Single form vs muti-form entry

[From3to2]

If there wasn't much to choose from between two schools in non-size related terms, but one was a single form entry to reception (with 1 class per year, not mixed age classes) and the other a 3 form entry, which way would you go?

I'd previously thought that the smaller school environment would be easier for a small child to get used to, but recently I've read/heard a few opinions that have swayed me away and towards the larger setting. Just wondering what the mumsnet masses think?!

I'd go larger - in a small setting it's really hard to avoid personalities you don't like.

I'd go larger - more chance of finding like minded friends. Plus the larger school is more likely to be able to offer more opportunities/ have better resources.

We had that and opted for the three form entry. The bigger school has more resources, more clubs and offers more in the way of support. As it happens, his reception class was very unbalanced and the children were mixed up for year 1 to the benefit of all. He has friends in other classes too from going to various after school clubs. Also when he goes to secondary it won't be such a shock.

We had this (almost) exact dilemma when choosing schools. The small one form every school or the larger two form entry. We went with the bigger school. My dd is very bossy and confident. At the time she sometimes struggled with friendships probably due to being a bit over-bearing. I thought she would be better off in a bigger school with more pupils. I also found the bigger school had more clubs/activities and far better wrap-around care.

We went for the smaller school (pan 20). While we appreciated that extra curricular activities would be more limited, we also appreciated that the smaller, everyone knows everyone would be better environment for our sensitive son than the bigger 3 form entry school.
It is really personable opinion as to what's best for your family. Go visit both if you can, it made such a difference to how we stated our preferences x

I chose 3 form over 1 or 2 form. 2 form was dismissed for other reasons but the 1 form school was lovely but just felt too small.

My DC are thriving in the 3 form (which is now 4 form) and I am more relaxed about the move to secondary as they are used to lots of other peers and teachers.

I like our single form entry. My DD2 is known by all the teachers in the school and it has a friendly family feel. It is better for her, she would get overlooked in a larger school. Forms can't get shuffled so she doesn't end up being split from friends.

However she can't get away from people / trouble makers in class.
Less choice of friends too. Fewer extra curricular activities also.

Oh, I don't think you should choose based on how quickly your 4 year old will settle. You need to look at the whole school experience across the 3 or 7 years.

Larger. More friends to be had. If you have a loud / quiet / sporty / artistic child they can find others like them. A tom boy girl for example will not end up with a small class of girly girls or a quiet boy surrounded by boisterous ones etc More clubs more variety. In our huge school everyone still knows my two by name

We had a similar choice and went for the smaller 1 form entry because I know my DS will cope better with the smaller environment. The other reason was that this is a primary whereas the other bigger schools were both separate infant and juniors which I didn't want.

You have to think about what will suit your child best. Other parents I know prefer the bigger schools with more friends and resources and feel it would be better for their kids.

I'd have preferred a larger school over our single form entry but the single form entry was our local school and it won out to go to the same as other children in the village
I agree with the comment about visiting and seeing the school and trying to see which one would suit your child better

Depends on the child, but personally I would go for the 'cosier' feel of the small school. Everyone will know everyone, smaller, friendlier, more chance to be picked for sports teams / plays etc as less competition. A three form entry school sounds very big and scary for young children. And the transfer to secondary school will take care of itself - no need to prepare them for that at age 4?!

We didn't have a choice, and I was worried about DS's 3 form entry school being overwhelmingly big.

But we have really benefitted from the additional resources that a bigger school is able to flex. As it turns out DS has needed a lot of extra support due to SEN, and the school have been really good. From this year there is a full-time SEN coordinator - I doubt that would happy in a 1 form entry school.

And I hope that DS's challenging behaviour isn't the only reason that the head, deputy head, office staff, etc all know his name...the school is renowned for its pastoral care.

As isitme said - do not assume big means that pastoral care is poor - ours is amazing. The grouping of children by ability across classes is great too. We have FT sen person etc Transfer to high school may seem irrelevant but it's not. I have friends whose DC went to tiny school who have really struggled. A 90 intake means they know at least 60 kids already when they move up

Our local state school is 6 form entry and we chose to go private (single form entry) and one of the reasons was I felt the state school was a huge factory scale operation and that my DC would get lost there.

Personally I think this is a common mid conception. The only down side of huge schools is that the some times don't integrate vertically as much eg, older and younger kids at play time. The KS1 prob have seperate play times and lunch. Day to day the 30 DC in their class is the most important thing and a good teachers . I used to think 3 form was really big but having experience cig I would never change back.

A good state school has good teachers what ever it's size. I was also blown away by our schools ability to take nervous shy 4 year olds and nurture them into confident 10 year olds. Big schools expose DC to lots of other DC and personalities - can be the making of them

Dd is in yr 6 of a 3 form entry

All the teachers know who she is, she's had fantastic opportunities for sport and music which I don't believe she would have had in a small school

The 3 forms mix for maths and English, lots of opportunity for making friends

It's been brilliant

It depends on your child.
I work in a small school, 15 per year group intake. They have all the opportunities they could want. They leave us confident and secure in who the are. We always get comments from their next schools about the kind of children they are.
I've chosen a small school for my PFB who started this week and i Couldn't be happier.
I think far too much emphasis is put on extra curricular activities and 'opportunities'. All these things can be accessed out of school. And in a year group of 90 children not everyone will get the chance to do all these wonderful things. In my school there is no pickin and choosing who goes. Nobody gets left out.

Both of my daughters went to a one form entry school and the problem was that they were with the same cohort for 7 years - this may work well when there's a good mix of children but youngest was in a very boy heavy class and never really made good friends in her time there.
Having seen how they are mixed around in different groups at secondary school then I can see the advantages of getting them used to being taught with different people and changing classes around at primary.

Thanks for all the opinions! It's similar tales relating to being "stuck" with people you don't get on with for several years (tho not specifically at that school) that have really caused me to rethink.

I'm hoping to visit both to see how they feel, and ask questions about how they integrate with other classes/year groups. I'd be living smack bang between the two & about half the distance of the "furthest child admitted on distance" for both, so hopefully we'd get into whichever we put as first choice.

I think it depends on whether you are talking about an infant school or an all through primary to 11.

Small, one form entry can be lovely in infants. It can be cosy and lovely and just the thing you want for your 4 year old.
What you want for your 11 year old is quite different though.

In my experience, single form entry has limits beyond Infants. There is only 1 teacher per year, so there is no chance to form proper ability groups for core subjects with their own teacher as they go up the school, only ability tables within one class. Likewise with a smaller number of children, you may find there is no one or only 1 or 2 of similar ability to your child. There is little experience of being taught by different teachers, who might have varying strengths. For example in larger schools, during art, one might teach pottery and another painting. Larger also gives more options for team sport. Larger means more staff and probably a broader extra curricular provision.

If you are in an area with separate infants and juniors, I think that you can go either way at Infants....although be careful to check where they feed into. If you are in an all through primary to 11 area, I would look for bigger schools.

In my school we have mixed age classes so the whole of key stage 2 consists of just 2 classes, 60kids.
They can still be ability grouped if we so wish.
However ability groups are not the holy grail of teaching and do not necessarily ensure good progress and outcomes. It's considerably more complex than that.

There is an argument that a one form school is too small; in fact some think a two form entry is either the correct size, or at any rate the smallest that is desirable.

Coming from the sticks as I do, a one-form entry school with thirty in a class is a big school! There were four children in my primary school year and I do agree that in a small school like that, friendships can be limiting - if you don't get on with the other three, you're a bit stuck.

To me though, thirty in a class is plenty of scope for friendships. Where we live now was a bit of a shock to the system for me as most schools are 3 or 4 form entry...I just didn't know schools that size existed. DS and DD1 now go to a small village school by local standards, 15-20 in a year group, one form entry. It's a much better fit for them, and they have made friends well. I personally chose it because they get such a lot of attention and the teachers all know them well, plus they mix with children across the year groups as well as their own year. I think other children do very well at the large schools though and it is just a matter of finding the best fit for your child's temperament, and for what you want them to experience at school.