridge, bradfield etc. no way you’d get into Tapton from there.

forge valley and bradfield are awful!

Hallamlass · 25/06/2024 15:15

Living in NW is not going to give you any chance at all of getting into Tapton.
Bradfield has significant problems. I don't know about Stocksbridge

NewToAllThisStuff · 25/06/2024 14:39

Are you fixed with moving to S11? You could live NW and still have plenty of options (we are at UTC OLP but close enough to manage King Eds/Tapton/Bradfield/Forge/Stocksbridge/Girls High/Birkdale)

TribeofFfive · 23/06/2024 15:25

Ecclesfield are good unless your DC have SEN. In which case, avoid.

Original poster
Ermintrudewasinnocent · 23/06/2024 11:54

Thanks. I had a quick look at Ecclesfield. Its certainly further out than I would like but seemed ok. Does anyone have recent experience?

I did not really fancy Chesterfield and the others you mention (King Ecgberts, Lady Manners, High Storrs) are also very full. High Storrs and King Edwards had the longest waiting lists of all (after Mercia).

With Silverdale, there was no-one waiting in catchment for year 7 so my youngest could be top of the waiting list. Though I don't know how many appeals will be successful and they are hearing them in June so about now - I presume that if some appeals are successful and they end up over PAN on appeals they might not offer any more places for year 7, even if someone leaves over the summer? However, when I phoned them they were a bit vague about turnover and said they did not expect much, particularly in year 8/9, they were less clear about my younger year 6/7 child.

OP posts:
IbizaToTheNorfolkBroads · 22/06/2024 17:31

I knife southerners love moving to SW Sheffield, but would you consider north Sheffield eg; Ecclesfield School or Stockbridge High School, or further out still eg: Penistone Grammar School (Barnsley Council).

Or further south. Henry Fanshaw School in Dronfield, or Whittington Green School in Chesterfield. I've lived in, south and north of Sheffield for many years. These are all schools which my friends/colleagues/aquaintances have not been unhappy with. Obvs I don't know what they have in the way of availability, but if you can be flexible about how close you are to Sheffield, and schools are looking like a deal breaker, these outliers might help.

BlindBat · 22/06/2024 17:27

TribeofFfive · 22/06/2024 16:35

Not precious at all. It certainly is the case. The problem Sheffield, and probably many other places has, is that there are so many bad schools the good ones are oversubscribed year after year. There are probably more schools here I wouldn’t send mine to than ones I would. My “absolutely not” list would be
Birley
Outwood
Springs
Park
Meadowhead
Hinde House
Fir Vale
Firth Park
Chaucer
Yewlands
Forge Valley
Parkwood
Newfield

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This!
Meadowhead is terrible. Fanshaw is unequivocally full.
High Storrs is better.
I would call Silverdale ask at what place your child would be on the waiting list (if they have one) and how likely they will be to get a place, they'll be honest with you.

Hallamlass · 22/06/2024 17:06

@Hopelesslydevoted2Gu I think you make good points, but UTC has performed very badly and they do have significant problems, so I wouldn't recommend.
I think I recommended High Storrs upthread, it's really improved of late.

Hopelesslydevoted2Gu · 22/06/2024 17:04

If you can get one child into a school then the second will rise up the waiting list as a sibling esp if you are a sibling in catchment . Put them both on the waiting lists for any school you would consider. People do relocate/ switch to private....

Also consider (in no particular order):

King Ecgberts in Dore (different from King Edward's which you mentioned).

High Storrs.

UTC in Sheffield city center from Y9 if your child is keen on technology or design.

Lady Manners in Bakewell (there are private minibuses which go there, I don't know if they go near where you are living though).