King's College School in Cambridge

[xuannao]

We are thinking to move to the independent schools in Cambridge. DD Yr5 and DS Yr3 next year. After school visit of the Perse, Stephen Perse and Kings College School, our preference school is King's College School in west road Cambridge. Talking to the headmaster it sounds quite positive both kids can get through the entrance exams. However a few questions that I am hoping I can get some opinions here

1. I recently heard kids in KCS normally come from rich family compare to the Perse or Stephen Perse. Is that true? We are scrimping and saving to send both kids to private and we wont have much to spare if they both start the private, would our kids fit in KCS just fine?
2. DH and I both working, I am working PT so there are two days of the week we are struggle to do the school run. We are thinking to relocate to the village in south Cambridge. What's the best area to move that are convenient for school mini bus or car sharing?

Mastertomsmum - sorry it took me so long to reply, just returned from the States. I have a few friends at St Faiths who aren’t happy at all. Same at the Perse. I genuinely believe the state schools in Cambridge are good enough and there is no need to lash out moneys on the private education. It’s all depends on the teachers and heads at a particular time. For example, Chesterton is amazing at the moment thanks to the head. Yes, there are trouble makers, kids from the council estate but if you are a top learner, you’ll be in a different set and won’t meet them a lot. Again, this is from my friends’ words. I’m a bit lost at the moment and not sure what to do. To keep the children happy at the enormous expense or do what feels right?!?

Thank you for your reply. I really can not say certainly how the other schools are but so far we are happy with the Perse, (bigger school more pressure but the great academic result and great assessment and care )my kid's friends and their parents at Stephen Perse also very happy with academic achievements and kid's friends and their families. (even much bigger school, more kids and fewer facilities than Kings). I can only talk about Kings because we had 8 yrs King's experience, and I agree with you, head Master /Mistress is very important, especially for the school like Kings. When the school loses the purpose of a good education, privilege status by stop assessing kids and stop interviewing parents even takes in horrible parents with not very smart bully kids from state (old times, before 2017, King's teachers spend full day assessing the pupils to take to reception class and they interviewed us for 2 hours )and does not respect the parents and let in any sort of parents and kids with any background, who only has money but nothing else than school will not be safe for our kids anymore. We are committed to send them the best school we can afford. Most parents sacrifice to achieve to send their kids to private school 2 kids cost 500k from primary to university, and if I am paying such cost I want only the best. I am sure there are nice state schools but I am yet the hear from my colleagues or friends, I don't think there is any good school in Cambridge , Chesterton community college also has very high-level bullying and careless school attitude, one of my colleague's daughter, very smart girl suffering for years from bullying for years. I am not saying there is no bully at the private schools, it takes one horrible parent and one bully child to ruin the piece. Most importantly we are not even happy with the private school, I don't think my kids can be happy either survive in the state schools as it is, they never experience it. Even people who highly recommend their state school, their kids tell all the horrors stories, my kids, choking classmates in PE lesson with skipping rope and primary school kid breaking teachers nose, most outstanding state secondary school kids bringing knife at school, in Cambridge. My biggest disappointment is we were very happy with kings and it is ruined and we had to leave with many other disappointed parents. it is a shame there is not a single great private school in Cambridge but there are better ones than Kings.

Just to respond to the above poster - there are some really lovely state shools in Cambridge, you just have to find them. The only really poor state school in the city I'm aware of is UCPS (lots of bullying and aggression from pupils, and a very poor response from the head in managing this kind of thing), but there are many good ones.

I know of a few parents at the private schools - some have had good experiences, some bad. Unfortunately that's life, and there will be good and bad experiences at all schools - in all areas of the country and world - Some people in life are not nice and school is a good place to learn that. As long as the school is responsive and safe, children can be supported to be kind to other's, and to respond appropriately when others are unkind to them.

Cambridge is not a bad place for schools and there are some great schools in this area.

This thread is making me laugh. At least two posters bemoaning the fact that private schools are letting in the 'wrong sort' of children/families, purely because they have the money, but feeling scared to try state because there might be children from 'council estates'. Will you take a good hard look at yourselves? Not to put too fine a point in it, private schools cost money and of course if parents can pay the money the kids get a place - private schools have to stay solvent and they need bums on seats. You're naive if you expect any different. Behaviour in most Cambridge state schools is pretty good. Of course you will get some troubled kids anywhere, but they are by no means all from 'council estates'. At least one Cambridge independent school is currently educating a fair number of kids excluded from Cambridge state schools. At the same time some of those 'council estate' children you fear so much are flying high - just look at Chesterton, since you mentioned it. The naivete and arrogance of believing that spending thousands of pounds a year guarantees your child will be surrounded only by other 'naice' children beggars belief.

Wow! There are plenty of brilliant state schools in Cambridge, and yes, they will have issues and will certainly have children that are not as ‘naice’ but isn’t that life?! Surely the best lesson we can teach our children is how to ‘be’ in the world and be successful and resilient and competent, that is something money can’t buy I’m afraid! I am interested as to what would be considered ‘decent family criteria’ when being assessed for a place at Kings!?

Biscuitsneeded- wow! my post seems to upset you a lot. Council estate? It doesn’t matter how much one closes their eyes it to face the reality. It’s here. Accepted or not.
And we actually discussing something entirely different here, btw.

It=not*

Of course it’s here, that’s what society is! I refuse to close my eyes to that reality and wouldn’t want my children to either.

I'm not upset, I'm amused (but also a little sad that you might seriously think children meeting children from council estates would be a terrible thing to happen to your children. ) And yes that is exactly what you were discussing. You were decrying the lack of 'decent family criteria' being applied to those proffering the money for a King's education but lacking a certain 'je ne sais quoi' in your eyes. And saying that Chesterton might be a better bet educationally/academically (incidentally Chesterton won the Perse Science Cup 2020 this week, so can't argue with you there), were it not for the risk of encountering some rough types from the council estate. That is exactly what you were saying, and I find it laughable and appalling in equal measure.

Biscuitsneeded- you are obviously so bitterly screwed up and envious of others and their money so there is no point to talk to you. Just re-read the thread, you might find something new for yourself.

Not at all @moonlight555, you misunderstand me. I don't envy anyone, and I support everyone's right to choose the education they want for their kids. I accept that independent schools have smaller classes, better facilities, possibly a greater range of extra-curricular activities etc. I have great friends with kids at the Perse (had bad experiences with state education in the 80s themselves and wanted something different for their own kids) and a St Mary's (need the extra help). I would never say there isn't a place for those schools.
What I am trying (and obviously failing!) to make you understand is that you can buy facilities, small classes etc but you can't buy 'nice' children for your own to be in school with. Every private school in existence has to ensure they are financially secure. They cannot and do not turn children away just because mum and dad look a little bit rough around the edges! I take exception to your ideas about council estate children being somehow not nice, and I suspect your notion of what life is like inside a state school isn't realistic, but most of all I urge you to rein in talk of 'council estate bullies' versus 'decent families' in front of your own children for fear they pick up these frankly anachronistic and unpleasant opinions.

Biscuitsneeded- 😂😂😂😂😂 you obviously haven’t re-read the thread to try to understand who’s saying what. Pity! Keep fighting with the windmills. I’ve got no time for you and your bitterness.

Okey dokey. I have read the thread though, which is why I commented. On the subject of Chesterton, two days you wrote "yes there are troublemakers, kids from the council estate but if you are a top learner, you'll be in a different set and won't meet them a lot". Can you honestly not see what is wrong with that statement? No. 1 you are assuming that the troublemakers all come from the estates. They don't, and that is quite an assumption to make. No 2 you seem to be suggesting that if you make top sets you can avoid these council estate kids. My kids are in top sets at Chesterton (and if I am now identifiable that's not a problem as I would say all this to you quite happily in real life too,) and I can assure you the top sets are composed of a healthy and diverse mix of backgrounds. In form time and PE the academic setting does not apply and everybody mixes freely, which is as it should be. I would hate to think my kids thought they were better than anyone else and should be spared having to mix with them. Really, I have no axe to grind over private schools which can be great for some families, but I find some of your statements rather unpalateable and honestly, misinformed.

Just the needed proof. Stay in your dreamland.

How do you fight with a windmill? (misses the point completely)

I think it's a metaphor!

Hear, hear Biscuitsneeded! Totally agree with you. The snobbery towards “council estate kids” on this thread is disgusting.

How utterly rude to accuse Biscuitsneeded of being bitter towards people with money as well. And you’re assuming that anyone with children in a state school doesn’t have the finances to send their children to private school? How presumptuous!

I removed my child from one of the private schools being described as ‘one of the good ones’ above over a year ago as we were so unimpressed with them and they are currently thriving in the state school we decided to send them too (and NOT for financial reasons, even though that is no ones business). Much happier, less pressure, increasingly better results and a multitude of amazing, hard-working staff that genuinely care about them.

Happy to report that they are surrounded by lots of kind, wonderful friends too from all sorts of backgrounds. I’m proud that my children don’t discriminate who they chose to be friends with based on the size or their house or their parent’s bank balance. My child had wonderful friends in their old school and have equally wonderful friends now so please stop judging all “council estate kids”.

Thanks @Sunny360. To be fair I did weigh into a thread in which I have no real stake just because I read it out of curiosity and was then quite shocked by the snobbery and nasty views expressed. And if Moonlight thinks I am just bitter because I can't afford Kings (or can I??) that's no skin off my nose. Luckily I know quite a few private school parents and none of them have these prejudices so I know better than to take these views as representative of a whole segment of society.

There are even chavs with bully kids

The snobbery here is unbelievable. One of my friends recently moved her DC from the Perse because he was so unhappy and was being bullied by "naice" kids. He is now thriving in a state school.

Cambridge has excellent state schools. Some bullying occurs in state schools. Some bullying occurs in private schools. Some bullying occurs because children have learned snobbery from their parents.

Some bullying occurs because children have learned snobbery from their parents.

Indeed.

Just to keep the thread going- none of you have kids in private schools, yet you are stalking a private school thread. Curious. If you are so happy with your school, why to waste time here? Too much free time ? No job to do? No need to do one? And- Perse is extremely selective school. No one moves out unless they don’t cope and are asked to leave. Fact. It’s hard to accept, isn’t it?

I've already said I have no personal stake in this as far as my state-educated kids are concerned, other than initial curiosity and then sheer disbelief at what I read.

For what it's worth, and forgive me if I'm wrong, I will stick my neck out and venture that the two posters using snobbish terms like chav are not native speakers of English. Perhaps you didn't mean to be as offensive as you were and now feel boxed into a corner?

@Midnight555 I have plenty to do. I'm a teacher in an independent secondary school. (I'm not saying which one but it's not King's). That is why I am able to see both their benefits and their limitations. As I have said upthread, it really is and should be a case of horses for courses and parental choice if they have the means. Children are children wherever you go. There will be some academic ones, some less so. Some well-behaved ones, and some less so. Some with many troubles that affect social interaction, others with fewer. I'm just trying to get you to understand that spending money doesn't guarantee you anything other than tangibles like smaller classes and better facilities. All children come with their own personalities, talents and challenges. While deprivation can indeed affect progress at school, you simply cannot stereotype one socio-economic category as the root of all misbehaviour and bullying in schools. And you really cannot use words like 'chavs'!!

I personally meant every word I said. And am English, born and bread. You haven’t put me in a corner and will never manage. If you are really a teacher, you are shockingly inattentive to details. Who said what. That’s why I was sending you to re-read the thread. Your posts are boring.

😂😂😂bred**, of course! Don’t you love autocorrection! Well,that’s all from me. Waste of time, this is!

Oh, and your remarkable “not native speakers of English”! Unforgivable for a “teacher”. What’s next? Go back to your country!?? We have won!?? Appalling and disgusting.