DEVON PRIVATE SCHOOLS. Shebbear, West Buckland or Kelly?

[manorhope]

If you are moving to the North or West Devon area and considering an independent education for your children, or indeed a rural boarding school, there are three interesting choices in the area, all of which we have visited and sampled.

1. West Buckland School. Good facilities and results, but we found the place quite harsh, unfriendly and bleak. The children were smart, but rather distant, looking tired and a bit low in spirits.
2. Kelly College. Majestic buildings on the edge of lovely Tavistock. A feel that the place had seen better days and maybe struggling to maintain numbers. Children looked fairly happy, but a tad untidy. Moderate results, but in all lacking in sparkle.

3.Shebbear College. Out in the sticks, but a real sense that this place is the rising star. Children looked smart, confident and very happy, showing that extra polish you tend to find in more famous establishments. Good results and lovely peaceful campus. Out of the three we thought Shebbear College emerged as comfortably the best school at the present time. We chose it and so far its been fantastic. Further afield is of course Blundell's, which we thought was great, but too far for us. Finally, there's a place in Bideford called Kingsley. Not wanting to be unpleasant, but I really wouldn't bother. Just a few experiences, which I hope may be of interest.

As my teacher friend pointed out when I was tearing my hair out about DS's inability to achieve to his ability- getting into Oxbridge isn't just about inteligence, it's about getting your act together in time as well. It's the intelligence + maturity + motivation equation that brings the right DC to the right place. If you are in an unmotivating or underperforming environment you have to be so bloody-minded to achieve against the odds that only a very few will make it. Being bright is not enough

I agree with much of thisand that is why I am loking for another school for my DC. One that will give the "edge" they currently do not have and which I do not feel the local school can provide.

I don't believe a school provides 'edge'. I think that's a personal quality. If it's not in you, somewhere, the best school in the world can't manufacture it. If it is in there, somewhere, a supportive environment (that is simpatico to the person's own idiosyncrasies) might bring it out - but what works for one person may not work for others.

Then let me rephrase that, I want a schoolthat will support and nurture my Dc such that the personal qualitiesrequired to be successfull can come to fruition . I do not feelthe local stateschool can do this for my DC.

Is that better?

Sclerederabbey I believe our concerns are similar.

Our able but dyslexic DC is "just below the radar" in a huge (if outstanding comp) school. As DC is neither brilliant nor severely compromised, there's no point worrying much about university nor are we convinced that it is necessarily the right choice any longer... unless for vocational study, like medicine, veterinary science or dentistry. Those subjects are not of interest to DC who should get 8 or 9 Bs and Cs at GCSE, but probably no As.

The mission for any parent surely is to ensure the school chosen offers sufficient subject choices and that careers advice is of high quality, stretches horizons and doesn't assume that the compliant minority are destined for humdrum occupations in their childhood backyards. Beyond that, we would like a school that fosters confidence, resilience, ambition and a range of interests in addition to the academic in students who are not musical, arty or sporty either. It has proved a heck of a challenge to this parent in this area, and this thread confirms that we are not alone. Luckier than some, we could afford to pay -- if there was an option worth paying for within a reasonable radius.

With one chance to get it right, I concede that I have become faintly obsessed by education. This rolling discussion has been upsetting, especially as there has been a great deal of heat and not a lot of light. We all know it's the squeaky wheels that get the oil, but .

I was talking about three Devon independent schools, nothing else and I gave my clear preference, which I am entitled to do. You don't have to agree. I cannot afford Sherborne, Marlborough or even Canford, so Shebbear was a really good compromise. I like the idea of a smaller rural school and as I've said elsewhere on MN, why not take a look at all of them. For what it's worth, I think Blundell's is wonderful and if I were looking around, I would also take in the newly merged Mount Kelly. Very interesting.
As for state schools, I have no doubt there are some excellent ones, but I fear they are in a minority. State secondary education is the weak link in the whole British educational system and remains entrenched lefty style dogma and an overall sense of mediocrity, mostly the influence of Labour governments.

Looking back on some of these postings, I was at the outset suspected of promoting one particular school for maybe questionable reasons. I gave an opinion on three schools and I still stand by that, although as I have said previously, I would probably now give Mount Kelly a second look and consider it a decent contender. It is evident that some of the posters on here have a real ability to be dismissive and downright insulting. I have been accused of spouting 'petty bourgeois nonsense' and one of the schools I mentioned I am told serves poor school meals and has dim undersized kids who are rubbish at sport. Now, I happen to know that's all incorrect. I guess one shouldn't take these comments to heart and accept that some people simply do not have the intelligence or capacity to share different views without resorting to offensive ranting. Such is life, eh!

With reference to your comments regarding Shebbear having achieved 'good results'. I guess you must be going back several years to have made that assumption. West Buckland is currently rated as one of the leading schools for academic achievement within the south west.