To have avoided the "outstanding" school?

[Thaimoon]

We live in a large city. Pfb is 4, off to school in September.

I admit to being anxious and to overthinking most big decisions I make so throwing this out here for some perspective and the benefit of other's experience.

Just received confirmation that the school we picked as our first choice is the one our child has a place at, all good. On looking round, it seemed a nice school with a good friendly feel to it, it's very diverse and extremely local to us. So, I was happy with this.

Then, preschool tells me that all dc's little friends are off to the outstanding rated primary down the road from us (both schools in walking distance from our home).

We did look around this school too. It has had an outstanding ofsted twice in a row. It is a faith school, and we do not practice any religion in our family. Not necessarily an issue for many, I get this, but I thought it might be a bit confusing for dc.

However, the main thing that put me off was the treatment of a child with learning needs that I witnessed whilst being shown around (by a senior member of staff) which to me was distressing and disturbing to watch.

Its got great academic results and clearly is doing something right. But for me the behaviour I witnessed was a deal breaker.

Just having a last minute wobble about the fact that most of dc preschool parents have picked an outstanding school, and that they won't be with their friends. AIBU to pick a lower rated school based on a gut feeling from one incident I witnessed?

I think you made the right call.

If you've picked the school you think is right for your child, you won't have gone wrong. Others parents have just picked the school they think is right for their child.

At 4 they'll easily make new friends, so don't worry about them going elsewhere.

No you can of course choose what you like for whatever reason. However it is a bit daft to make a judgement based on one incident you saw with a child you know nothing about. Staff in schools often have to deal with difficult or dysregulated or violent behaviour. You will see it happen in every school.

It sounds very much like you made the right choice.

I'm at the other end of this with plb just about to leave secondary school. Outstanding schools are often bollocks - they know how to pass the ofsted inspection and have excellent paperwork, often at the expense of those with SEND. An outstanding junior school failed all three of my boys (I didn't realise until it was too late to save the third). My youngest achieved the lowest possible score in his English SATs at the outstanding school (he's dyslexic and had no appropriate support until Senior school). Outstanding schools are often oversubscribed but a "good" school may be undersubscribed with teachers that really put the effort into the children rather than the paperwork

I think you made the right call too. We made a similar decision last year and DS absolutely loves his school and we're really happy with it.

You made the right decision and chose the school you were most comfortable with. I’m sure he’ll love it. Ofsted is not the be all and end all, and quite often it can be an assessment from years ago anyway.

Ofsted is just a game some schools play better than others really, it very rarely serves as a true reflection of a school.

It depends what the incident was.

I don’t think ‘outstanding’ or even good necessarily mean ‘outstanding for my child’ but that’s the point, really. Some schools are brilliant with SEN but if your child doesn’t have SEN, that doesn’t need to have any bearing upon your choice. This works in reverse too: if the school isn’t great with SEN but is actually delivering other things well and your child doesn’t have SEN I don’t think it matters.

To put it another way if you did have a child with additional learning needs, would a poor G & T programme put you off?

But if you mean an incident you actually think was abusive or harmful that’s different - it does seem unlikely they’d do it in front of a tour of parents though!

You picked the right school for you and your child.

We did the same (not for the same reasons) and now in year 4 have not regretted it for a second.

Good choice! Your catchment school sounds fine and you'll be supporting your LO and that makes a world of difference - much more than an Ofsted rating.

Lots of different studies show that it's much more about the pupil's mentality and the parents' support. Sensible children with helpful parents thrive in nearly every school. Parents' positive opinions about learning count for more than they believe.

agree with@WaitingfortheTardis Ofsted is just a game. I have seen so many good settings slated for reasons unrelated to pupil learning and success.

There is an outstanding primary school in our area that people would virtually stab each other for places at but we wouldn't have sent our children there for all the tea in China. Most of my colleagues were stunned when I told them we'd not even applied. But I just didn't like it. It was clear that there was an uber competitive atmosphere where children who didn't fit the mould floundered. Our children would probably have been ok, but I just didn't want them in that kind of atmosphere. We went for an undersubscribed school with a much more inclusive attitude and never regretted it.
I think it's always wise not to ignore strong gut feelings about a pkace, whether that is negative or positive.

Rest easy. You know your child and you know your values and you have made the decision you believe to be the best for your child with the information you have. That's all you can do. Who's to say that other parents didn't also witness concerning behaviour but were "sheeple" and afraid to look beyond the label "outstanding"?

All the very best for your little one for a fabulous school start!

I think if you've put this thread under AIBU, you'd certainly have 99% voters agree you did the right thing.

A good school isn't necessary worse than an outstanding one. What matters more is who cares the children more and that's what you want.

I live close to an outstanding primary school than the good one I've sent my kids to. The good school has more outside space which swung it for us.

At primary school the difference in going to an outstanding school vs a good school is minimal.

Outstanding main stream schools very rarely have outstanding provision for SEN children.

Not unreasonable at all. Always worth a read of the actual OFSTED reports too, some of the reasons for a downgrade are nonsense.
My DC go to a "satisfactory" school, and frankly (we've moved around a lot, lots to compare to) it's the loveliest school I've ever experienced. Happiest kids, no bullying, most supportive staff, very little staff turnover. They're just a bit lax on the paperwork for ofsted, which I'm all for!

One of mine went to a school that failed, due to debt 🙄

It sold off some of the field to create an amazing ITC suite in a new building but the sale went through after the funds were paid out for the build.

Thanks for all your replies, good to know some of you have made a similar choice and not regretted it. Good also to have some perspective on the incident I witnessed which as a pp said, could have been interpreted wrongly by me.

I'm glad I went with my gut though, and just hope it pays off.

Thank you all so much again

Thank you for this, it's reassuring to hear

Thank you! I really hope it is fabulous!

Having worked at outstanding, good and RI schools I have to say I’d never prioritise an ofsted rating over your general feel of the school.
I was horrified at how some schools will do things like skew their SATS results, offer the difficult kids things like outdoor learning for much of the time ofsted visit, and so on. It’s a game to be played. Some play it better than others. Some schools are great, inclusive, offer a diverse curriculum, push boundaries. Some less so. But don’t think that those two things naturally correlate.
Go with how you feel.

You've done absolutely the right thing OP and you won't regret it.

I did the same, albeit at secondary level. Went for the local (inclusive, diverse) comp instead of the outstanding faith school in our town. Friends thought I was mad. But the feel of the school was just right. My kids loved it there and look back with fond memories (they're young adults now).

My friend's son had a horrid time at the outstanding school. Bullying was rife but swept under the carpet. They were all about exam results. I was so relieved that my kids hadn't gone there.

Well done, trust your instincts, and all the best to your child for their new adventure!

Your gut instincts are right here. The 'good' school sounds better to me.

I've worked in various Ofsted categories and good ones are often the best balanced.

We had very similar circumstances. One school rated Good and the other Outstanding, both within 15 minutes walk.

Friends were shocked we put the Good school as our first choice but it just had a nicer feel to it. DD1 is in Year 2 now and I've never regretted our decision for a moment. It's the right school for her.