omg!! dd (year 1) has been offered at place at CofE school? wwyd?

[carpisonne]

So dd1 goes to an outstanding ofsted one form entry primary school, she has been there since pre school nursery (FT) and will go into year 2 in September. She is doing extremely well, seems to enjoy school, has made friends and overall very popular with all the teachers.

This was our 2nd choice of schools, our first was the local CofE school which is also outstanding and we have stayed on the waiting list. On visiting this school the feel of the school impressed us as did the children and teachers. From what we hear they push the children further at this school so dd would be better prepared for 11+ etc. Current school from what we know does not. Also with the sibling rule, dd2 would start reception there next year.

Right away, DH is keen to move but obviously I have concerns, would dd be able to settle in okay? she has been at her current school almost 3 years? What if it backfired and she hated it?

Should we stay or should we go?? Any thoughts, experiences much appreciated, thank you.

CJ2010:

My DDs are at a faith school - this is our nearest school by distance, but because we're of no particular faith we didn't get in at first but were wait listed and because someone moved got in.

I think that for those 'of the faith' it guarantees that their children are brought up within the faith.

For those outside the faith - what I see are three things:

CofE/ Catholic schools largely attract middle class people in our area. These are broadly speaking aspirational parents who want a nice school for their children and a reasonable education (in that order I find).

In our area faith schools all accept children meeting the 'faith' criteria over local children - this means that it is a real battle to get into the school. This can be misinterpreted as battling to get into the 'good' school.

I think many people see the generally calm and assured environment of these very well-established schools (remember faith schools were some of the first educational establishments opened in Britain in the 19th century) as reassuring. Especially as many faith schools are smaller than ordinary non-denominational state primary schools. For many parents sending a 4 year old to a school of 200 or so children, seems much less daunting than a 3 form entry school.

Interestingly there are moves afoot to return admissions to being local with only 10% of admissions being on faiths grounds (see: www.humanism.org.uk/campaigns/religion-and-schools/faith-schools).

From my own experience I would consider carefully whether the CofE school is materially any better for your child than the school they are attending now.

My first child was offered a place for reception at a CofE school based on our 3rd choice during admissions, we were new to the area and did not really have a grasp of the local schools. We were also told that the school was like going private without having to pay and thought how lucky we were.

Fast forward three years and my second child is in private because we did not get any of our 3 school choices, including the CofE one with sibling still there (whole other story). So I can from experience now say that our CofE school is nothing like private without the fees.

The reality is in many communities this myth is peddled and drives some parents to compete or hold out for the perceived best school ignoring other important factors.

Good luck with your decision.

I would be inclined to leave your DD where she is. Though it wasn't your first choice, everything you have said about your current school is positive - she enjoys school, she is doing extremely well, she is popular with staff and pupils. There would have to be some very specific negatives to justify moving her at this stage.

A lot of the positives about the CofE school seem to be based on local hearsay. If it is hard to get in, it may do well because it has a greater number of supportive and aspirational parents, but you are such a parent anyway. I obviously don't know what form the 11+ takes in your area, but from reading mumsnet, it seems that success in that exam is more dependent on parents providing extra tuition, either themselves or with tutors, rather than anything the primary school does.