To move our family from a beautiful detached 4 bed to 3 bed semi for a better school catchment?

[Internationalwomendayheadquarters]

Family of 5 here. We live in a large detached house, with a big garden. Rural. The only issue is that schools are not good in our area. We’re in a 3 tier system; the primary is outstanding, but the middle is very poor (and has been for a long time) and the high school is average.

Our original plan was to go private but we simply can’t do that now. We’ve got 3DC and our local very good indie has just announced a 10% fee increase. With the CofL what it is now, it’s out of reach.

I’ve been looking at an area 40 mins away from us with an outstanding secondary school and a good primary. House prices are much higher and realistically we’d be looking at a 3 bed semi (going to look at one tomorrow to get a feel).

Has anyone done this and would I be crazy to even consider it? Our DDs would have to share a bedroom (they are 5 years apart). However, we may be able to go a bit bigger in 5-7 years.

The area we’d be moving into is an area of outstanding beauty; there would be lots of outdoor space for kids, but our own garden would be much, much smaller.

Another would be to stay put, and hire a good teacher to spend regular time with your kids.

If you pay well, a job like that could really appeal to a good teacher who took early retirement.

Hm, I mean tutoring and lots of extra curricular is always a decent option. There is no reason for them to “lose” 2 years of education if you are prepared. But if the school is really that bad then I suppose you do need to move.
There are some senior schools near me that are simply not an option - I’d move, go private, homeschool etc over them.

Could you not just try to get your first child into another school further away and do a school commute. I appreciate schools are often oversubscribed but a year 4/5 entry in a system without a middle school may not be too difficult. If this primary is a catchment primary for a better secondary that would also help.

Once one child is in a decent secondary surely that will guarantee a place to the others on sibling connection?

We moved to a smaller house to be near the best school - We were able to extend the house after a few years to give them all their own room. Am really happy with the choice we made as they all achieved first class honors degrees in science subjects.

I would consider staying where you are if it's only 40 mins away - DS1 goes to one of the nearest in a nearby town and I drop him off, then it's only 20 mins more to drop off DS2, 45 mins from home. Not enough in it to make a life changing move for me.

I wouldn't move
5 years gap isn't a great idea to share. The noise and privacy difference between a rural detached and a busier semi can be huge.

Middle school is only, what, 3 years? Plus if eve your oldest child isn't going to start middle school for 2 years and there's at least a 5 year gap between 2 of them, you're assuming the current poor middle school and the further away good secondary school will stay the same for the next 10 years (by the time the youngest finishes)? In reality that's very unlikely - you could swap schools now for the better option but by the time your youngest has finished middle school they would have gone through, what, at least 2 more ofsted inspections and could have completely switched places.

You know that with two RI judgements the school is most likely to be served with an academy order by the Regional Director.
No guarantee of an improvement but possibly a change could be for the better.

Believe me, if this was option, I would be doing it!!

There’s no way we’d get a place in the heavily subscribed school. You have to be living in the priority catchment.

We can’t get into the school unless we live really close. That’s the issue.

You are totally right. This has already happened, along with the other usual measures such as change of name etc. Unfortunately it doesn’t seem to have changed anything but of course things could turn around. I’m just at the point where I don’t know how long to wait or whether to take advantage of a better area..

One alternative would be to stay put and share the 40 minute commute to the better school; either between you and DH (or pay a family member) or share with other family living locally.

But they presumably wouldn't bein catchment for the other school. I must say, I'd be tempted, OP. Unless there's a possibility of moving to somewhere else entirely, with better schools and lower house prices...

Catchments mean nothing where we live.

See articles like "Girl sent 14 mikes for senior school" etc etc.

It has happened to many people I know.

I wouldn't move, i would invest in extra curricular. The biggest factor in children's success is not their school, it's their parents!

I wouldn’t move. If you could afford private before col and a 10% increase in going to say you can buy in some heavy duty tutoring if needed. You’ll soon miss the space.

Also it’s a brain drain issue isn’t it. If every “good” family leaves the school just stays crap.

The primary three of mine attended either partly or fully is raved about by the parents and good ofsted but since actually going to other primary’s they where a bit shit tbh living off old reputations. Where as our good but meh reputation is actually 20x better.

The kids that are failing in this school would have also failed in the “better” school, just that the parents would have been pushed out via the snobbery from both the head and the other school parents, so the school didn’t lose its standing in the neighbourhood.

Tough one given the room share, but I suppose the 5yr gap means the eldest could move out before it becomes an issue.

Yes we moved from a 4 bed detached in town to a 2 bed semi with decent land in an expensive village within a grammar school catchment when we had 4 kids! We eventually extended and all has been good.Yes I would put a good school above nearly everything

Not many 18 year olds move out for good any more!
At best you might have half the year while they are at uni, and then moaning the other half that they have to come home and share with their 13 year old sibling/can't have friends or partner to stay/decide to stay and work in their uni town instead so you don't see them over the holidays

I'd stay out. An ofsted report doesn't mean the school or the teaching is bad. Is it catching children who's native language is not English? This will put the schools ofsted results down hugely. Or catchments if other kinds which mean the results are poorer. If your children have a good background, encouraging parents and access to tutors if needed then their personal achievement will still be high even in a 'bad' school.

Any chance of bursaries to the private school if it's nearly but not quite within reach?

I am a foreigner so have come from a different culture, but I think it is your job as a parent to give your kids the best education you can. We can’t afford private so we live in a small house in an area with excellent schools. The kids would like a bigger house, but I believe when they’re older they’ll understand and be happy with our decision.

The best predictor of how well children do at school is having involved parents who are interested in their child’s education. How good a school is does not have as much as an impact as the parents.

Wow, what a dilemma to have, Jesus wept.

Quite surprised by some of the results here.

I’d have thought more people would prioritise a decent education over a big house. Thank you for replies- definitely got us thinking.

We viewed a smaller house in the perfect area today. There were lots of open spaces nearby for the kids to run around in, but I think winter could be less fun. Kitchen was teeny tiny.

We might have to go for a less desirable new build style property…

What is a middle school? I thought there was either infants and junior then senior schools or primary then senior or are you American?

Catchments mean nothing where we live. See articles like "Girl sent 14 mikes for senior school" etc etc. It has happened to many people I know.

Yes, kids might be sent miles away to an under-subscribed school, having failed to get a place in an over-subscribed school nearer to them. But the OP is talking about the opposite- trying to get into an over-subscribed school which she's 40 mins away from. That's not remotely realistic.