Wilshere Dacre/Strathmore Schools ~ opinions?

[TwinkleCrinkle]

Hi, I'm new(ish) to Hitchin and trying to buy a house. One of the houses we like is on Strathmore Ave. Can anyone let me know if the only school you could get from there is Strathmore followed by Wilshere Dacre?

Can any parents at Wilshere Dacre comment on how you feel the school is progressing since becoming an academy as it can't find an Ofsted report. My son is only 8 months old so I'm aware things could change drastically by the time he is ready for school there.

The other options are a house in Browning Drive (Poets) or Girons close (very close to William Ransom) but the Strathmore Ave looks to be the nicest house.

Completely confused! Please help!

I think that realistically, the only feeder junior school you would get after strathmore is wilshere dacre as hitchin schools are very oversubsubscribed..also you need to consider whether you would feel comfortable with your son making lots of friends at strathmore and then splitting him from them to send him to a different junior school.

I think mary Exton is a good all round school which would be your closest to browning drive..I'm not sure about William ransome. It has just been given outstanding though ofsted but I am very wary of the school. I think in the past if your child is very bright they will thrive but if they are not, I have read posts on mumsnet saying the school is not interested.

Strathmore avenue is a really lovely part of hitchin....I'm pretty sure that wilshere dacre will get better. I personally wouldn't pick a school based on an ofsted report..you could contact the schools nr the houses you are interested in and go have a look, talk to the teachers and get a feel for the schools.

Browning drive is a lovely area too. Good luck!

Thanks for your reply Rainbow! I agree buying a house based on an Ofsted report is perhaps not the best idea as things can change a lot either way. Seems like most of the schools in Hitchin are pretty good... So just have to try not to obsess over it!

Although if anyone has a child currently at Wilshere Dacre I would be interested to hear if your child likes it.

From Browning Drive you might get Highover.

I don't have children there but I do know some happy parents. I would be confident the next ofsted will be much better. It would be 7yrs before your son would start there. If you are Catholic you have the option of Our Lady s.

Another school which is fairly close to strathmore is ickleford school..a village very close by. This is a lovely school. You would be fairly close in strathmore but it is very popular..you would need to check on the furthest distance they have admitted children from.

It is predominantly a school for children in the village and lots of families live in ickleford. I would imagine their catchment is small but it might be worth a look. X

Thank you Rainbow and hertofdarkness! I think we are pretty close to a decision after seeing all the houses today.