How many are tutored and other things?

[Isimplyremember]

I have a child going into year six, so looking at schools online as open days are coming up after the holidays.

It got me thinking about an unofficial list of what actually happens in school vs the official line e.g. how many children are tutored and in what subjects, how is bullying (or any serious issues) actually tackled, is school overly punitive, petty or too disruptive, do they value style over substance or vice versa, pragmatic or dogmatic, deliver excellence as well as expecting excellence etc etc? What would you add?

Numbers of EHCPs. If there are loads teachers attention will naturally be spread thin trying to manage adjustments for various kids.

Behaviour policy. Is it a one strike and you’re out kinda school or a keep disruptive kids in the classroom at all costs kinda school.

Tbf I highly doubt the school will have any idea of how many YP are tutored. I knew about the occasional student of mine who was but only by chance. And that was just as a form tutor. No central record of any kind would be kept for sure.

Similarly for your other queries – you are not going to get that info from the school. Apart from the bullying process which should be online. The petty vs not, style over substance are very personal views so one parent could say one and one another.

The best thing to do is look round, see what your gut feeling is, talk to students at the open day and any students you know who go there already. Consider which schools you might actually get a place at, that your DC can reasonably and easily get themselves to (for us this list was about three schools long, of which two were long shots).

I think you can see EHCP numbers for schools.

Most of the other things schools tend to all say the same thing for information that is available, but it’s hard to know what happens in practice. I mentioned tutoring as a parent who has changed schools for her (older than mine) children for varying reasons said due to the lack of teacher, parents had to scratch around for tutors - other parents looking at the school don’t see the lack of teachers qualified to teach a specific subject fully reflected in the grades due to tutoring. Another school seems to do really well in the jump from predicted grades at school start to final outcomes - but not across the board - those at the higher end initially for predictions made negligible increase, whereas those with much lower predictions make a jump.

Is a school full of teachers pushing excessive policies they don’t believe in, whilst the bigger issues are handled poorly etc (e.g. child caught taking blazer off on way home gets a punishment, but bullying is brushed under the carpet). Will school recognise if they’ve made a mistake or dig heels in? Are teachers well supported by the SLT?

Some of these things I’ve picked up from Mumsnet!

I still think on the tutoring you only have some hearsay there. How would parents know which other kids were being tutored? they wouldn't but might well say "every child who got a good grade was tutored" to make themselves feel better about it (not that there is anything wrong with tutoring! but some parents almost feel the need to apologise).

It would be worth probing the school about how it does on recruitment and retention tho; that's a more than valid question.

I also agree it's worth quizzing the school on the discipline policy, asking if it has an isolation room, asking what someone does to get sent there, asking what sort of warning structure is in place, why detentions are given – that's all goo to know.

How many slots on your form @Isimplyremember? (we had three). And how many schools would be a reasonable commute (which for me is a max of a walk and one bus) and how many of those might you get a place at?

There are five on the form I think and catchments vary depending on how subscribed the school is. Most are operating above capacity and one I looked at had ten times the applications to spaces. You’re right, I don’t actually know how many were tutored. The woman I spoke to was annoyed that she and others had to find tutors, that the subject was offered without a teacher, so I think there was some truth, but obviously I don’t know the extent. At the end of the day, we’ll get what we are given anyway.

Also the issue with the teacher might have been a subject like CS that’s hard to recruit for - that your DC might not want to do. I mean it’s not ideal but maybe not a deal breaker.

There are five on the form I think and catchments vary depending on how subscribed the school is.

Many schools do just go on the statutory LAC / PLAC then e.g siblings - children of staff / feeder schools or whatever - then immediately just distance from school, with no defined priority admissions ('catchment') area, but it's worth checking what actual oversubscription criteria are stated in each school's admissions policy, and if any have a formal catchment area, also checking with your LA into which catchment area, if any, your home address falls.

Being in a school's priority admissions area cannot guarantee a place, but putting the local school where your DC would be ranked under e.g. criterion 3, as a last preference on your CAF is a better bet for not getting a school you like even less, but the other side of the LA than listing only schools where s/he would only be ranked within the lowest criterion, so it's worth being informed as to where each achool woukd rank the DC.

The only tutoring the school will have records for will be private music lessons in various instruments that take place on the school premises.
Anything else will be anecdotal.