State secondaries in Bath

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Does anyone know the state schools in Bath well and can give me a steer on which ones are good and not so good? I’ve looked at the govt schools website but would like some personal insight if poss.

Thanks 😊

Are you after a boys or girls School?

Boys! Or mixed, ideally.

Beechen Cliff is astate boys School which has agood reputation. If you're looking for mixed Oldfield or Ralph Allen

Does it have to be in the city or any where in the Bath & North East Somerset authority?

Wasn't many mixed schools back in my day. Mostly single sex.

The nicest guys I know went to Beechen Cliff. They've turned out some nice blokes.

The Head at Beechen isamazing. He knows all of the boys and will usually be found at luchtimes playing sport with them.

I don't think you can go worng with any of the schools mentioned, but they have very different cultures, depends what kind of kid you have and what you want from the school....

Thanks for everyone’s replies. Ideally, in the city and single sex would be ok, although I’d prefer mixed I think.

Looking at the govt website with details of GCSE passes and so on, some of the results don’t look that great for secondary in Bath, which seems surprising. I know there are a lot of independent schools though. Wondered if this had some bearing?

Are you looking for a year 7 place? If so, where abouts are you roughly? And are you catholic or otherwise church-going?

I’m in the SW but not in Bath.

Not remotely religious or church-going.

I’m casting my eye around for a potential move and have always liked Bath, but the schools are the biggest issue. It would be for Yr 7, yes, applying next year.

Bath does have areas of deprivation. There isalso st Gregory's which is Catholic and St Marks but they do very well with SEN children. If your Son is sporty Beechen would be good

Beechen is quite marmite - I know boys very happy there and other parents who would avoid. You'd be unlikely to get into St Greg's, which leaves Oldfield (newly co-ed, different vibe since that and the change of head), RA (about which I hear neither raving nor complaining), and St Marks which is tiny - whether that's good or bad - and may or may not get bigger with BCA gone (there were a lot of people this year who got assigned StM from the other side of Bath, with much complaining).

I'd think also about what side of Bath you want to live - do you need to travel anywhere to work or to regularly visit family/friends? The traffic can be truly hideous.

I just had a look at the government website and the overall GCSE pass rates for the LA are a bit above the national average. Some of the schools look v good. Every area has some poorer performing schools.

I don't think Ralph Allen has a very good academic reputation

Ralph allen is not a pushy school, but they send kids to oxbridge on a regular basis. Many kids from academics from Bath uni goes there.

Beechen is much more pushy, but they are results are not significantly better.

Thus, it depend if you have a kid that respond well to the more pushy environment, or you have one that does better following their individual best....

Both beechen and RA are academically superior to St. Greggs or Oldfield, St. Marks is definetely not a school for someone looking for academic overachievemnt, but kids there are lovely and they have a very supportive environment.

Be aware that getting into many of these schools have gotten harder recently if you don't leave close by (although beechen has some very weird rules to catch the posh people around freshford somehow)

Hmmm, that’s the boys school where a group of boys tied a black pupil to a tree last year, and which produced one of the boys involved in the Warwick University scandal too...

I’d choose Ralph Allen.

If you are considering looking further out of the city towards Bristol there are 2 secondary schools in Keynsham. Wellsway has always had a good reputation and Broadlands has just had a new headteacher appointed this term after a year with a temporary headteacher so may be one to look to for the future.