Alleyn’s or Colfe’s for Y7 2023 entry

[Jujubegreenwich]

We got offers from both Alleyns and Colfes yesterday and I’m torn. Son is quiet but loves sport, especially football but he’s no David Beckham. He plays rugby too and I’m aware Alleyns don’t. Whilst he’s bright, he’s not top of the class (aside from maths) and suffers from comparing himself to others all the time - he lacks self confidence in this regard. He really suffered from the stress of the 11+ process. However he is a brilliant kid - full of heart and kindness and thoughtfulness.

We live in Blackheath, walking distance to Colfe’s. But Alleyns was his favourite from the open days because he thought the sports facilities and programmes were better at Alleyn’s. Both of us liked both headteachers and their styles of leadership, though he probably preferred Jane Lunnon at Alleyn’s. Given his confidence issues, pastoral care and a nurturing environment are very important to me. The inclusive nature of Colfes really appealed to me.

I didn’t expect him to get Alleyn’s (nor did his prep school) and it’s given him a huge confidence boost to have received the offer. They noted in the offer letter that he did exceptionally well in maths, which is his strongest subject. If both schools were equidistant from us, I think I would choose Alleyns. So is the daily commute around the south circular worth it, given the type of boy my son is? Or are both schools much of a muchness for him and I should focus on the travel time? Alleyns parents on here talk positively about mixed abilities in the school but I’m worried he will go back to comparing himself negatively to others, though I guess that will happen wherever he is.

I’m quite torn on this, so all thoughts welcome.

@chnandlerbong - I’ve seen you post about Alleyn’s before so interested in your thoughts on this?

Hi. We had this choice. Agree Colfes is tempting from a logistical perspective. And clearly the results there are good.

But we felt that Alleyns offered more- better facilities, more dynamic teaching maybe?

DD has been happy there. it’s been pretty low key pressure wise (which she needed) and offers lots of opportunities to get involved in whatever you’re interested in.

the commute is hard. Any after school clubs and they basically have to get the train home as the late bus goes via Dulwich college. But she would make the sane decision again if she were making it today.

I know there are offer holder open days. But any school will also offer private tours. Go back. Talk to people with kids in Y7 and Y8. Get a feel for the culture.

and. Well done to your ds. Awful process. The only way is up!!

Just to add. Sport is v strong- lots of choices. He can always do rugby outside school?

if the letter comments on his maths then clearly he’s almost scholarship material?

I think Alleyn’s is a considerable cut above Colfe’s academically, so, given that and the rugby, I think I would favour Alleyns for him, on paper.

With an offer from Alleyns (rather than receiving an offer after being on wait list for a while), he shouldn’t struggle academically there.

But. I’m all about making life easy for myself, so the walking distance aspect would be a massive draw. Especially after sports and clubs, for him to be able to walk home wait but so much time off an otherwise long day. And you would to have to factor in traffic, train strikes etc.

Agree with @WellTidy . We are in similar situaiton. We want the best for our children but if the best school makes our life harder I feel like its not right choice. Also Alleyns school fees are £4k more expensive annually, plus you need to soemd about 3k for the school bus per year. You can spend that money and time if he wants to do get any club or private lesson in the weekend or after school.

Thanks @ChnandlerBong - your question is valid - what are the differences? I need to drill into that more and be able to articulate those differences. I’ve signed up for the offer holder days at both schools as you suggest and hopefully that will help. I know people locally in Blackheath with kids in those years at Alleyns, so I will follow up with them too. Thank you.

@whiteros3 and @WellTidy - I hadn’t quite appreciated the significance of that price differential! It’s not the overriding factor for me but add that up over the years and it’s certainly a factor. But if it’s the right school for him, I will swallow the cost (with difficulty mind!). But you’re right - I need to consider the faff factor on the rest of the family too.

I’m guessing the coach is about 45 minutes each way from Blackheath Village, right? Does that cause issues doing homework after doing a club, then getting the late bus home, then dinner, then homework?? How about Saturday sport / school - I’m vaguely aware of it but not really clear for either school? I really need to work through these logistical factors…

I also want to add that the overriding factor for me is a school that will help him deal with the confidence issues and help him develop into the best he can be as a person - that’s actually more important to me than academic record. I know that ability to develop the child is driven by both the school and his peers at the school, which I guess is part of my question, because I simply cannot face another year of pressure like the last one for him.

We had the same choice for DS and chose Alleyns. It’s clearly a better school in that it’s a really stimulating environment with high achievement in all areas.

Having said that, DS went to a local state primary where he was among the brightest and he was pretty confident. He found it hard to be surrounded by such articulate, confident and high achieving kids at Alleyns. Alleyns pushed him to do very well and the other opportunities available there like amazing drama productions and music were I think better than that on offer at Colfe’s but I not sure it was a happy experience for him to adjust to being average and not being picked for things. His confidence did suffer a bit. There are a lot of really formidable patents and kids at Alleyns.

Colfe’s would have been neater for us too. DS got the Dulwich bus. To start with it seemed his day was terribly long. But he got used to it quickly.

DS has the choice between Alleyn's and Colfe's as well, and we are going to select Colfe's. It is nearer to where we live, and would cost appr. 50k less than Alleyn's for Y7 to Y11 given the price of the Alleyn's school bus and the Colfe's academic scholarship offer. I am fully aware that Alleyn's ranks far higher than Colfe's in the tables at the moment but Colfe's is an up and coming one without any doubt - the school may well beat Alleyn's in everything in 10 years time ... Congrats to everyone who is now considering the choices - we must have done well as parents, too.

just to say that the fee differential wasn't a thing when we were choosing. But we did turn down a 50% scholarship so I don't even want to think about how much extra Alleyns has cost us over the years.

While Colfes did have a better results year last year (and beat Eltham for example), the gap between the 2 schools has been pretty consistent for a long time.

All things considered (sports, exam results, fees, facilities, teaching...) I would make the same decision for dd if I were choosing tomorrow.

We're not an academically pushy family and our daughter achieved 12 9s at Colfe's last year. Absolutely nothing to do with us and everything to with her and the school. A focused, bright child will do well anywhere and you don't need to travel 45 mins round the south circular to a more 'prestigious' school to achieve that. Having said that, no one can tell you what their parallel life experience would be - we'll never know what would have happened if we'd chosen X rather than Y and it's not all about academics. My advice is to listen to your gut about your child’s needs and no one else's and do what it tells you x

Ours started at Colfes this year. Worth spending more time at both schools and talk to the head teachers - Colfes have coffee mornings and can arrange follow up tours and the head was always willing to have a chat. And def worth a practice at the commute to see how long it will be. Ours is in after school clubs twice a week and often later on Friday due to sports - and then has home work to do. And take another look at Colfes sports facilities - they have the school grounds - and then Old Colfians (Rugby) and leathersellers grounds - 2/ 10 min walk from the school that they also regularly use - they don't normally show those off on open days though. Ours had never played rugby, but also got selected to play at the weekends - although they select for the teams, they also encourage those that want to take part to attend and they will sub them in to get them a chance to play. Those that really get in to Rugby are also encouraged to join Old Colfians juniors for more training. Sports covers Rugby in the first term, then football and then Cricket , PE they do swimming, athletics and gymnastics and gym. There is also swim club and cross country / athletics, fencing etc going on at the same time. The have music scheme offering free lessons, and they encourage similar involvement for musicians to take part in orchestras etc.

Colfes settle in process is good - in their form classes for all lessons, and the outbound week is great to cement friendships / meet others - ours was v nervous starting as didn't know anyone, but made friends and enjoyed the week away. They offer lots of extra support for things like maths, english, languages, free music lessons. Initial teaching reviews / feedback focused on them settling, organisation and general feedback on how they are doing along with progress. They also put a big emphasis on effort and input to class / homework.

Friends at Colfes sing its praises in terms of its support for children who lack confidence. Several considered to be middle ability have gone on to achieve top grades and university destinations. At the same time they have felt supported and emotional difficulties have been addressed very sympathetically.

Thank you for all these comments - they are so helpful. I am veering towards Colfes for two reasons: firstly because it appears to be better for kids who have low confidence and secondly because of the commute. I spoke to one Mum with kids at Alleyn's who told me the bus journey is now an hour each way from Blackheath and I just think that's too much at this age. We are going to visit both schools again and I'm going to talk to the head at his Prep school to get his unbiased view too. If any others have views on how Alleyns helps kids with low confidence, I'd be very open to hearing them. Thanks again everyone.

I have a DC at Alleyn's. Bright, confident and sporty. They love school and are in a club each lunchtime and after school.
Lunchtime is long especially so the kids can do clubs and the lower school have their own new building so are shielded from the hustle and bustle of the large school if they want to be.
We have found no pressure at all and would make the same choice again

@cathryn555 great news that your dd did so well at Colfes. DD had the same grades at Alleyns - she was one of about 30 in the year who did.

We didn't choose the school for prestige. We chose it because it's a great school with great facilities where she could be with likeminded kids.

(We're not an academically pushy family either😂)

I was just looking up GCSE grades and how many kids taking 12 or more subjects got straight 9's - it's only 13 students in all of the UK.... www.standard.co.uk/news/education/gcse-results-day-2022-boundaries-grades-london-b1020829.html

Thanks TJsAunt and JuJube, it was an amazing achievement for her but the point of mentioning it was to say that I've heard people say Colfe's might not be 'academic enough' for their bright child and I just wanted to reassure that this isn't the case at all. Both schools are fantastic from a teaching / facilities perspective, I'd just pick the one nearest you!

@Jujubegreenwich that original list doesn't take into account any candidates whose grades were increased when they were reviewed.

I was referring to the umber who got all grade 9's - there were around 30 at Alleyns and they sit 9-12 GCSEs there

Our daughter has been at colfes for the last 6 years. Has thrived academically and any pastoral issues have been dealt with promptly and sensitively. I’m sure the music and Drama is excellent at Alleyns but it is also outstanding at Colfes. The drama productions are of superb quality and large numbers of students are awarded a place with the national youth theatre every year. The concerts I have attended have also been exceptional. Colfes is excellent at teaching students to work hard but to balance this with rest and enjoyment and stress management has been a regular part of the curriculum. We couldn’t be happier.

@Jujubegreenwich
Which school did you go for in the end of you don't mind me asking?