Secondary transfer in Devon- here we go again

[duchesse]

Two years after going the rounds with our son (now 14 and in year 10) and our daughter (now 12 and in year 8), we have to start the whole pointless rigmarole again. Sending her for the exams to our only grammar school, being turned down, being turned down by our second choice, and finally allocated a place at our nearest (not so very high-achieving) comprehensive, a place that feels special because would rather go to it than all the ones on the brink of special measures in Exeter.

I'm not sure I can face it. The oldest two ended up at [expensive day school], and the chances are that the third will too, thereby condemning us to another £80,000 of fees over the next 7 years.

I almost can't face it. I'd rather leave her at her current tiny 4-16 school, which is what she wants as well, except that she'd be in a minute group of children, with few opportunities for socialising outside it.

Oh why oh why can't the local school be better? I'd so much rather send them all there.

I noticed your post as we would love to move East Devon in 3 or 4 years time when DS1 is due to start secondary school. Our local school is rubbish but we can't move yet due to work reasons. I know some of the schools are very good but I have worried about what happens to the ones that don't get in.

I just wanted to ask, if you had a choice, where would you like your daughter to go?

If you like the her current school, though small, is there any other way that she can socialise outside of school or is it too difficult (because of travelling or lack of facilities)?

Ah Niecie- I don't know what sort of a child your daughter is, but you might like to consider my daughter's school for her. (bendarroch school). It is lovely, but she has already been there for three years (this is her fourth), and I hesitate to leave her there for another 5 years... Ho hum.

As to your situation, depending on where work takes you, you might like to consider living in Ottery St Mary or Crediton where the schools are former grammars and are not at all bad. The problem is they have diabolically small catchment areas. If your daughter turns out to be an all round high flier, you might like to consider Colyton, but bear in mind that people move from across the country to get their children in, so it's not as much of a level playing as it might seem.

When I say "sort" I mean whether she likes mud and climbing as well as the 3 Rs. Some children don't like to get too muddy...

Oh god, we have recently moved to Exeter from London in order to avoid all this stuff in the future!!! How depressing - can you name names on the schools? Are you looking at St Peters? What is ISCA like??

The secondry situation really strained my brain when we lived in East Devon. I was glad to move away in the end. Who was trying to get their kids into which school was the main topic of conversation from Year 2 upwards.

Bendarroch was on our list and from memory was relatively cheap as Private schools go. Have the new owners taken over yet? They will be going on to age 16 now I think but I understand about wanting a change. We moved ours from a teeny-tiny school last year to a bigger one and they are really loving the difference that friends make.

Niecie, we lived in the catchment for Exmouth which was seen as a really poor school but which as had massive investment lately. Most of my old friends have moved closer to Kings (Ottery) which I 'think' has specialist sports status. Sidmouth is a genuinely nice school. I know nothing of Exeter schools.

North Devon is nice.

Niecie, "son". I meant son throughout.

Baysmum- We don't have any of the major problems with discipline here that London can be so prone to. The major problem here is a certain lack of dynamism. St Peter's you pretty much forget about unless you have a good attendance record at your Christian church. ISCA used to be the dodgy school in Exeter, now re-branded and overtaken in the dodginess stakes by St James'. I must say that all the state comps in Exeter now look lovely and spanking new, but seem still to be suffering from the hangover of only recently beginning to transfer pupils to secondary at yr 7 (both yr 6 and yr 7 transferred from the middle schools at the same time last year).

We don't actually live in Exeter, but in catchment for the school that people who want to avoid St Luke's go for. Much change afoot there as it will be moving and being reorganised within the next three years, as this new town is built (unless that never happens either).

Also I can't begin to say how much I adore my daughter's current school. I probably shouldn't it on here, as it's tantamount to advertising, but I love. Yes, the new owners have taken over and it's looking fab. (hopefully not too spanking new for too long)

Please add missing words at will... Tired, must sleep.

My boys used to go to the primary and pre-school that the new owners children went to. I cannot tell you what a gentle spirit the new owner/wife has. Lovely, lovely lady.

Anyway, Baysmum, Devon schools problems are the same as elsewhere. We all fear that which we don't really know and we all want to do the best for our kids. Get involved in whichever school they go to, support the teaching staff and your children will be fine. Or move to North Devon.

duchesse - how tiny is tiny? I can understand your concerns that your daughter will spend another 5 years in the same school she has spent the last 4 in but you don't sound very keen on the alternatives so maybe it is for the best? Do you not think that your daughter stands any chance of getting into Colyton? I can imagine, being the best state school in the country, that it is horrendously hard to get in. I doubt that DS would get in even though he is a bright boy but the schools in East Devon are on the whole better than those where we are currently living in Hampshire.

In an ideal world, assuming you can get into any school available to you, where would you like DD to go?

Araminta - you don't by any chance live in North Devon do you?

Niecie- "tiny" means one other child in her year group. Socially this is not a problem as all the age groups mix freely there (it is more like a family than school), but it does give you an idea of the scale. Most of her friends are 11 and 12 (she is just 10). There will be more in the medium to long term.

Now that I've easily identified myself and my child, I think I shall go back to bed and quake a little.

Also, Niecie, to answer your questions re Colyton. I know quite a few people whose children have got into Colyton. Some moved to East Devon deliberately to get their kids in. Anecdotally, one hears of people applying using their holiday home or a relative's address, and moving to Devon if the child gets in. The type of kid who gets in easily seems to be the serious high flier who is effortlessly good in all subjects, whether state- or privately- educated. I do not think that it suits the slower-maturing child. I know of many, many bright children who did not get in.

The Exeter schools do seem to be changing. we looked into this quite a bit when we moved here last year, they have new buildings, new heads, quite a lot of effort is going into them. I'm hoping that by the time my children reach that age they are actually going to be OK. We have 4 years to go...

And if you don't fancy the Exeter schools, what about Broadclyst, Ottery St Mary, or the Taunton Grammars? None of those would work for us as we don't want to live in those areas but they are all supposed to be OK.

Gosh Bendarroch looks lovely. If I was that side of Devon I'd love that school for ds2 and ds3.

Where will her friends from Bendarroch go after leaving? I saw the leavers list of day schools (my old school on the list!) Do any of those appeal? IN your situation I'd seriously consider her staying on at Bendarroch & perhaps signing up to outside clubs- unless the social situation in school was intolerable

Bendarroch is lovely, Gess. Unfortunately new children usually come by word of mouth, with little (no!) money spent on advertising or marketing. Recently though numbers have dropped off. The new owners have spent quite a lot on advertising, with the aim of getting numbers up to 50-60, which will enable investment in more facilities.

I've come across quite a lot of advertising for Bendarroch school. We get Primary Times sent home from school, with hordes of adverts for private schools in, and there's a particularly big advert for Bendarroch, with a whole feature on it.

It does look nice.

The main selling point appears to be tree climbing. Lots of photos of children up trees.

Duchesse - don't worry I won't come looking for you if we ever do manage to move to Devon, I promise.

Yes that school is tiny! It will get bigger though, as you say - it will have to if it is taking on extra years. By the sounds of it though, to remain the kind of school that it is it will have to stay relatively small.

I suppose you have to weigh up whether or not she will be as happy or happier in a large school. Some children might feel stifled in a small school and I suppose come GCSE's there will be a limit on the subjects that they will be able to offer. On the other hand some children will be happier in a small school which, I would have thought, would concentrate on offering the more standard academic subjects first, because teacher would be easier to find, before offering the more unusual subjects.

Another thing to consider is what happens in the 6th form. Is there a 6th form college she can go to or would your DD have to join another school?

It is a minefield isn't it?

Most of those arboreal photos feature my daughter, Fennel. ahem

Thank you for that comment- I shall pass it on. They also do a lot of drama (the children put on a Shakespeare play every year in the original language, and do it very well (you'd have to see it to believe it) and a Christmas play), do loads of geography, English, maths, French, Spanish, history and art. Music and science teachers come every week, and they go on lots of trips and days out. The only thing patently missing is ICT, although since the school now has state of the art technology, that might change bit by bit.

(stalks fennel)
oh gosh bendarroch! I feel in love with it thanks to the pictures of climbing trees! But dh refused to drive to get ds there. So ds is at local primary.

Our lovely school had a re-opening ceremony on Friday to celebrate the two new classrooms; Dame Elizabeth Butler-Sloss (retired Family Court judge) came, planted a tree, and said some really nice things about the school! She's known about it for ages, as she used to drive past it every day. It was lovely to hear those opinions coming from someone who it so used to seeing the results of poor education speaking so highly of it.

It's on local news! West country ITV (Westcountry live) and BBC (Spotlight) today, for anybody that might be interested...

She didn't get into Colyton grammar, but she sailed into the Maynard! I actually think the Maynard is a much nicer school anyway, so am actually relieved.

Anyone thinking of Devon - try moving to Torquay or Paignton - then you'll be in the catchment for the grammars there. I went to Torquay Girls' Grammar so am a bit biased....

Maynard is a private school - did she get a scholarship? Hope for your finances' sake she did!

Hoping for one...

LOL, I went to TGGS too. Small world. Only from 2nd year to upper sixth as managed to wangle a year at Stover first. Still chuckling at Mr A being the new headteacher now. If ever someone was made for the job.
But on the downside, I heard that a couple of years after my year left(95/6) the school went downhill with the change of headteacher back then and the shrinking of the musical side of it. How is it now then?