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The Rawlett School vs The Belgrave School. Can’t decide!

19 replies

GodessOfThunder · 20/06/2023 16:27

We are relocating from SW London to
DH’s family pile in Staffordshire.

Can anyone offer any advice on The Rawlett School vs The Belgrave School. DS is 10 and currently at Gayhurst.

OP posts:
Applebottomjeans1 · 20/06/2023 16:43

Rawlett has gone downhill in recent years. I have friends who's children go there and wouldn't recommend. I don't know anything about Belgrave apart from it having a reputation of being quite rough.

Other schools in Tamworth that's I've heard good things about are Polesworth school, Kingsbury school and QEMs.

I would look around as many as possible.

Good look with relocating.

FormerlyPathologicallyHappy · 20/06/2023 16:46

Can’t you get into the catchment for Lichfield?

Even people who’ve lived in Tamworth for years want to leave now.

GodessOfThunder · 20/06/2023 17:46

FormerlyPathologicallyHappy · 20/06/2023 16:46

Can’t you get into the catchment for Lichfield?

Even people who’ve lived in Tamworth for years want to leave now.

What are their issues with Tamworth? I’ve been there a couple of times and seen the castle, but don’t know it very well.

OP posts:
GodessOfThunder · 20/06/2023 17:48

Applebottomjeans1 · 20/06/2023 16:43

Rawlett has gone downhill in recent years. I have friends who's children go there and wouldn't recommend. I don't know anything about Belgrave apart from it having a reputation of being quite rough.

Other schools in Tamworth that's I've heard good things about are Polesworth school, Kingsbury school and QEMs.

I would look around as many as possible.

Good look with relocating.

Hmm. That’s worrying. What are their issues with Rawlett?

OP posts:
FormerlyPathologicallyHappy · 20/06/2023 18:04

Tamworth’s just not a nice area to live in. Lichfield’s much better or Sutton Coldfield.

Or stay in London, my family’s just moved from Sutton to East Sussex and their so much happier down south.

Applebottomjeans1 · 20/06/2023 19:11

@GodessOfThunder From what I've been told detentions are given out a bit too freely for really silly minor things, yet the praise is not. Children being penalised when not achieving 100% on maths homework!! It seems to be the maths department my friends children always have issues with. Not just from one friend either. Issues with bullying, a lot of schools obviously have that, it makes all the difference how it's dealt with.

Recent Ofsted inspection has put it at 'requires improvement', but I guess that could be a good thing as it can only get better.

It might be worth joining a 'Tamworth spotted' facebook page and ask for advice on there regarding the schools.

@FormerlyPathologicallyHappy I don't think Tamworth is all that bad. The town centre is dire but they are still some good areas. Lichfield is lovely though.

iwantawisteriathisyear · 20/06/2023 19:18

I know Tamworth and Lichfield very well due to the nature of my job. IMO there is no nice part of Tamworth. Lichfield or the villages are much nicer.

GodessOfThunder · 20/06/2023 19:23

Applebottomjeans1 · 20/06/2023 19:11

@GodessOfThunder From what I've been told detentions are given out a bit too freely for really silly minor things, yet the praise is not. Children being penalised when not achieving 100% on maths homework!! It seems to be the maths department my friends children always have issues with. Not just from one friend either. Issues with bullying, a lot of schools obviously have that, it makes all the difference how it's dealt with.

Recent Ofsted inspection has put it at 'requires improvement', but I guess that could be a good thing as it can only get better.

It might be worth joining a 'Tamworth spotted' facebook page and ask for advice on there regarding the schools.

@FormerlyPathologicallyHappy I don't think Tamworth is all that bad. The town centre is dire but they are still some good areas. Lichfield is lovely though.

Bonehill, Fazely, Coton Greenand Glascote Heath have been mentioned as good areas to live in. Is this true?

OP posts:
FormerlyPathologicallyHappy · 20/06/2023 21:34

I’m not a snob but I like to live in nice quiet places with no antisocial behaviour.
Also dh grew up there and I still have family there who are slowly moving out to the villages. I have spent a lot of time there over the last 18 years.

Coton green, mostly council sandwiched between the leyfields (bad) and a railway with a side serving of sewage farm and yes you can smell it in the summer. Loads of new builds next to the sewage farm and the farmers are selling the land for more.

Glascote Heath, next to Glascote mostly council, rundown.

Bonehill has mile oak right next door to it. Not nice.

Fazely. Horrendously busy traffic area next one of the rivers that floods that’s why the flood defences are so high. Mile oak near by.

Perrycrofts, nice but between qems school and borough park (rough as fuck)
Loads of new builds with country views but dh knew the farmers who own it and it’s earmarked for development which some locals don’t realise.

Stoneydelph, just don’t.

Riverside is ok but it’s surrounded by industrial estates and they’ve only got the flooding under control in the last few years. Might struggle with insurance.

Hopwas, near the flood plane but nice. Bit more country.

Dostills not awful.

Gillway lane, massive expensive houses but school traffic for rawlett is awful and despite the speed bumps I would not let my cat out there.

New build estate by the Audi garage, built on a flood plane.

The cinema parking floods by the snow dome. Cars get stranded.

Traffics awful because all the new houses have cars and the roads can’t cope. Takes ages to get anywhere these days with all the traffic lights. The A5 looms large, awful congestion on the A5 at rush hour due to the traffic lights on the island. I mean two gates isn’t awful but you see the A5 from your garden. The road by Qems is awful, there always patching it and the massive pot holes still come back at the traffic lights over the bridge,

Drs surgery’s are not marvellous. Again direct experience of them personally and professionally.

When you tell people you live in Tamworth they say “oh, they’re all a bit “funny” there aren’t they” and make a joke about the water. A lot of the Birmingham slums got cleared out to Tamworth & Redditch which is how dhs family got there.

The only good shop was John Lewis but it shut down so they built ANOTHER Aldi there. Tamworth has about 4 Aldis in a town with 70k people.

The houses are terribly expensive too for the area. You’d have a bit of a journey taking a kid to rawlett if you lived in Glascote heath or bonehill because you’ve got to go through town and it’s chocca.

Lichfield has a Waitrose & little boutique shops. Tudor buildings & cobblestones.

FormerlyPathologicallyHappy · 20/06/2023 21:35

Dh would be more concise “it’s a shit hole”.

GodessOfThunder · 21/06/2023 09:11

FormerlyPathologicallyHappy · 20/06/2023 21:34

I’m not a snob but I like to live in nice quiet places with no antisocial behaviour.
Also dh grew up there and I still have family there who are slowly moving out to the villages. I have spent a lot of time there over the last 18 years.

Coton green, mostly council sandwiched between the leyfields (bad) and a railway with a side serving of sewage farm and yes you can smell it in the summer. Loads of new builds next to the sewage farm and the farmers are selling the land for more.

Glascote Heath, next to Glascote mostly council, rundown.

Bonehill has mile oak right next door to it. Not nice.

Fazely. Horrendously busy traffic area next one of the rivers that floods that’s why the flood defences are so high. Mile oak near by.

Perrycrofts, nice but between qems school and borough park (rough as fuck)
Loads of new builds with country views but dh knew the farmers who own it and it’s earmarked for development which some locals don’t realise.

Stoneydelph, just don’t.

Riverside is ok but it’s surrounded by industrial estates and they’ve only got the flooding under control in the last few years. Might struggle with insurance.

Hopwas, near the flood plane but nice. Bit more country.

Dostills not awful.

Gillway lane, massive expensive houses but school traffic for rawlett is awful and despite the speed bumps I would not let my cat out there.

New build estate by the Audi garage, built on a flood plane.

The cinema parking floods by the snow dome. Cars get stranded.

Traffics awful because all the new houses have cars and the roads can’t cope. Takes ages to get anywhere these days with all the traffic lights. The A5 looms large, awful congestion on the A5 at rush hour due to the traffic lights on the island. I mean two gates isn’t awful but you see the A5 from your garden. The road by Qems is awful, there always patching it and the massive pot holes still come back at the traffic lights over the bridge,

Drs surgery’s are not marvellous. Again direct experience of them personally and professionally.

When you tell people you live in Tamworth they say “oh, they’re all a bit “funny” there aren’t they” and make a joke about the water. A lot of the Birmingham slums got cleared out to Tamworth & Redditch which is how dhs family got there.

The only good shop was John Lewis but it shut down so they built ANOTHER Aldi there. Tamworth has about 4 Aldis in a town with 70k people.

The houses are terribly expensive too for the area. You’d have a bit of a journey taking a kid to rawlett if you lived in Glascote heath or bonehill because you’ve got to go through town and it’s chocca.

Lichfield has a Waitrose & little boutique shops. Tudor buildings & cobblestones.

Thanks for the honesty. I’ve only really been to the Castle area and a quick walk around.

What would you say are the best areas in the town itself.

OP posts:
FormerlyPathologicallyHappy · 21/06/2023 09:59

Do you mean the actual town centre?

GodessOfThunder · 21/06/2023 10:31

FormerlyPathologicallyHappy · 21/06/2023 09:59

Do you mean the actual town centre?

I guess I mean the all of the built up area rather than surrounding villages.

OP posts:
iwantawisteriathisyear · 21/06/2023 12:01

FormerlyPathologicallyHappy · 20/06/2023 21:34

I’m not a snob but I like to live in nice quiet places with no antisocial behaviour.
Also dh grew up there and I still have family there who are slowly moving out to the villages. I have spent a lot of time there over the last 18 years.

Coton green, mostly council sandwiched between the leyfields (bad) and a railway with a side serving of sewage farm and yes you can smell it in the summer. Loads of new builds next to the sewage farm and the farmers are selling the land for more.

Glascote Heath, next to Glascote mostly council, rundown.

Bonehill has mile oak right next door to it. Not nice.

Fazely. Horrendously busy traffic area next one of the rivers that floods that’s why the flood defences are so high. Mile oak near by.

Perrycrofts, nice but between qems school and borough park (rough as fuck)
Loads of new builds with country views but dh knew the farmers who own it and it’s earmarked for development which some locals don’t realise.

Stoneydelph, just don’t.

Riverside is ok but it’s surrounded by industrial estates and they’ve only got the flooding under control in the last few years. Might struggle with insurance.

Hopwas, near the flood plane but nice. Bit more country.

Dostills not awful.

Gillway lane, massive expensive houses but school traffic for rawlett is awful and despite the speed bumps I would not let my cat out there.

New build estate by the Audi garage, built on a flood plane.

The cinema parking floods by the snow dome. Cars get stranded.

Traffics awful because all the new houses have cars and the roads can’t cope. Takes ages to get anywhere these days with all the traffic lights. The A5 looms large, awful congestion on the A5 at rush hour due to the traffic lights on the island. I mean two gates isn’t awful but you see the A5 from your garden. The road by Qems is awful, there always patching it and the massive pot holes still come back at the traffic lights over the bridge,

Drs surgery’s are not marvellous. Again direct experience of them personally and professionally.

When you tell people you live in Tamworth they say “oh, they’re all a bit “funny” there aren’t they” and make a joke about the water. A lot of the Birmingham slums got cleared out to Tamworth & Redditch which is how dhs family got there.

The only good shop was John Lewis but it shut down so they built ANOTHER Aldi there. Tamworth has about 4 Aldis in a town with 70k people.

The houses are terribly expensive too for the area. You’d have a bit of a journey taking a kid to rawlett if you lived in Glascote heath or bonehill because you’ve got to go through town and it’s chocca.

Lichfield has a Waitrose & little boutique shops. Tudor buildings & cobblestones.

I agree with all this. Also agree with your DH's opinion

FormerlyPathologicallyHappy · 21/06/2023 15:55

If it was me I’d go for perrycrofts, down a bit from Ashby Road nearer the school field. The houses are 1960-70’s so more land around them so you’re not on top of your neighbours and away from borough park.

Then you’ve got qems just down the road within walking distance, the college also within walking distance because they are close, a petrol station and a small Morrisons if you want to nip to the shops one way and if you turn right out of perrycrofts crescent you’ve got the Ashby road that will get you on the A42 which runs into the M42 if towns busy and you can go skirt around town easier going browns lane, gillway, coton lane takes you to Lichfield.

We lived on the Perrycrofts estate for a while.

Yxngprice · 14/03/2025 17:27

The Rawlett school has not got a very good sense of sympathy I was being severely bullied having rocks thrown at my head they don't do anything about it so do not send your children there unless unless u want them.coming home missrabull every day (I went ),

SuttonColdfieldEssexian · 23/04/2025 16:46

I'm also looking.

We currently live in B74 (Four Oaks, Sutton Coldfield) but are moving to Haunton (B79).

Polesworth and Kingsbury are too far.

My daughter is taking her 11+ hoping to get into Sutton Girls, we are just in the catchment area for Arthur Terry, currently we are north of AT, literally a 4 minute drive or 23 minute walk.

She has a cousin living nearby and attends Ivanhoe. We're not too keen on sending her there. Might home-school her instead.

FormerlyPathologicallyHappy · 23/04/2025 18:09

I came from Sutton Coldfield and ended up in Harlaston, are you in the catchment for the Lichfield schools?

I went to AT and hated it but my cousins children were ok there but it wasn’t a great school according to the kids.

SuttonColdfieldEssexian · 23/04/2025 21:15

SuttonColdfieldEssexian · 23/04/2025 16:46

I'm also looking.

We currently live in B74 (Four Oaks, Sutton Coldfield) but are moving to Haunton (B79).

Polesworth and Kingsbury are too far.

My daughter is taking her 11+ hoping to get into Sutton Girls, we are just in the catchment area for Arthur Terry, currently we are north of AT, literally a 4 minute drive or 23 minute walk.

She has a cousin living nearby and attends Ivanhoe. We're not too keen on sending her there. Might home-school her instead.

Thanks for the reply.

I'm not sure of the Lichfield catchment area. Is there any info online or rough guidance on it?

I'm opposite The CoOp in Hill Hook. One year I was out of the catchment area entirely.

Thanks

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