Moving from London to Cheltenham with Y9 DD

[Nevermindthesquirrels]

Are we being unreasonable? DD is 13 and isn't happy as she loves her school. Although the school is lovely, she really needs more support and is unlikely to get any GCSEs if she stays here. Her current EHCP is great but she will likely be moving to a dyslexia school in the Cheltenham area.
She is excited to get a dog as we will be moving from a flat to a 4 bed house.
I have seen many threads showing how damaged kids have been when moving at this stage in their lives so I just wanted to see if the general consensus is that we are being unreasonable? She has just started Y9.
As far as I can see:
Pros-
Better school
Bigger house
Safer
Lots more outdoor activities we won't have to drive so far too (mainly mountain biking which she loves)

Cons:
New friends
Know very few people there but have some old friends we can rekindle things with.
New school

Our jobs are from home so no change there. We can afford to pay for train fares for her to travel back to London to see friends. I assume this will be quite often in the beginning.

Any advice? Should we suck it up and move at 16?

[quote Nevermindthesquirrels]@Washeduponthebeach she's in Year 9 already sadly 😂😂[/quote]
Yes sorry that was my brain freeze late at night! My daughter was also struggling with the same sort of issues so I completely understand where you are coming from. A private school with small classes and kind teachers would probably be best. Not one that focuses on academic achievement at all costs. My daughter would have totally failed at a state school. Is a hard one to be sure. The area is lovely though. Just be rigorous about talking to he school about support for dyslexia and look for a small school with small classes.

@Gloschick Yeap, that's why we are mostly concentrating on finding something around Pittville or Hales Road. Out of the state schools I managed to get ahold of, Balcarras seemed to have the most on offer in terms of SEN support. But I haven't visited so I have no idea of that's actually true. Unlike the Indies, they don't take visitors.

Thank you for all the other suggestions. We are not really interested in being close to London or in a bigger city so I'm not really considering schools really far from Cheltenham. I am sure Cheltenham has the school for us, I just need to keep and open mind and look. I'll see how the trial days go and take it from there. This thread has been lovely and put my mind at easy about the move. Thank you so much for all the suggestions.

@Nevermindthesquirrels I'm originally from the south east, I moved here with DS when he was 10 and is now 16. The schools are definitely better and there is more variety, although as anywhere can never be perfect! There is a huge gap for children with SEN who are academically able. Bredon is a good option, I know you said you weren't sure though, having the sixth form which a lot of other schools don't have is a plus for me.
Looking at Hartpury in the future, they have very good SEN provision, a few groups for students with additional needs, mental health nurses etc...
I looked at Edward Jenner a few years ago, I couldn't put my finger on it but didn't like it, my son didn't either, very small building and not much outside space.
Also in case anyone else reads this thread as you said Wotton House is too quirky for you. If anyone wants something a bit more alternative, Wotton is a great place. My DS has been there for 3 years now and they go above and beyond to adapt and make school work for him.
Good luck with the trial at Bowbrook.

@Jagley ah can I PM you about Wotton? I agree with you about Edward Jenner. It just didn't sit well with me.

Have you thought about Kings? It has good pastoral support and lots of kids with extra time in exams etc. Small classes and caring staff. It depends how much support your daughter needs really.

@Washeduponthebeach I've already mentioned them upthread- they said no. She wasn't tested, they said no based on the EHCP which isnt even that intense. Just expects 1x 1:1 session in English and maths a week so I was a bit surprised they said no.

@Washeduponthebeach

Have you thought about Kings? It has good pastoral support and lots of kids with extra time in exams etc. Small classes and caring staff. It depends how much support your daughter needs really.

Good point! I had forgotten about Kings 🤔

[quote Nevermindthesquirrels]@Washeduponthebeach I've already mentioned them upthread- they said no. She wasn't tested, they said no based on the EHCP which isnt even that intense. Just expects 1x 1:1 session in English and maths a week so I was a bit surprised they said no.[/quote]
Hmmm... that’s not good. The Head changed a few years ago so they may have a different policy jow.

now.

@Washeduponthebeach It's ok. They were far too religious for us anyway. I'm sure it's for the best.

The only other place that might be worth looking into (particularly if she likes STEM) would be SGS Berkeley Green UTC. She wouldn't start there until year 10, but she would be starting new like everyone else. Looks like they have good sen provision.

Cheltenham is miles better than Worcester, it's not even close. The only benefit of living in Worcester would be that Birmingham is much closer.

@Murielsfriend I think it's a fantastic school for the right child. I found it very boy heavy and quite a few with behaviour difficulties which would just not suit DD at all.

We moved our family up here for Bredon - best decision we ever made, has changed our daughters life and is not posh at all x

Rendcomb school - Cirencester is also very good with educational plans - I have kids that go there too x

Rendcomb only have Saturday school if they have a match 3-4 times a term, no lessons, if they don't get picked for the team they don't have to go! 😂

@mamaoffourdc really? Their website says otherwise. DD is not remotely sporty so no fear of that.

Tewkesbury is a lovely little town to live in (we moved here 15 years ago from the South East). My kids are older teens now, and like it here, although they usually will head into Cheltenham for an evening out - it's not far though, only 15/20 mins on the bus / dad taxi.

That said, I'd decide on the school, and then base where you live on that. My daughter goes to school in Gloucester, and her friends are spread throughout Gloucester, Cheltenham, Tewkesbury and Stroud, which can make it difficult to plan/meet up. It will be better once she's old enough to drive (not too long now!), but it can be a bit challenging to plan her social life when friends are not just round the corner.

[quote Nevermindthesquirrels]@mamaoffourdc really? Their website says otherwise. DD is not remotely sporty so no fear of that.[/quote]
Yep I have 3 very unsporty children who do not go on saturdays 😂

She's right. Quote from Rendcomb website:

"In 2018, Head of College, Rob Jones,announcedsignificant changes to the senior school timetable which saw the working week change from Monday to Saturday, to Monday to Friday, with sports fixtures and enrichment opportunities on Saturdays. Academic lessons are all taught Monday to Friday across a two-week timetable".