House near outstanding comprehensive vs Top 10 grammar school?

[estebancolberto]

Our DC currently is in nursery. We recently saw a ready-to-move well done property that we like near an outstanding comprehensive secondary school. We also saw another property that requires some work (£40k) that is near Top 10 paying grammar schools in UK. And, we expect the 2nd house will cost us £40k more than the 1st house. From a future-proof perspective, should we go for the 1st or 2nd house? As we are willing to stay in the house for 10-15 years, we would like to make a decision taking both primary and secondary schools into consideration.

Both schools are non-fee paying.

I would go for the comp- lots of kids don’t get into grammar - especially top 10 which sounds like super selective

Do you mean a (non fee-paying) comp and a fee-paying grammar? Or non fee-paying grammar?

@Whataretheodds Both schools are non-fee paying.

If you have more than one DC then move near the comp as long as the grammar is a bus ride away.

Just be aware schools can change within a few years especially if the head changes.

Also some over subscribed comps do lottery style applications within a certain distance rather than just nearest to the school/catchment area. Others do selective tests.

Well your child might not get into the grammar so the comp is a safer bet. but an outstanding comp might not be outstanding in 7-8 years time? When was it last inspected.

@Reugny Unfortunately both houses are in different parts of London. So we have to choose one or others. They are not a bus ride away.

@Spendonsend October 2022

Go for the house near the comp. Grammars can be incredibly hard to get into even if your child is bright.

Thats nice and recent then. There could still be two inspections between now and your child joining.

As there aren't any grammar schools in central London I guess you are referring to HBS or Latymer v Tiffin. These schools are very very difficult to get a place at, your dc needs to be super bright and able to put up with a competitive environment.

Also fyi schools with a name like Kingston Grammar school is a private fee paying secondary school not state.

@tennissquare no, this is not in central london. And not one of those 3 schools.

Well unless it's QBE (one of the most high achieving schools in the U.K.) it must be outside Greater London then, have you checked the list of grammar schools on elevenplusexams.co.uk?

@tennissquare it's in greater london Sutton area

A house in catchment for the Sutton grammars will always hold its value because due to the number of grammar schools there is a greater chance of your dc achieving a place. The primary schools are excellent too. Best of luck as it's a great area to live near.

Do you have views on mixed sex vs co-Ed? Sutton grammars are all single sex except one mixed sixth form.

@ModeWeasel , most of the high achieving private schools in SW London are single sex too so it tends to not be an issue if you are aiming for grammar / private mix.

There are no fully mixed Sutton grammars at all but there are certainly mixed selective private schools in and around SW London! Both all the way through and sixth form only.

We’re in London and facing a similar dilemma: stay where we live now and be in with a shot at our local super selective grammar (which DP and I both attended back when it was slightly less super selective!) or move out a bit to be within catchment of a well regarded comprehensive.

It’s a tough one, but I think on balance the comp is winning out at the moment. DD is still only 5 and while she seems very bright it’s too early to say whether she’ll be ‘grammar school material’ (I’m pretty sure she would be if we lived in an 11+ area, but there’s much less certainty around super selectives). And while on paper it looks like we have ages to decide, in practice we need to make the decision within the next couple of years to find the house we want and get DD settled into a primary in the new area.

Friends of ours recently moved in order to apply for another super selective that has a sibling policy (they have 3 DC and the eldest is the most academic). They recently found out their DC didn’t get a place, so the move was pretty pointless, and now their child is carrying the burden of feeling like they’ve let their entire family down.