Christ's Hospital, Horsham

[RnB]

Anyone have any experience of this school?

[Talkinpeace]

A friend sent her daughter there.
She was a broke hippy who got all her kids into fee paying schools on full scholarships.
THey have turned out OK. WEird but lovely and OK

[Happymum22]

Gosh, i am really shocked by some of the attitudes on this thread. It is like we are talking about different species.
Children who get in on income support are no better or worse than children who are full fee paying. I know many children at independent schools who have gone through awful things, parental bereavement, divorce, sibling illness etc.
CH acts as an equaliser of opportunity. Most children from 'troubled' backgrounds will thrive in the same way those used to the public school environment do. Children love routine, structure and if they are at CH they are likely to be from families who have a strong focus on education and that is combined with a school with an environment of success.
If my children were the right 'type' of child to suit CH, I would love to send them there and to send them to a school which does so much to address disadvantage.

[rabbitstew]

Blimey. In summary, the school contains well behaved children, has strong pastoral care and gets good results. But don't send your children there, because the other children are damaged goods who ought to be in the state sector, where they will be more likely to mix with a higher proportion of less damaged children.

[propatria]

Actually I dont think thats the point,if you are able to pay full fees then you have a wide range of schools to choose from,no one has said ch is a bad school ,indeed most people have said what excellent work it does , no one has said these "damaged goods" ,as you call them,dont have the right to be in a private school but that doesnt mean if I am spending 30k a year then that would be my first choice of cohort for my child,just as a school that takes a large proportion of boarders from abroad wouldnt be either.
There are many well known schools I wouldnt want any child of mine to go near eg,Bedales,wisteria sisters,Wellington etc,the cohorts in all of those schools are not what I would want for my child just as the CH cohort isnt,we choose our schools for a variety of reasons.

By opening itself to full fee payers its trying to attract a totally different market and Im not sure that is going to work,I really cant see many heads of real preps telling parents to put it on a list of schools to check out.If you are in a position to afford full fees then Im not sure CH will figure very highly on many parents list,doesnt mean you cant admire the school or its products but you just dont think its the right school for your child..

[rabbitstew]

Ah, so the point is, don't go there if you can afford to go somewhere else.

[propatria]

The point is-money gives you choice,you can decide what school is right for your child,that is a very different market than the one CH has operated in.

[happygardening]

"I know many children at independent schools who have gone through awful things, parental bereavement, divorce, sibling illness etc."
Of course having money doesn't protect you from these things. But as far as I'm aware up until fairly recently you could only go to CH if you had a need; that need might be as straight forward as crap local school but many come from families with significant problems e.g. terminal illness substance abuse etc etc. i am not saying that these children are not entitled to a fantastic education in fact the complete opposite but IME having children with complex emotional needs is exceedingly demanding and time consuming for staff who no doubt work exceedingly hard to help them and can also create problem especially in boarding houses.
My other feeling gleaned from the two or three parents I've met who send their DC's there is that they would not normally chose boarding and that they are doing it becasue of the opportunities the school offers there first choice would be a day school with a similar approach and this impacts on the ethos of the place which I find slightly patronising/we know best. I for one am not knocking it but like propatria never had it on my short list.

[MiniPenguinMaker]

God what a disgusting amount of prejudice against children from lower income backgrounds.

All I can say is that money certainly doesn't buy manners.

And do you REALLY think that wealth equates to genuine human value?

I can assure you that rich people are just as prone to substance abuse, marital problems, emotional or physical or sexual abuse, terminal illness, and 'complex emotional needs'.

Do you honestly believe otherwise?

Luckily it is quite possible to be brilliant, loving, extraordinary, kind, clever and generally an all-round wonderful person EVEN IF YOU COME FROM A POOR BACKGROUND. And it is equally possible to be a twat of the first order having come from a background with every possible advantage to start you off.

I totally agree that the culture of a school is important. I hope I will always be able to avoid those who believe that "first choice of cohort" should only be children from wealthy backgrounds. Perhaps you could tell me where you plan to send your children, so I can make sure to avoid those schools.

[happygardening]

Mini I'm not aware that many would disagree with you. Frankly I dont care what background people come from. For whats its worth like Propatria there were others not on my short list including Eton. CH also doesn't do it for me becasue I loathe ridiculous uniforn amd endless meaningless ritual of which CH has both in spades and prefer single sex but I accept many from all back grounds love it and that is their choice neither view is necessarily correct or incorrect. Money does enable you to chose a school that you feels comfortable in and that suits your ethos on life.

[MiniPenguinMaker]

Do you want to know what schools I went to, and in what financial circumstances, before you decide whether to place any value on my opinion?

Fair enough, I'm a grown up now - people are welcome to have a look at what I've made of myself, and judge away.

But it is pretty low to judge the 'worth' of a young child, as a friend or classmate to your own child, based on what background they come from.

[rabbitstew]

To be fair, I think the point being made is that, whilst all people from all backgrounds can have these issues, you wouldn't necessarily CHOOSE to send your child to a boarding school where the other children have been specifically chosen for their dysfunctional backgrounds if your child does not have such a background him or herself and therefore doesn't need the specialist care. The school is certainly being labelled a school for dysfunctional children on this thread, in any event! For dysfunctional families rich enough to pay full fees, it sounds great, although they might prefer to send their kids to Eton rather than publicise their dysfunctionality.

[MiniPenguinMaker]

Sorry happy, last comment not aimed at you!

But I do think it is worth realising that children from affluent backgrounds often have complex emotional needs too and that you'd be hard pressed to find a school anywhere without them.

The wonderful benefit of fee paying schools is that the facilities and student-teacher ratios mean that these needs should be able to be addressed.

[propatria]

Dont worry Mini its high unlikely our children will be at school together.
When choosing a school,you can do all the research in the world,get the right head,right housemaster,right academics,sports etc but all of that goes up in smoke if you dont get the right cohort,you cant control that ,but with CH you know what the cohort is going to consist of in a way you dont at any other school,you can therfore make a choice based on that information.

CH has a very high number of children from difficult backgrounds,it does wonderfull work with them,nowhere has anyone said they are against children from a poor background,what they have said is they wouldnt pick a school with so many children that are only at a school because of that difficult background, of course all schools will have children from homes with all of the problems you list but they wont be attending the school solely because of those needs and thats the difference,

[MiniPenguinMaker]

rabbitstew, if you have a look at the admissions critera for Christ's Hospital you will see that they aren't heavily biased towards 'dysfunctional backgrounds' but seem a little broader and the 'need' might just be financial.

Would be very interested to hear from current CH teachers, pupils or parents as this is a school I've always admired from a distance - have met some lovely and very successful alumni.

[MiniPenguinMaker]

propatria, I would say that I sincerely hope you are right, but actually I wouldn't like to judge your children based on your poor spelling and punctuation and weird attitude towards children from what you consider to be 'difficult backgrounds'.

I am sure they have just as much chance as any other children of being being deeply lovely and valuable individuals.

I very much hope, for your sake and theirs, that your children make friends with the most wonderful people they come across, regardless of background, and that it gives you a horrible shock at least once in your life.

[happygardening]

But I do think it is worth realising that children from affluent backgrounds often have complex emotional needs too and that you'd be hard pressed to find a school anywhere without them.
No one is more aware of this than me but the % is significantly higher at CH by the nature of its intake. By the way my comments are not based on prejudice but on comments made by two parents whose DC's were/are at CH they both fell into the crap local school category and came from very normal families and were well adjusted. Both loved the school in many ways but both felts their DC's were often expected to provide extra support to those who had emotional problems and or difficult home lives and although happy to do this at times they felt that school was placing too high an expectation on their DC's. After all they are there to receive a first rate education first and foremost not constantly mentor and support other children from difficult families..

[propatria]

Mini,have a and chill.

[happygardening]

The "need" thing might be changing but certainly my two friends whose DC's went there (children now in 6th form or older) "financial need" was not considered enough both had to provide details of others "needs" to be even considered.

[reggiebean]

Biscuitsneeded Off-topic, but surely you assuming that all Americans are racist is just as racist as her comment?! really uncalled for comment.

[Daisy17]

Good grief! I came on to this thread because I went to CH for my whole secondary career and I do not recognise my beloved alma mater in the rabid descriptions of a den of feral misfits...... My brother and I both went because it offered an excellent education and extra curricular opportunities for money my parents could afford (means tested) and our local secondary was at the time really rather dire. Also, I was obsessed with boarding schools, thanks to Enid Blyton..... It is a fantastic place. Yes, some children there are troubled and/or disadvantaged, but I really don't think more than average and the point of CH is to give them a fresh start away from all of that, and most are extremely grateful. Most pupils are from fairly humble backgrounds, keen to benefit from the opportunities it offers. I had a wonderful time and have felt the benefits throughout my life so far. My brother found it more difficult, but is still incredibly grateful for the start it gave him towards his chosen career. Go and visit and you will understand its magic! But also be led by your child's gut reaction - there can be nothing worse than being stuck at boarding school against your will.....

[NonnoMum]

Well. This is a very interesting thread. I am now encouraged to send my DC to CH in the safe knowledge that the snobs, bigots, racists and smugs will send their own darling children to less well respected schools with extortionate fees and less, um, damaged goods to associate with.

[KellyElly]

I went there and had a great experience. None of my friends are 'weird' as someone suggested a child who went there was. If you want any real information first hand from someone who actually went there PM me as many of the posts on her in no way reflect my actual experience.

[Daisy17]

Happy - emotionally supporting friends does happen very intensely in boarding schools. The school is good at helping with this. But personally I feel that this was part and parcel of the Life Education the school gave me. If you're in it just to get good academic results for your kids, give it a miss, I agree.

[Daisy17]

Hello, fellow old Blue! :)

[EleanorHandbasket]

I love seeing the CH pupils around town, in their wonderful uniforms.

They are always polite, always charming.

I'd love to send my DS1 there, now that they take day pupils. But we earn too much and can't afford it.