New on mumsnet - seeking advice re Bristol schools

[Bethems]

Hi there

This is my first post on mumsnet although have been looking on here for awhile.

I am an Australian married to a Bristol boy. We are currently visiting Bristol for a few months and are considering making a permanent move here. We have a 3 yo son and his schooling is our main priority in deciding where we would live. My husband's family is in Kingswood but we are happy to go anywhere in Bristol or surrounds to find the right school. We would prefer an independent school, possibly Christian or at least church based, although we can't afford anywhere like Bristol Grammar or similar. The school system is quite different to Australia so we are a bit confused about when he would need to begin school here.
Can anyone help with any school recommendations and/or information? It would be greatly appreciated!
Any other relevant info about nice areas would be great too : )
Many thanks!!

There are lots of primary church schools dotted around. I think you should concentrate on finding a secondary church school and basing where you live around that.

St Mary Redcliffe is the only secondary voluntary aided secondary school in Bristol:

www.smrt.bristol.sch.uk/

If they are over subscribed, places are allocated to those who live closest and who attend church regulary.

In terms of living locally, you would need to be living 500 metres from the school which is really only the immediate Redcliffe area (not the best area to live in imo). Southville/Bedminster, which is still very close, is a nice area to live imo.

St Bedes is a Catholic secondary school that I don't know much about but is fed by the Catholic primary schools in Bristol.

You start school here the September after you turn 4. So assuming your son will be 4 sometime in our next school year he will start September 2014 - which means if you were living here now, you would be applying for his school place in the next 4 months (closing date early Jan 2014).
Most state run schools are generally community schools which means they are very loosely C of E. They are all supposed to have 'a daily act of worship' , which means an assembly, a prayer, a time of reflection etc. Some state primaries (non fee paying schools) are directly affliliated to the church - be that C of E or Catholic, as the poster above has said. Independent schools can obviously do as they wish with regards to religion - however I don't believe any actually in Bristol are church affiliated. The less pricey Independent primary schools in Bristol would be Torwood House, Gracefield (which I have heard is quite keen on promoting religion, C of E), Cleve House and Silverhill School. These are all the primary only Independents, whereas the others in Bristol are all part of a secondary school as well and tend to be more expensive.
Sidcot school, south of Bristol is a Quaker school, and Monkton Combe School in Bath has a very strong Christian ethos but is about £10 000 a year fees. Kingswood School in Bath is also Methodist, but again is £8,500- 10,000 for junior school.
There are some lovely C of E state primary schools around though - for example Almondsbury C of E primary - which is on the northern edge of Bristol in a very lovely village, but minutes from Cribbs Causeway and only 7 miles from the centre of town.

Thank you both for all this information. Has given me a lot to think about... : )

The very best way to choose a school is to go and see it for yourself. A wise headmaster told a group of prospective parents that they would have deeded within minutes whether the school was worth further investigation, based on their initial impression.

I would thoroughly endorse Sidcot school. It has a calm, caring, accepting atmosphere in which everyone is valued for their abilities, rather than put down when they struggle. They also produce outstanding results despite their non-selective intake. I think that this is the mark of happy, focused young people being the best they can be.