AIBU to send my child to a better (yet further away) school when there is a perfectly good village primary.

[LaundrySmaundry]

Hello all,

We’re currently in the process of buying a house in another area and need to choose a primary school for our 7 year old son.

the village primary is very nice, has 30 kids in the class, with two TAs. There are some kids with challenging behaviours and some of the extra support is due to this. My own son has ADHD and autism, he doesn’t require much extra support but does find disruptions difficult.

There is another primary about 15 minutes drive that is absolutely lovely, they have 12 in the class as it’s a low birth year for the area, a teacher and a ta and they’re really supportive and nurturing. They are expected to receive an outstanding at their next ofsted inspection.

Would it be better in your opinion to send him to the local school so he can walk to school and have more independence when he’s older, have local friends and go to the same secondary schools, or schools I choose the smaller more nurturing school?

many thanks.

AIBU - village school

YANBU- smaller but further away school.

I'd be thinking about this too. A couple of schools near me have closed and those children been moved to another school as such small class sizes are just not viable.

I think 12 in a class is just too small, really. Agree with the funding issues and points about limited social links (a lot less opportunity to meet a like-minded child).

That said, I’m not surprised so many people value the community ties/ease of commute over academic performance. We’re currently moving due to our fabulous walking distance primary feeding in to a truly terrible secondary. No one around us seems to mind as it keeps their life easy and their kids can walk and stay in the community.

Agree with all of this, 12 is very, very low and would actually be a bit of a red flag for me!

OP I would choose local, absolutely

they have 12 in the class as it’s a low birth year for the area, a teacher and a ta

Not sure how this is possible, i suspect you've been misled by the school. State schools are funded on a per pupil enrolled basis, an undersubscribed school receives less money. The TA is unlikely to be a class TA, it will be a dedicated one to one for a specific child

The school are also highly likely to have to merge two year groups as they simply will not be able to afford a teacher for only 12 children.

Do they feed into different secondary schools? I'd consider that too.

Eg a state primary gets funding of about 7-8k per child assuming minimum funding plus pupil premium etc. For 12 kids thats about £90k.

The cost of a teacher including national insurance contributions and pension is at least £60-70k and that money also has to cover overheads like the head teacher, TAs, office staff, computer systems & software, electricity, water, internet, maintenance, books, consumables and equipment, curriculum materials. Then the first £6k of any child's ehcp/sen provision cost has to come from the schools own budget before extra money is added to top up.

A state school with only 12 pupils in a class simply cannot afford a class TA on top.

No way would I prioritise being local over a better school (as is my interpretation of your description).

15 mins is hardly far. And he can attend the local beavers etc

Local school. More advantages in terms of making friends locally and transition to secondary.

Most schools in this situation have small primary and then merge years 1 and 2, years 3 and 4 and years 5 and 6. They won't keep your one age group at 12 all the way through.

Do they both feed into the same secondary?

Lol re attending local beavers as a way to make friends... this doesn't really work.

There's a boy at our local one who used to go to their school and then is home educated. He's not really close friends with the boys any more, a couple of hours once is week is nothing compared to seeing all the others every day. They don't tend to remember to invite him on birthday parties for example they just have friends from school.

i think given that the local school seems good (just not as good) I’d pick local school as I’d look at the whole package, friends close by, walk to school which fosters independence, you get to know other mums (always handy for play dates, pick up sharing etc)
no brainer for me. If it doesn’t work out, still a possibility to move.

I’ve tried both options at different times and would recommend at least trying the local school for friendships for the whole family and plugging into local life.

To me it was more important to go to the closest school. We could walk there and back in 5 min.

IME smaller classes in a single firm entry school are a nightmare, especially if the gender balance is off. DD was one of only 6 girls in her year, and struggled with constant bickering and squabbles. I moved her to a much bigger school and she's thriving - a much bigger pool of friends, loads more choice in activities, clubs etc. I had the vision of an idyllic tiny school, but the reality was far different.

No, and that’s one of my main worries with the smaller school.

The other classes are pretty full, the year 2/3 class is a bit of an anomaly. The school itself is in a fairly affluent area and receives a lot of funding from the parents.

If it affects secondary school choice then go with whichever secondary you prefer / will get into. They will probably want to go with their friends at that stage.

I'd look at how it affects secondary school and choose accordingly.

As an autistic/ADHD person, I think you should put your child in the school, that you think would give him the most support. If you feel that the further school will be a better fit, then place him there. SEN support is seriously stretched as it is, so if simply being in a smaller class will give him a Better chance of success, then place him there.

As for independence, there is other ways to give him that. Such as allowing to go to the corner shop on his own on a Saturday afternoon, or allowing him or a friend to go to the park together. As for friends, I wouldn’t worry about it too much- and there are other ways he can socialise with the other local children, especially as he is joining the local Beavers.

I do however, agree with PPs concerns about weather the smaller school will be able to continue to fund the current set up, sate education is in dire sates at the moment, with funding being pushed to the limit. It wouldn’t surprise me if this class eventually becomes mixed with the year above or year below, which I am generally against, as 1.) I don’t get how a single teacher can teach two separate curriculums at the same time, especially with things such as SATs, and 2). I think it’s unbeneficial to have a mixed Y5/6 class for example, where the youngest children are closer to 8 and the elder ones closer to 12, as that’s a big difference at that age. I feel it likely leads to the younger year not feeling confident, and the older ones being held back. But that’s just my oppion. I also agree that this school.

Ultimately OP, you know your child best, you put him in the school you think he will thrive in.

I'm going against the grain here and if I was you I would choose the school further away.

A smaller class size is a miracle these days! Any child would benefit from a smaller class size, especially a child with ADHD/Autism.

Classrooms can be so loud and even if there are two TA’s it can still mean not enough support in a classroom of 30 children. Some TA’s are one on one or support the same group of children every day and then it’s still just the teacher having to handle loads of children.

You are also going to get him into beavers so he can make friends locally.

I would definitely choose the smaller classroom size further away school.

Have you got a place? Many beavers groups have 2 year plus wait lists, unless you plan on volunteering?

From running the girls equivalent, they seem to stick with the children they know from school, unless you son is very sociable and outgoing he may find it harder if in further away school. It's a great thing to do, but I wouldn't do it just to make local friends.

I opted for a larger Primary school (two form entry) to try and ease the transition to secondary school. My son likes his routine and familiarities and I was concerned that a smaller intake school would make the transitions in his later years more difficult. I’ve also made sure that he plays lots of team sports so he has friendship groups outside of his school friends. Which school is right will depend on so many factors and the guilt of potentially making the wrong decision can be crippling, my advice is to try not to over think it, but I know that’s hard.

It sounds like there’s no risk in the school further away not having spaces later. Go local, make friends etc and then you have the back up of changing schools if you need to

Mixed age classes are great. More focus on the individual, less on hypothetical age based stuff.

I would go for smaller and further away IF there's no risk of imminent closure. Given they are relatively close, I would assume both schools are feeder schools for the same secondary.