Secondary schoools achieving <30% at GCSE facing closure - this is the MAJORITY of schools in our area!

[tortoiseSHELL]

We live in Bristol, and this news report about which schools are facing possible closure due to not achieving the minimum benchmark says that the MAJORITY of secondary schools in Bristol are on the list!

The education has always been bad here at secondary level, and it is very very stressful thinking about where the kids will go!

Good point evenhope. According to the rules I would have been one of the failures as I didn't get maths O level. Went on to get 2 As and a B at A level, and a degree and a reasonably successful career.

So given my local school is one of the ones on the list, might it actually be that now isa good time to send a child there? IN that they can only get better???
To be fair, it has been failing for years but new head last year is already promising great things and has set a personal tareget of 60per cent for this summer's GCSEs

I am in a quandary...

I would have a look at the Ofsted report and ask some parents (with children at the school now). And nearer the time go and have a look.

A new head can turn things round. And there will be money.

Ormiran, the time is NOW! (we have to get our choices in by Oct, panic panic).

Ds is terrified of going there as he has heard tales of brutal bullying (but then, there was an actual attempted manslaughter/murder charge at the poncey m/c high school through bullying a couple of years back so I ain't making no judgments there )

the ofsted report a couple of years back was predicttably shocking and the staff turnover is scarily high.

Ah. Not so good then

The shocking Ofsted wouldn't count for me more than parental and children opinions. Bullying happens everywhere but it's how it's dealt with that matters. But staff turnover would worry me perhaps. Added to the results. Do you have any other options? Of course things may change hugely now they are on the list.

there are an awful lot of schools on that list in my area, but in the local news reporting only two were singled out. I have personal experience of both these schools.
One of them is not that bad.....but the other, well i have students (i help in a private tutoring practice) who are there and these are experiences of one of them.

GCSE english.....she is studying a text towards her exam, but she is only allowed to read the book in class. She is not allowed to take it home. So she can't do her homework or prep ....it's a curriculum text but we managed to find a second hand copy.
In a maths lesson with disruptive students the teacher just left the students to run riot. So my student got up, walked down the hall into the higher maths group and the teacher welcomed her in and helped her with her work. The next day she was called into the head's office and disciplined for walking out of class.
She just wants an education, she isn't getting one.
This school has had a bad reputation from the day it opened (two schools closed and re-opened as one) this was in the early 90's and it has never managed to get it's students under control.

There are a two schools on that list in particular which parents are clamouring to get their children into. In our area though we do still have quite a lot of Grammar Schools and the majority of my tutoring work is based on coaching for the 11+ because parents really don't want their children attending these 'failing schools'......

All the stuff about the list was in our local paper so yet again I'm getting the shocked look when people here hear where DS#1 is going. I am thinking about writing it on a label round my neck.... "yes DS is going to that school, no I am not mad, It's improving, it has a new head, it's a small school, it has a good record on bullying and discipline, it has excellent value added, teaching is spot on and most importantly it is not the same place that it was when you were at school...."

my dad's school and the school where my best friend's dad is head are both on there. it is a shame for my friend's dad cos it's always had a bad reputation and since he started there 6 years ago he's really tried to turn things around and it has improved. The School has the unusual position of being in the top 9% of the entire country (and 2nd in the borough) for GSCE results in all the other subjects and underachieving in English and Maths GSCE's as well.

No two tier system in my area (well the private school but that's not a brain drain!) and hence no schools within a 40 mile radius on the list.

Our local secondary managed 75% but then mentioned 65% I think with english and maths.

what is two tier system? we have first school, middle school then high school.

Two tier refers to areas that have grammar schools still. The ones who are bright enough (or coached enough) pass 11+ go to grammar school and the rest go to the other schools. Not sure if they are still referred to as secondary moderns or comprehensives.

I our area there are no grammars. So every ability in the local comprehensives which puts the schools in good stead in the tables.

i do think grammar schools should be scrapped tbh.

actually maybe not cos then all the house prices will probably increase cos everyone who wanted to go to the grammar school will move near the best state school instead.

actually maybe not cos then all the house prices will probably increase cos everyone who wanted to go to the grammar school will move near the best state school instead.

Me too. They were all scrapped here in the 70's so its normal for us. In fact I didn't know they still existed until I joined mumsnet.

There wouldn't be a massive list of 'failing schools'. Kids wouldn't feel they were at the sink school and parents wouldn't fret about moving into this and that catchment if all schools had a good learning environment with all abilities.

Simplistic, maybe, but it works here perfectly well.

are all secondary schools in your borough of a good standard or is there a lot of competition to get into the good ones?

Exeter also manages to have all 4 of its catchment schools performing significantly below the national average (only 2/4 are on that list though). And we don't even have grammar schools to siphon the brighter ones off. A church school and lots of private schools do the same job.

ah yes faith schools should also be banned.

Just come back to this.

Its quite a spread out area so most kids go to the school nearest to home. Some commute to the next town, but not many. No competition at all and all the schools are of a good standard.

We are very lucky.

ah are you in a rural area? that's probably why then.