Area with good schools that actually feels like London?

[PancakeCloud]

I’m very much a city person, I like busy areas, I’ve lived in zone 2 for most of my life. I like having cafes, shops and bars around and feeling well connected to the rest of London.

I’m now in the position of being in a too small flat with small children and trying to work out where I can move to that still feels like London but has decent state primaries and secondaries for a girl and a boy. I’d prefer non-selective, non-grammar schools as I hate the idea of having to tutor primary school kids.

Does an area like this actually exist?? I suspect not but thought I’d ask anyway just in case…

Are we out of lockdown then? I hadn’t noticed 🙄

“Progress 8 score

We are not able to calculate Progress 8 scores for academic years 2024/25 and 2025/26. This is because there is no KS2 assessment data available to calculate the baseline for Progress 8 for these years due to Covid-19 disruption. We are also unable to show results broken down by prior attainment.”

Perhaps you don’t understand what Progress 8 scores measure…

You could definitely get a house for that budget outside of London and not too far out either.

Where I live primary schools are great, secondary schools not so good, we all aim for grammar because of this.

There will be no Progress 8 score again this year because the children currently taking their GCSEs didnt have Key Stage 2 days when they moved to secondary school because of the pandemic. However, many secondary schools will publish their own internal progress days based on CATs tests from Year 7. The only official published results this year will be based on attainment.

Ealing. Most primaries are very good and spaces come up all the time if you don't get your first choice. You need to move for a good secondary. For secondary have a look at the Twyford schools. You won't get into Twyford unless CofE but other 3 secondary schools are on distance. Then they all have a distinct sixth forms (e.g. Twyford most academic, Ada Lovelace T-levels) or there are music places for aptitude - but you won't know about that for some years yet!
You don't need to live in central Ealing as I think Ealing fields is out near Boston Manor end and the other one (can't remember the name) is Greenford. Also a very good Catholic school in Greenford that takes has started taking non-catholics who live nearby.
Maybe Brentford for the Green school for girls and Green school for boys (or Gunnesbury another Catholic school that is excellent that takes non-Catholics). Other than that Twickenham - but you have to live close to the school.
To look at school results google 'compare schools gov' and enter in a postcode to see nearby schools.

Yeah I think I do. As I say my daughter’s school publish them.

@OhamIreally But the government hasn’t published any on their compare schools site which was the point…

As kids get older, community feel and after school clubs and parks/activities and friends are more important than “schools”. Especially settling in an enclave where their friends do not keep moving with high churn in their primary class. This is why Zone 2,3, 4 can be better for kids anyway.
I would buy a house in an area you can afford like Norwood or Streatham. Chances are there will then be families like yourselves that you will all gel with.
Most primaries are good in London. As regards secondaries, the ones to avoid are the very strict ones, but other than that a lot of people now make do and use a few tutors for GCSEs, if need be. By Sixth Form, a YP can typically go to lots of different Sixth Forms with good grades in hand - and that is academically the important stage.

A child’s education is broad and includes the social side very much, experiences day to day and locally, been taken to the cultural experiences different parts of London have to offer.
For example, Telegraph Hill. Goldsmiths used to run a lot of music and you have Trinity in nearby Greenwich too. Crystal Palace/Penge etc also vibrant stuff like this. Walthamstow as well these days. It usually all dependent on who lives there at the time.

If you like the idea of this school, also look
at kingsdale wchool in the west Dulwich/gipsy hill and see what the catchment area is

Kingsdale admission is by lottery not distance

There is one primary school now that has some feeder places - can’t remember the name but I think it’s right opposite Kingsdale.

Thank you, you are right…. 5 places per class of feeder school… so presumably another layer of Lottery complexity! Open lottery for anyone anywhere, lottery for those offered a place in the sports and music categories, and now lottery for feeder school places! Good that there are now places effectively based on distance, though. Even if the criteria for feeder schools look suspiciously geared towards demographic selection

And I am not sure the catchments for the listed primaries give the OP the urban / central London vibe she is looking for.

This is why Zone 2,3, 4 can be better for kids anyway.

We are in z4 & what I find nice about it is as you say my dc have a local community. The dc all go to different secondaries but they have friends from prinary at football, dancing, tennis, brownies, etc

Ah, thank you. I didn’t know. I live nearby and know it has a good reputation but don’t know anything about the entrance requirements and just assumed it was catchment

There is no state primary school opp Kingsdale, there’s Dulwich Prep on the same road.

There are various local primary schools which can feed into Kingsdale eg Paxton, Dulwich Wood, Elm Wood, kingswood, Dulwich hamlet, and Hollydale.

I meant the 10 places at Dulwich Wood in the current Admissions criteria (opposite the side entrance to the music block), all quite recent and you are perfectly right. Set places in set primary schools (for now). This is relatively recent. Who knows how and where exactly it will stand in the future. It will be as specified in the Admissions Criteria of the school at the relevant point of entry.

@Tintarella I think that was maybe the case 10 years ago but don't think it is anymore.

Primaries are all decent, and then you have Leytonstone, Frederick Bremner, Kelmscott, Willowfield which are all reasonable. And there's the catholic school and Walthamstow Academy, depending on which part you're in. Most of the schools finish at 16, and the kids seem to get into decent schools for A levels in other boroughs so they do ok.

Woodford Green is lovely and has outstanding school choices at both primary and secondary. It is very green though so less of a zone 2 vibe.

It’s in zone 4 and has a very Essex vibe - I don’t think it’s what OP is looking for.

True, though it is still very multicultural and with OK food choices. It could be worth a quick trip on the tube to have a look around + a little Rightmove search.

Yes I agree, I have secondary age boys in Walthamstow and they are doing brilliantly at a fab Walthamstow mixed comp which is incredibly nurturing and inclusive. I confess to stressing before they went there due to bad results on paper but turns out it’s true that bright kids who are stretched and motivated at school and feel safe and happy in that environment will do well.

There are primaries that you wouldn't be happy sending your child to, eg. St Patrick's or Mission Grove I wouldn't call decent.

Wanstead is nearby and has a more London vibe.

Try looking at 'locrating' to get an idea of schools and ratings

There are literally hundreds of unfilled primary spaces in Waltham Forest though, so you'd never be stuck sending your child to a school you didn't want them to go to.

If you children are not yet school age I will say this: our local comp, 7 years ago , when my son started school, was in special measures. Now it's the school everyone wants to go to and is oversubscribed. The other school which has always been seen a better as it used to be a grammar is now the school that no one really wants to go to! Schools go up and down all the time.