To ask you honestly how good your local state school is

[bliepenco]

Just that really. I’ve heard so many bad things about state. If you are totally honest, is there violence, disruption etc? What do your kids say about their days? I’m worried about Dd starting school as have no understanding of the state sector (not from the uk) and have read some bleak things about it!

DS went to a great primary and goes to a great secondary.

I wonder whether you just hear about the bad ones 🧐.

Both primary and secondary schools in my area abysmal, lack of resources, disinterested teachers,feral students stopping those who want to learn being able to do so, ludicrous rules and regulations. I removed my daughter, as I thought I couldn't do a worse job if I home educated... Turns out I was right she, passesd all her Gcses this year, a year early, best decision I ever made.

Zone 3 South London: Primary & Secondary, Good. The teaching is very good and the extra-curriculars were better than I expected. My daughter had no interest in PE but provision was good. Excellent library in secondary. Only thing I had issues with were general organisation, like needing a yellow t-shirt for PE with a days notice, because the teacher "forgot", or the chaotic way some trips were organised. But I was happy with yow things turned out, and DD is going to university next September with excellent predicted grades.

Ours is fantastic academically. The 9-5 measure is about 75%, 9-4 is about 89% and 9-7 about 45% at GCSE with usually a good 25% getting a full run of 8-9 and A’level is even better. It’s rare to get below a B and most kids will get at least one A.

There is no violence at all, never heard of an actual fight but rudeness and entitled behaviour is definitely increasing to where it was pre covid and my youngest in year 10 has a tricky year group with some horrible kids but they’re not even on the scale of horrible compared to other kids. Teachers are great and engaged, bullying is taken very seriously and teaching overall is fine to truly outstanding

one of mine moved to private for 6th form. An eyewateringly expensive school and the issues were almost identical and the emails and issues the school contacted us about where pretty much the same

DS has just gone in to year 8 and I’m deeply unhappy with his. It’s too big, there’s serious issues with behaviour and communications and teaching are poor. Seriously considering moving him but there’s only one other state in our area and private would be a struggle so it’s hard

I Am sure there are amazing state schools out there and I’m not sure how helpful asking people about schools not in your area is but..

I live in Leeds, so not some quaint little village. My children are now at secondary school. I can honestly say (hand on heart) that both their primary school and state school have been wonderful. Our primary school was a small school, one class per year. Everyone knew everyone. It was a really lovely school community where everyone looked out for everyone. Excellent caring teachers, too. My second child suffered selective mutism and anxiety and the support he received was second to none.
We're very happy with the secondary school too. DC1 is in year 9 and DC2 in year 7. It's a brilliant school! Very diverse, and I love the fact that they're meeting kids from all over the world. The school has very high standards when it comes to behaviour and bullying. Bullying is very rare at the school (backed up by the Ofsted report), and kids just behave themselves. My friend was a supply teacher there and she said it was the easiest place she worked because the behaviour was so good.
Both children are doing well, academically and socially. There are loads of extracurricular clubs and activities available to them.
I see absolutely no reason to send our kids to private school when we're so happy with the education they're receiving.

I have one in primary one in secondary, honestly they're great schools and we're happy so are my DDs. They are both rated outstanding.
Secondary school had some behaviour problems like I think you will get in any secondary school but the problem kids are very much the minority and I feel like school deals with it well.

Primary good. A few locally all with a slightly different ethos but we would have been happy to go to any of them and chose the nearest non-religious school. Most people get their first choice.

Not got to secondary yet but mainly got a good reputation especially for the more academic kids. Ofsted excelent within the last 2-3 years. Some concerns about failure to nurture the lower ability group/SEN.

Bullying/smartphones/uniform ongoing grumbling but I suspect that is universal and appears to be in the main well handled. Small town with only one secondary although a few other selective/private options locally which does select out some (but by no means all) of the more engaged families.

I have nothing but good things to say about our state primary and secondary. I've never even met anyone afaik who's put their children in private school.

The primary is a really small nurturing and loving place with a free breakfast club, and a super cheap after school club. The staff are brilliant.

Secondary. It's strict and not perfect but the results are great, the extra curricular activities are incredible, there's a club for everything. Space for everyone to do the things they enjoy under a quality teacher or a super keen sixth former, because they're allowed to run clubs under supervision. It's brilliant.

London zone 5. Both my local state schools are fantastic. DC did really well.

Our town has two schools. Both crap comps. They've been crap for decades and no matter what changes are made, i.e. new heads, different academies, renaming, specialisms, they're still crap. I went to one, OH went to the other. They failed us decades ago. Our niece and nephew went to one of them, both suffered horrendous bullying and left with barely any qualifications (like happened to us)

There are no fewer than a dozen school buses from that town taking kids to schools in the nearby city and even across the county border to better schools in smaller towns, plus normal service buses too.

Basically all the "parents who care" send their kids out of town to avoid the two crap schools, leaving a vacuum of parents who can't be bothered, whose kids can't be bothered either. Numbers are now so low that one is about to close.

The town in question is a typical Northern run down seaside resort with poor employment options and partly a dumping ground for ex offenders and immigrants due to the empty ex boarding houses etc.

Primary and secondary are excellent.
There are some typical state school issues though, large class sizes and teachers stretched. However I think they got a pretty good education and are at uni following good career paths. We are lucky to live in a ‘nice’ area though (although we are not wealthy, we’ve lived here a long time).

Ofsted ratings are paper pushing exercises. Example - we have 4 outstanding primaries within walking distance from my home but I still chose private because none of them had any real provision for SEN.

My DS attends a popular state school. We, like many of our neighbours, chose to move into catchment area for that reason

So, Yes his school is fantastic. I couldn't fault it. Exam results better than local private school. Shiny new building. Supportive engaged teachers and parent community. Not aware of bullying. But, I'm not naive enough to think this is the case everywhere

My dad goes to a school with a terrible reputation, we had absolutely no choice about where she went. In yr 7 she'd come back everyday with tales of violence and disruption, that would've been unimaginable at the small rural grammar school I went to.
However now in yr 8 she is thriving, with a good friend group, and a real interest in her lessons. They really encourage her, and now she is in different sets a lot of the disruption is in groups she's not part of.
We maintain a staunchly positive attitude at home to school and learning, with a bedtime of nine, and consequences if homework etc isn't done. We often tell her how lucky she is to be getting an education like hers for free, and ask her everyday about what she's learnt. I'm taking the attitude you get out what you put in, and so far it's working.

My DDs schools I'd say are pretty average (we're in the midlands) - teachers & management do their best as far as I can tell, deal with issues promptly if I get in touch. I don't get the impression there's any violence really (primary or secondary). Younger DD currently has one teacher who isn't very good, but all the other teachers seem to work really hard. Apart from the one teacher, DD really enjoys it. Older DD now at a Russell group uni doing maths, got A's at A-level.

People's perceptions are weird, I went to a shockingly violent state secondary school in the 80s, probably one of the worst state schools in the country at the time. I was a shy, academic child, but I did really well (good A-levels, science degree, Ph.D., work in tech), and I was never the victim of any of the violence - as a PP said, it's all concentrated in a certain group of boys who want to be leader of the pack & a few other traumatised children who simply weren't coping.

However, my perception of private schools was that they're full of horrible bullies - I assumed all the younger boys in private schools got raped by the older boys and teachers, and the girls schools are full of bitchy mean girls, who bully anyone who isn't as posh/pretty/popular as them! So, I reckon I would have hated it & wouldn't wish that on my children either.

Its interesting that people keep referencing Ofsted ratings, when they've been discontinued due to their flaws.

Yeah, OP, 93% of UK children attend schools that are ‘violent and disruptive’. 🙄

If you’re talking about secondary - my children’s school is fine. I’m not aware of any violence, probably some disruption but mine never mention it. A lot of English secondary schools are super strict, which keeps the disruption in line, but not necessarily good for some children. But my children’s school seems to be more relaxed.

The teachers seem to genuinely like teenagers, and enjoy engaging with them. Many of them are young and enthusiastic. They’ve always known who my children are (even my quiet one).

There are about 270 in each year group, but they often have oddly small classes (eg 12), I think DC1’s year was very undersubscribed (DC2 is only one year younger but his year group is full).

Their state primary schools were all amazing, including the one that had children from very poor families. The passion of the teachers was exceptional.

You post is misleading. Your son cannot go anywhere, the EHCP will state you as the parent made the choice of a different primary school. Therefore you are responsible for the transportation of your child. I think you comment would be more welcomed, if you explained that the quality of SEND inclusion. Influenced your choice. That the behaviours of other children and parents was concerning and you felt uncomfortable.

I would certainly not agree that the affluent of an area ensures a more inclusive SEND provision. I am a SEND professional and there is a school within my LA that is looked down upon in some aspects by parents. However the SEND team go above and beyond for the pupils. Other schools within a more affluent areas of LA are not necessarily inclusive of SEND.

As a SEND academic and professional your comment is prejudiced towards others with limited financial means. I am guessing English is not your first language, therefore you are from a county other than the UK. Would you be happy if I made comments about your life-style, language skills? What if I decided what type of person you are by judging your house’s location? I grew up in an affluent area, to the outside world I had no issues, inside my expensive home, cars and holidays was abuse. I understand you met a disgusting parent with low morals however, there are as many affluent and wealthy individuals with no morals also.

I lived in a council house, while working on my Masters and Professional Doctorate. Would you judge me by that. I was living in a council property due to my own SEND (including Autism) and health meaning I had limited financial means while I completed my education. Judge individuals by their behaviours, judge education placements by the quality of the SEND inclusion and aspiration. The reality is, unless your child is highly academically capable, the affluent state/academy secondaries will be looking for a reason to not be able to meet need at the secondary Phase Transfer.

My kids LOVE their very normal, very mixed, huge London state.

I'm delighted that they are mixing with people of all different backgrounds and abilities. This is preparing them for real life.

They are streamed in terms of ability after year 7. Great school community. Any bad behaviour is stamped out.

DS has thrived in our local primary school. He has ASD and ADHD and they've got him very settled and in a consistent routine and I can't fault them.

Unfortunately, he's in year 6, so it won't last much longer.

Don’t watch Waterloo Road 😅

Primary schools (Junior/infant system here) amazing, the Junior/infant system ideal for my DC as it results in smaller, nurturing schools and DD's in particular offered many extra curricular opportunities. Life after school was just as important though so lots of after school park visits, parents are active in the local area so most work but pretty much run the local community centre for events like Halloween parties. Despite being in a city there is a real community spirit.

At secondary it was listed in Tatler magazine's Good school guide but that was a few years ago so it unsure about how it fairs now. Older DS's sixth form college exceptionally good, one of the best in the country. It is not incredibly hard to get into i.e unlike my brother's kids state sixth form college in London which apparently is all 8s and 9s at GCSES but some kids that aren't academic prefer to go to the other sixth form colleges in the area.

The demographics of our area are really changing though not so many families and the birthrate is low so infant schools are closing and I'm unsure how the quality of provision I described above will remain.

Secondary is absolutely awful. It's only a tiny school but their results, and progress 8, are something like the 4th worst in the county and we are by no means in the most deprived wards. There is a great school out of county but only about 15 mins drive so hoping I can get DC in there. Which is what parents who value education have traditionally done. Which does go some way to explaining why the local is so poor but having viewed the school I was completely shocked.