Girton - a good move for pre-teens?

[ZigaZig]

We have been searching for houses in S.E. Cambridge for over 2 years but with no luck and have finally opted for a great house in Girton, out of our key search area. Our boys are 10 and 12.

Does anyone have experience of moving in to Girton with kids of that age and how have they found it? Any thoughts on Girton Glebe and IVC also welcome.

I think so, but have been here snce our children were little. The school is small and friendly. Didn't do do well in recent OFSTED but seems to have pulled its socks up and had a better interim report. My children have had good experiences there.

The village still feels like a village, even though it's basically a suburb. Close enough to town to cycle in with the kids and for them to get the bus by themselves when old enough. Lots of yr 5 and 6 cycle/walk to school on their own and children that age up happily hang out at the park, go to the shop etc.

Most go to IVC, and there's a bus that takes to Histon. A large number also go to Comberton and parents car pool. Can't comment on secondary schools as we're not there yet, but someone else might.

I second everything SiliconJen says..

My DC is a bit younger but loves Girton Glebe.
I think the Y5 & Y6 teachers are very good. At the moment there are 2 mixed Y5/6 classes. We don't yet know if this will be the same in September or if they will be straight Y5 and Y6.

I don't have any DC at secondary. IVC is the catchment school and all Girton children get free school transport (by bus). Comberton is also popular, and I have heard on the grapevine that they MAY run a paid for bus if there is sufficient demand (Not definite at present).

Overall, Girton is a lovely place to live, with a village feel whilst being very close to Cambridge.

If you are in the area, come to the Girton Feast on Saturday 11th July.

Thanks SiliconJen and GirtonGirl for your comments and reassurance.

Even though we are only off Mill Road in Cambridge, it somehow feels like a big move - mostly for our boys. However, we had a look around again this weekend and we still felt that we could make it work.

Interesting to hear how many children head over to Comberton too. I never knew that might be an option.

We shall certainly head to the Girton Feast, GirtonGirl, so thank you for the invite!

We did the Mill Road area to Girton move (although at the toddler stage), and at the time I was really worried that it would feel that we had moved to the middle of nowhere but it hasn't been like that at all. It fact, in terms of independence for children, it is great to be somewhere with wider pavements and quieter roads, but still cycle distance from town.

Houses in Girton do move quickly though so If you haven't yet put an offer in for the house you like, I wouldn't hang around.

Forgot to say: the comberton option has arisen because Cambourne village college opened. All the cambourne kids now go there and hence there's space at comberton.

SiliconJen - Re Comberton VC - ahh, that would figure, yes. How long does it take to get to CVC of a morning, do you know?

We have put an offer on a house and it ha been accepted. So now it's in the lap of the gods and the solicitors!

My only concern about the village is the noise levels from the A14 but thankfully it seems to be more of a constant hum in the background than an intermittent whoosh (if you get my drift...)

15 mins to comberton I think? Although as GirtonGirl says you should ask CVC about the bus.

I was also worried about the A14 noise! But you do get used to the hum very quickly and stop noticing it. I only notice it now if something happens and you can hear lorry horns.

I hope the house move goes well ZigaZag!

Thanks both of you! We are keeping our fingers tightly crossed!

I expect by now your move is well underway and I hope it is going well. I live between Girton and Histon and work with Girton Glebe school regularly. It is a very friendly and welcoming school. The majority of students from Girton go to Impington which is a really good secondary school which looks after its students well and gets great results. My daughter was there for five years and my son is currently in year 7 and they both love it there.

Hi SusieCB--

Thank you for your take on Girton Glebe and IVC. In the end we have decided to keep our Yr5 child at his existing primary. However, we are in the nail-biting phase of awaiting exchange on the Girton house and hoping it is going to happen soon because my elder son will need a place at IVC. It's good to hear that it still enjoys a good reputation. When I heard about the possibility of places at Comberton, I wondered whether we would be missing out but IVC seems to be very plugged in to the community, has lots of opportunities and I sense he will do just fine there.