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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to avoid a primary school that has a high proportion of traveller children

288 replies

APeePleaseBob · 30/01/2011 20:42

I live in a catchment area for several primaries so when we were thinking about schools for my DS we started be looking at Ofsted reports for the closest ones.

One of them got a 'good with some outstanding features' report but in the school make-up section it said it had a high number of traveller children in the school. It is near a well-known traveller site so this makes sense.

I have to confess this put me off and I didn't even go to see it. We have since made our selections elsewhere.

I still think about it though - AIBU to be put off? Would you have felt the same?

OP posts:
penelopestitsdropped · 30/01/2011 21:31

i was once mugged by a black man.

i wouldn't allow my child to become friends with a black boy and would not let him attenc school with a high population of black children.

can you hear what you are saying?

ValiumSandwichTime · 30/01/2011 21:31

ps and there are areas in inner city dublin where the majority of parents are heroin addicts but settled and I wouldn't send my children there either.

It's because the parents aren't going to be encouraging their children academically, which does affect the average standard in the class. imo that average standard matters.

beachholiday · 30/01/2011 21:33

You voiced your concerns that classifying travellers as a seperate ethnic group was seperatist Appletrees. I thought you would want to know that it is a classification supported and wanted by travellers....

The confusion on this thread seems to be that some people think racism only exists where discrimination is based on skin colour. As lots of other posters have explained, thats just not true.

penelopestitsdropped · 30/01/2011 21:34

Valium. that is a perfectly reasonable and i would suggest understandable decision.

But the school OP describes has a good ofsted report. It may well have been a fabulous school but she didn't even go and see it simplY because the possibility of a her PFB being educated alongside a travelling child.

altinkum · 30/01/2011 21:34

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

ValiumSandwichTime · 30/01/2011 21:35

Absolutely NOrthernLurker.

I want travellers to do well if that's what they want, but lots of their parents don't prioritise academic achievement.

In Ireland there are actually a couple of travellers only schools. One is in my town. I suppose that sounds like a terrible idea to mumsnetters! BUT they get their education in peace and aren't made to feel bullied or different. If they WANT, they have the chance to go on to a mainstream secondary school, but I don't think that that is the norm.

balloonballs · 30/01/2011 21:35

"It's not racism for gods sake. Travellers are white."

!Comedy gold!

Oh Valium thanks for that, honestly it's been ages since I've laughed so much.

Right, I'm off before people start to take the ignorant knobs on here seriously.

Muira · 30/01/2011 21:35

Not, YANBU. You are being a RACIST

Angry
Vallhala · 30/01/2011 21:35

NorthernLurker, I'd be very suspicious of the Ofsted. The school I mentioned above was once a seperate infants and junior. The junior was twice on SM then closed completely by the LA - both were truly appalling.

The TA I know works in the new combined school where she acknowledges huge problems in literacy, numeracy and behaviour as well as attitude and attendance... yet OFSTED rates the school well. Hmm

The interesting point, with reference to the OP, is that this school too has huge numbers of travellers' children in it.

Maybe it's a coincidence, I don't know. All I do know is that the OFSTED is bollocks and I don't for a nanosecond regret withdrawing my poor daughter from it.

kittycat37 · 30/01/2011 21:36

On these types of threads posters always seem to go on about MN being so 'PC'

I actually can't believe the level of ignorance displayed.

E.g. people thinking that racism is only about skin colour or that it is ok to generalise about a whole group of people on the basis of an experience of one member of that group.

C'mon, as someone said earlier GET A GRIP.

Racism IS NOT OK.

Northernlurker · 30/01/2011 21:37

Well of course ofsted is only a guide and to know you have to go and see for yourself. WE only looked at one school for ours dcs because when we had seen it we knew it was absoultely right for us. You can't tell either way from a report.

ApocalypseCheeseToastie · 30/01/2011 21:37

Oh eck, you've done it now you ave

rosie1979 · 30/01/2011 21:38

I would look at it as:

I encourage my dc to learn

My dh and I are educated, intelligent

I am ALWAYS going to make sure my dc get the access to good books, to art, to music, to museums/galleries/exhibitions that they are interested in

What does anything else really matter?

But all this traveller racism and it IS racism is pure crap..

At my primary school at age 8 half the class would leave to go to prep schools. It was sad to loose friends but had no affect academically.

velouria · 30/01/2011 21:40

YANBU I would feel the same. Apart from all the contentious views the children would be leaving fairly often, does not make a stable environment.

The only experience I have of travellers is a bad one. Two girls moved into our block of flats (was in a u shape). They were travellers, they had their family over, I stupidly invited them in. It was like a fucking plague of locusts, can I have this, etc. I soon booted them out.

Also one of the kids made off with dd's bike, he got as far as the green when dp caught up, he was like "It's my bike mister" fucks sake, even though it was pink, and for 3yo. Dp went to his Dad and he twatted him round the head Hmm.

Apparently they were so bad on the green that night a letter got sent out by the council advising all that the green was for all to enjoy and intimidating behaviour would not be allowed.

The 2 women who actually lived there nicked my buggy which was stored outside my house. They had the brass neck to actually walk past me with it,the cunts. They never used the doors to the flat they had, would go in through the window Hmm.

They lived there for about 6 months and had "pikeys out" graffitti emblazoned quite often.

They fucked off quite soon after. Good.

I'm not judging all travellers by this, but meh they seem to not give a fuck about the area they invade.

altinkum · 30/01/2011 21:42

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

ValiumSandwichTime · 30/01/2011 21:42

BalloonBalls, you laugh all you like hunn. I'm not slagging off travellers. I just recognise that they have different priorities from settled folk.

MoaningMedalllist · 30/01/2011 21:44

might get a BFGW invite

tethersend · 30/01/2011 21:45

I was all set to post a light hearted, humourous post to join in the derailment of such an obviously racist and inflammatory OP.

Instead I am sat here with a face like this Shock

ValiumSandwichTime · 30/01/2011 21:45

ps Confused at being an ignorant knob because I can acknowledge that different groups have different priorities.

Trying to pretend that everybody is the same is just ridiculous. You think the travellers are going to be painting their picket fence white at the weekend? And looking through ofsted reports ?

tchhhchch. The naivety.

velouria · 30/01/2011 21:46

You can only go by what you experience. I bet all these "ooh it's racist, die nazi die" people have there children safely ensconced in a private/middle class school.

beachholiday · 30/01/2011 21:46

Who was the mumsnetter who said "the plural of anecdote is not data"...

Appletrees · 30/01/2011 21:48

well beach whre are all those facts about eucatinoal outcomes for mbile children ad the cmmitment of their parents

bring em on

rosie1979 · 30/01/2011 21:49

Sorry, could not read that post? Spelling issues perhaps?

piprabbit · 30/01/2011 21:50

If the OP has posted to say that she had a choice between one school with high pupil turnover, poor attendance and attainment, and a second school with lower pupil turnover and better attainment - I don't think many posters would be advising her to send her child to the first school just so that she could avoid being labelled a snob.

They would be telling her to make the choice that was best for her child.

penelopestitsdropped · 30/01/2011 21:51

I think Balloons was laughing at the fact that you stated that racism wasn't a factor as travellers were white.

I would hope that if this thread does nothing more it enlightens you to the understanding that racism is about far more than skin colour