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 go for the local school. My DC have been through a local rural primary which was lovely with small classes. However, all small classes means is that the school has less money so has to make choices such as cutting TAs or mixing classes. Better to be at the school which is closer to full. Also, while the very small school suited my DS, for DD who is more outgoing and extrovert she was really done with it by y6 and could have done with a few more people around!

Don't put anything ahead of his independence and friendships. Walking to school is hugely rewarding. The friends he makes now will be important for his lifetime (unless you keep moving) and having local friends is so much better.
Start local. Only move him if you have to.

Choose the closer one. Having friends nearby is priceless for both your child and you. You’ll feel more engaged with the local community. Plus it’ll be less stressful doing drop-off/pick-up. This would be a no brainer for me.

I would choose whatever school fitted my child the best.

I wouldn’t pick the closest just because it’s the closest, however be mindful of secondary/high school as your DS might not get into the high school that all his friends are going to if you live 15mins away.

Secondary/high school are a lot harder to get into than primary.

A class of 12 would be good IME. 30 is a lot of children and 12 will make it easier for them to recognise and understand their needs.

My worry would be the class of 12 won't stay a class of 12. The school might tell you what you want to hear.

id go bigger school then
I’m in a grammar area and by a quirk of geography they end up scattered. It’s hard on the children to not make that transition with their friends.
yes they will probably have a completely different set of friends come year 9, but that first 6-12 months it’s invaluable.

Trust me the last thing you want is a class of 12. Might be good for learning but makes the social pool way to small by the time they hit year 4

A friend's daughters class was small and to save the extra resource they split the class. Half went to the tear above and half below then reshuffled down the line. Think there was 5 classes in the end splitting all the kids. This is an issue you may face doen the line with budget cuts etc.
I'd pick the closer one, I picked one slightly further away but still a local school and my son complains non stop that he wishes he went to the closer one as all the kids around us went there and he feels out of the loop

Definitely agree with this. My daughter is in a form of 20ish in a 2 form entry, and by middle of year 4 there were nearly daily fallings out, as they were almost too close to each other.