Richmond Borough Schools Chat 8

[muminlondon2]

This thread follows on from Richmond Borough Schools Chat 7.

News and opinions on all the changes to schools in Richmond borough.

www.richmondparkacademy.org/key-information/ofsted-report

Thanks for the link. I’d be interested to hear can whether people with experience of RPA think this is an accurate and fair reflection of the school. A shame it doesn’t appear to have moved onwards from the previous inspection report, but I know Ofsted isn’t everything.

This week's (Jan 12) print RTT has Secondary school receives a good report, Work begins on free school to open next year (both p 5) and Adventure time for kids at new school playground (p 7).

Teddington School is being inspected today and tomorrow.

www.teddingtonschool.org/MainFolder/Ofsted-Letter-from-the-Head.pdf

The Jan 19th print RTT has (p 1) ''What a mess!' - Councill criticised about the unsatisfactory building work at schools':

Parents in Richmond have "had enough" after a one-year project is yet to be finished more than two years later, leaving their schools (Russell and Strathmore) resembling a building site . .

Evening all,
Does anyone have an opinion on The new Richmond Upon Thames School ?
It’s only been running for about 5 months . I was impressed when I went for the open evening ... but can anyone enlighten me further ?
Thanks

The pupils I’ve seen on public transport look smart and well behaved

Grey Court was also recently inspected. The results came out today.. Outstanding in all areas

The Jan 25th print RTT has (page 1) Top primary’s (Barnes primary school) plan to expand class numbers.

St RR tweeted yesterday that they expect their Y10/11 pupils to study for 3hrs every night and 5 hrs each day at the weekend. Another mumsnet thread has picked it up. That's a crazy amount of time (equates to a 55hr week including school time) and leaves no room for anything else. I fear for the mental health of those kids. Surely the school is neglecting its pastoral duty here.
But why advocate so much extra study? Is this a result of the new GCSEs and the pressure to get the very top grade 9, or even the "strong pass" 5? Or is this specific to StRR, do they have gaps they need to close?

That’s absolutely crazy bluestars! I’m glad I didn’t apply there now!

Ha! I saw that tweet. No way my daughter will be doing that. They added "Bemoretortoise" to the end, but that's not a tortoise, that's a hare running full pelt for 2 years straight and it's gonna burn out long before it gets there.

(Grey Court) School spells out its success is on pp 1 and 4 Top marks to schools after figures released of the Feb 02 print RTT; and on p 7 is Preschool (YMCA Wite House Nurserylands) is praised in new Ofsted report.

Bluestars Well they still seem to have time for anti social behaviour, three St Richard Reynolds pupils on bikes harassed a neighbour and her six month old puppy in Crane Park last week. Perhaps it was an outlet for their stress but somehow I think that idiots who think such behaviour is OK will also think it is OK not to do their homework

The St Margaret’s Community Website has GCSE success for Richmond:

3 February: Richmond Council has again congratulated local schools following the publication of this year’s final GCSE results. Results show an improvement in most schools, despite the new, tougher tests in English and Mathematics. Published today, updated figures show that 76% of pupils achieved a grade four or above in English and Mathematics, which is roughly equivalent to the old C grade or above . .

Full results are at: www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/

Re SRR above, I am a parent there and appreciate it seems a lot of homework and as you say will those particular kids take any notice. Keep in mind though the first intake is very different to those lower down the school. Lots of kids (not all of course but a significant number) who needed a very small environment for various reasons/couldn’t get a place at any other school, who get up to all manner of rough behaviour. The kids lower down the school roll their eyes at them and say Well they are the year 11s- a shame as you would want the older kids to lead by example but perhaps inevitable in a school trying to get their first pupils in an area with other sound secondary choices. The GCSE scores may well be dire this year, however, for many of those kids a C will be a real triumph and will be higher than what they would have achieved elsewhere. Perhaps the homework hours are an attempt of a desperate wake up call of the hard work required. We haven’t had that lower down the school. Huge emphasis on time for music sport and the like. The teachers are incredibly devoted but must be looking forward to the years to come.

CameliaG - I'm glad your experience of StRR is a positive one.
Your evaluation of the Y11’s does not sit well with Ofsted’s view of them in Y7/8 - Ofsted noted that the intake was “exceptionally well behaved”. They noted that numbers of English as a foreign language and Pupil Premium pupils were way below average.
There are not a disproportionate number of disadvantaged pupils – quite the opposite. Those pupils have been at the top of the school without the influence of older children and with a dedicated teaching team, if they are not responding to the school ethos and behaviour management then I would be asking some serious questions. (But I have no direct experience of the school so I don’t know what challenges they have been facing.)

I do think that disengaged pupils are likely to rebel against excessive workloads. An extra 25hrs a week of study is insane and shows little regard for anything except exam results.

The anti social behaviour from bike riding boys does not appear to be Year 11, unless they are particularly physically immature, but further down the school and now spreading across the years. In recent days their response to being disciplined has been to start wearing hoodies on leaving school, and doing wheelies on bikes and smoking ostentatiously in surrounding streets. Somehow I don't think that St RR want to cultivate a reputation that has more than a whiff of low rent (and not particularly bright, but then we all know what hormones do to boys) gangster, but that appears to be the norms that are taking hold in opposition to the ones I am sure the Head would wish to inspire.

It is all in the hands of the PCSO at Twickenham station and the safe neighbourhood team now anyway.

As I remember the first intake of pupils to St RR were in the majority from the same faith schools feeding it now. There were spare spaces but those were filled with pupils from Hampton who did not get a place in their preferred school which the Council allocated equally on an arbitrary basis to Twickenham Academy and St RR. It seemed a little odd at the time because Twickenham Academy was left with spaces and not all parents were happy with only the offer of a faith school but given the subsequent acknowledgement that Twickenham Academy was failing it made sense to try to reduce parental dissatisfaction with their children being allocated to a failing school. There may of course have been some juggling as parents got preferred schools but no question that the children allocated the school when it was not a preferred choice could not have got in anywhere else or needed a small environment. In most cases it was simply luck of the draw.

Which leaves the question, why would the pupils mainly from Hampton, who were not admitted according to the faith selection criteria be any more likely to be prone to behaviour issues than pupils lower down the school? Is there rather a sense of complacency about the cohorts in subsequent years who were?

In any case the pupils involved in the disgraceful behaviour in Crane Park headed off over the A316 so quite likely to be from the St Edmunds cohort.

Anybody hear yet about the recent Ofsted for Teddington School (January 18)? Rumours are that it did not go well and they are appealing the result?
Only rumours though, no official comment from the school.

@mrsmoddlepies:

You mean this kind of rumour?

There was a continuation thread set up some time ago

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/local/2741633-Richmond-Borough-Schools-Chat-9