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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

AIBU about length of journey to school??

74 replies

Shellywelly1973 · 27/09/2012 23:46

Genuine AIBU?
I am currently in the process of looking at secondary schools for my 11 year old,year6 dd. Is a journey of an hour too far to expect a child to travel to school each day? We live in London & the journey would involve 2 buses or a tube&bus...

OP posts:

LFCisTarkaDahl · 27/09/2012 23:48

How can that be the closest school?

Nanny0gg · 27/09/2012 23:52

And then how much homework when she gets home? Any clubs?

I think you're asking too much. Adults have to commute for work and hate it. Why make a child. There must be anther choice.

imperialstateknickers · 27/09/2012 23:52

We did 12 minutes at primary, secondary walk - but we're rural with a high achieving Academy as catchment school.

Move out to the sticks?

Northernlurker · 27/09/2012 23:53

2 hours travelling is too much. Are you out of your mind? Poor kid would be exhausted. Pick a closer school.

SkipTheLightFanjango · 27/09/2012 23:56

I went to a school with a similar jouney time. It wasn't really that bad, though you need to ensure you are looking at the traffic too, my journey to school sometimes took longer and when I missed a connecting bus I had to walk the last mile or be even later!

BackforGood · 28/09/2012 00:04

Arriving home an hour after school finishes wouldn't, in itself be too bad, but how often is that going to happen by the time you factor in waiting for the bus, missing the connection, the bus getting stuck in traffic or the tube being held up for some reason.
Then there's snow, strikes, wrong types of leaves, traffic chaos for 101 reasons to add in.
Then there's activities they want to stay late for, or go back in for.
then there's meeting up with friends - where will they live ?

Original poster

Shellywelly1973 · 28/09/2012 00:06

We live in a one of the worst performing boroughs not only in London but the country!

Moving isn't an option but we do have more schools to view. I think an hour is bloody long journey every day but many of the parents i met tonight didn't seem to think it was an issue!

OP posts:

LFCisTarkaDahl · 28/09/2012 00:09

Why isn't moving an option? are you trapped in negative equity?

SkipTheLightFanjango · 28/09/2012 00:09

I left at 7:30 in the morning (to allow for traffic) for 9am start. Got home at 4 ish. Didn't kill me..made friends with some other regulars on the route and it was fine!

BackforGood · 28/09/2012 00:10

Well, if there are a lot of children doing the journey, then it becomes less of an issue than if they are on their own.
My dd walks to and from school. She leaves and hour before registration and tends to get in about 50 mins after school finishes, but this is because she is strolling along with her friends, putting the world to rights. If she stays late for something they aren't staying for, then, once it gets into Winter, and dark, I do my best to try to pick her up, which is feasible as it's only about an 8 min drive from here.
It's not the 'hour' itself that makes it a challenge.

Floggingmolly · 28/09/2012 00:15

Is it a state school? If distance is one of the admission criteria; chances are you won't be offered a place whether you choose it or not.

MyLeftButt · 28/09/2012 00:18

An hour commute is very hard going on an 11yo. It also makes any after school clubs and activities difficult to take part in.

Hope you find something closer that suits.

GrimmaTheNome · 28/09/2012 00:19

My DD has to be out of the house by 7:30 and isn't home till 4:40 but its a school bus all the way so she's with crowd of her friends so the journey is fun. 2 buses and a tube or bus - that sounds like a very different proposition TBH.

imperialstateknickers · 28/09/2012 00:27

It's not just the length of journey but the number of changes.

Why isn't moving an option

Seriously, we're seventy miles from London here, quite a few parents are earning their crust up in Town, coming home every night, and meanwhile children are getting a fantastic free education (top state school for International IB passes in the UK)

musicmadness · 28/09/2012 00:32

I think it's doable. I had a 50 min commute each way when I was at school (major city) and coped just fine, my friend had an hour and a half commute for 6th form (2 trains and a bus) which was pushing it but she really wanted to be at this school.

It's not the best thing in the world and you do feel tired at first but you soon get used to it. I'd consider how regular the bus/tube is though, if it runs every 10 minutes it isn't a big deal if she misses the connection, if it's once an hour it's less realistic. Obviously if there is a good school closer to home that would be a better option, but that is up to you to decide.

Original poster

Shellywelly1973 · 28/09/2012 00:36

Yep negative equity!

Its a Catholic school,so the criteria is slightly different with regards to intake process. Their is another school about 40min away. Open evening next week.

I think its too long after reading replies,Im not being an over protective mother!

OP posts:

Startailoforangeandgold · 28/09/2012 00:37

Our idiot bus takes an hour to do a 20 minute trip (barmy route).

DD1 is surprisingly chilled about it. DD2, has just started, and she hates it despite having a good friend to chatter to.

weegiemum · 28/09/2012 00:38

My dd1 leaves the house at 7.55, gets 2 buses and arrives at school at 8.45 or so. She goes right across glasgow. We chose this as all our children are schooled bilingually in english/Gaelic and it's the only Gaelic high school in the country. The other 2 are on the same site in primary, they leave at 8.10 and getva school bus.

She has about an hour of homework a night but also swims,plays rugby, plays the accordion and piano and is an active Guide.this far it doesn't seem to be too much for her!

SomeoneThatYouUsedToKnow · 28/09/2012 00:38

2hours sitting on a bus or tube is a long time. It is not like a train or car journey where you can do work as you travel.

Do you think your DC will do badly at the local schools? If your DC is bright, hardworking and has good parental support they may still be able to do well at a not-good school. Lots of Uni's offer greatly reduced offers to DC's who do well despite being in poor schools ( Info here ) There are also various schemes and courses available to help get DC's from disadvantaged areas into Uni.

sleepymum50 · 28/09/2012 00:43

I personally think its too long and complicated. My DD's journey is just under an hour but thats a car lift and a school bus. She chooses to board just to avoid the early start (leave house at 7.10). They have after school clubs which can mean not getting home til 7pm.

Think it through really carefully, and remember those cold dark winter mornings, buses late and cancelled. Hanging around bus stops not so bad when you're older, but not great for 11 yr olds.

Original poster

Shellywelly1973 · 28/09/2012 00:50

Someone- i don't think she would last a day!!!

Our local Catholic school only had 57 pupils in yr 7 last year and is on special measures. The 3 local schools have security firms and a police van at home time...absolutely awful situation.

We've got stuck here due to redundancy and negative equity.

OP posts:

Secondsop · 28/09/2012 00:59

I had a commute that was about that length for school, once you factored in getting to the bus stop in good time, the bus, and the walk at the other end (this was in Essex, to a grammar school, so not the nearest school. Nearest school was actually opposite my house!).

It was fine. Really, it was fine, and I did after school clubs a couple of nights a week too. I'd find it harder now, to be honest, than I did at age 11-18 when I just didn't seem to feel tiredness in the same way. It wasn't at all uncommon for girls to have even longer commutes. And in fact, getting the bus with all the other school kids was fun.

sashh · 28/09/2012 03:45

I think it's too long. It's about what I did and while OK most of the time trying to do it with an art folder, PE kit and a cookery basket wasn't.

It's probably about you and your child, how do they feel?

neighbourhoodwitch · 28/09/2012 06:22

IMO, too long; too much stress.

TantrumsAndGoldAndOrange · 28/09/2012 06:26

My dd travels about 50 minutes to get to school.
It's only 1 train and a short walk though.

It's not the length of your journey that would concern me but the complexity. 2 buses, train, if one bus is late you miss the train etc.

I understand living in an area where the schools are shocking though, that's why my dd travels so far to get to school even though there are at least 4 schools closer to us.

Do you mind if I ask where in London you are?

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