Access to Slough/Bucks Grammar schools from a Windsor

[Sooverit1001]

Hi all. Soon to be single parent living in zone 2 London with a DS aged 5 in Reception at a pre-prep. He is academically working beyond his expected level and the plan was for him to do 7+ exams originally. For various reasons, I am now looking to move with Ds to a grammar school access area,with easy access to the City and north (to visit family). Have always preferred areas west of London so Windsor seems a good bet in terms of affordability though the state schools are not great (so I understand). Would I still be able to access the state grammars in Slough/Bucks and maybe Reading if living in say SL4? Plan would be send him to a local prep (hopefully with financial assistance) in meantime. Thank you!

@Summerwhereareyou - yes I don’t drive, I have heard marlow is pain to get around without a car

I think Marlow on reflection looking at your school requirements and transport requirements.
Lots to do, access from high Wycombe to marybleone or train to Maidenhead for Paddington. You should be close enough for swbgs or there is another boy grammar in high Wycombe.

@Fevertree i worked briefly in Slough about 20 years ago, it always felt very suburban and a bit of a wasteland compared to London. Fully appreciate the multi culture nature of the town (I am BAME)

Marlow is medium sized town with one main high street.

The train station is just off the high street, everything is walkable?

If you have a healthy budget, visit Marlow and see.

Yes lots of (very bright) Windsor children go to grammar schools in bucks or slough if they pass the 11 plus
state schools are good too (most very good or outstanding rating) It is a three tier system so children move after year 4 to middle school then after year 8. So those that go to grammar leave in the middle of middle school

To be honest, what you are describing is city living, none of the places you mentioned will be like where you live now. If you are a single parent, do you have a support network anywhere?

Can you apply for a private school bursary/scholarship for secondary? That negates the need to apply to grammar schools.

You are catchment for St Bernard's in Langley from Windsor.

To add Marlow is gorgeous but I find it a bit white. I love the diversity of Windsor, Probably helped by the tourists and the proximity to Slough.

We moved to Reading about 6 months ago - so far I really like it, enough decent restaurants, good parks, a theatre, shops, bars, etc

Windsor even though Berkshire is in the catchment for the 4 grammar schools in slough and Langley. For trains to London the riverside station goes to Waterloo and if you take the train to slough there is one that gets to Paddington in 14 minutes

I would be careful at making a big move when he is only 5 based on his academic ability
My DD was G&T and peaked at Year 5 - then a spectacular spiral into 'normality'
The grammars in Slough and Bucks are all v different
There really isn't a catchment area for grammars - there would never be enough children to make up a whole cohort of Year 7.
The trains/buses at 8 / home time are full of children commuting!

Great advice all - especially @MumofSpud . I am leaning towards staying in London and possibly moving to Sutton (good comps snd grammars)…

@toddlingabout - yes that is my Plan B. I dint think there are many available at 7+ so focusing on 11+

@motogirl - my family are unfortunately in a different part of U.K. altogether. No support network apart from friends in London.

Also - is it possible to be given an out of catchment place at any of the Slough grammars? Judging from one of the comments above they don’t have enough to fill a year 7 cohort if it catchment alone.

If your DS is really bright, OP, there's a great boys' school in SL4

@EstoPerpetua - thanks, are you talking about Eton there?

Indeed I am. Or "Slough Grammar", as it's known. 🙂

Loads of kids from Windsor go to the Bucks grammar schools and there are school buses for them from Windsor.

Or "Slough Grammar", as it's known.

What twatty nonsense is this? You can almost hear the condescending tinkly little laugh. Eton will be forever known as the school that produced the Bafoon Boris. No amount of rebranding and condescending cliquey in “jokes” are going to hide who and what you are.

@Hapoydayz
I cannot see from the Bucks Grammar admission data that any DC from Windsor would get into one. Most offer to catchment and not much further. So what Bucks grammars have coach loads going from Windsor? Certainly not SWB or Burnham.

Windsor DC going to Slough grammars is different. Reading is a nicer place to live than Slough.

Totally agree with @TizerorFizz here, loads of kids do NOT go from Windsor to Bucks grammar schools. They wouldn't be in catchment. Bucks schools are catchment area schools, it's easy enough to check how near you have to be to get a place – in most instances it's just a few miles.

There might, possibly, be a handful of DCs whose families have moved further away (ie to Windsor) after gaining a place when in catchment and are still making the journey…

You might get into Slough grammar schools from Windsor, that is true. Slough is not in Bucks.

There are buses from Maidenhead to Bucks I think.

Buffoon Boris is an idiot who is not representative of the gazillion boys who turn out rather well. You can't judge any school on one particularly awful individual ex pupil.

Some poor school must have had the Harold Shipman on its register. It doesn't make it a crap school.

Eton can produce peculiar reactions in people (as your post demonstrates). It's a superb school, though, and any clever or talented boy would benefit from what it has to offer.

Well I suppose there’s Rees-Mogg? 🙄😶

To be honest I was reacting to your post rather than Eton though Etonians are not particularly my cup of tea.