Banstead or Aberdour School? Please help me to choose.

[Ramz]

My daughter is in Year 2 and thinking to move Banstead or Aberdour school.
I am an Indian family and wondering how is the ethnic ratio of kids.
Just little scared as she should not be left out in the group.
She is a happy little child and want to make sure feels comfortable .

Hello @Ramz, my son is in Year 2 at a pre prep and has just been offered a place at Aberdour for year 3 onwards. We've looked around it several times, and I've always thought it seemed quite diverse ethnically, especially the nursery. I'm not sure about Banstead prep though.

Hi,

Thank you very much for the reply and yes even today I went for Aberdour school tour.

School is very good no doubt and good curriculum as well but some how I didn’t get the feel it’s the right school for my children.

So today after the visit I have decided on Banstead.

Update and decision:

After visiting the school and checking on the ethnicity rations I have decided on Banstead school.
Ratio as below for Banstead:
54% White
25% Asian or mixed Asian
13% unspecified
6% Other mixed race
1% Black or mixed Black
1% Chinese

For year 2 (2018-2019) current year group:
60% White
30% Asian
10% mixed race

Thank you

Update - Sutton High School

For all the parents who would be looking for guidance just like me. As I have received couple of times for questions about Banstead School.

After all the school tour and research and logistics benefits - I decided on Sutton High as it was close to house and good vibe when I visited the school.
I am happy about the decision as my daughter is very happy there .

Happy to guide if you need any help.

@Ramz

Update - Sutton High School

For all the parents who would be looking for guidance just like me. As I have received couple of times for questions about Banstead School.

After all the school tour and research and logistics benefits - I decided on Sutton High as it was close to house and good vibe when I visited the school.
I am happy about the decision as my daughter is very happy there .

Happy to guide if you need any help.

Hi, I am aware that this thread becomes a bit dated but hoping to get some insights here. We might be moving to Sutton and considering Sutton High for our 2 DDs, lucky enough Sutton High has openings for both. From the good school guide, it seems Sutton High is a very loving school with exceptional pastoral care. In terms of academic and ethnic ratio, what's your view? Thanks in advance.

Hi,

I would highly recommend SHS as my daughter is very happy there.
It has good academic and also mixed ethnic ratio.
As I am typing she wants me to tell that lunch is exceptionally good... she just love it..
yes that’s true as it’s cooked fresh and tastes yummy as well.

Welcome to Sutton High.
By the way which year are they joining ?

All the best.
Kind Regards,
RR

Meimng, Seaton House is a girls’ prep that’s very popular and diverse but has a more hot-housey reputation. Sutton High is lovely, though, and can spare you the 11+ headache as it’s all-through.

Thanks RR and JoJo’s replies. so lovely to hear from existing parents and locals

My DDs will be joining year 5 and 6 in Sep 2021. They haven’t had the assessment yet, just Sutton High is one of the very few in the neighborhood that has occasional vacancies. The head sounds very flexible in number of intakes and class size. Are they expanding the school?

Croydon High is another GDST school that has spaces for DDs. As my DDs are older, I would need to face school applications very soon if I choose a prep school. I also have one DS who is 7+ in Sep 2021. It seems there are more choices for him. Looked at Homesfield prep. And of course other co-ed. Royal Russell is the only one has places for all 3. Other co-ed that I asked included, Alleyn’s, City of London freemen’s, Caterham.

We are moving from another country. Pandemic makes it impossible for school visits. So all I have are school websites, Good school guide and mumsnet! Do you resourceful ladies have any tips or ideas about the schools mentioned?

I would really like Royal Russell for my son as it’s an all-around school with a range of abilities. But then it depends on whether your personal preference is single sex or co-ed and very academic or mixed ability.

Caterham takes a little longer to get too (we’re in South Sutton) but they have an extensive coach network and lovely grounds.

Homefield Prep is hot-housey and might suit if you’ve got your eyes on the top independent senior schools for your son.

A lot will probably boil down to what house you want to buy/rent and the type of area too.

Thanks Jojo! If all my DCs can get into Royal Russell, it seems to be easiest for us. Do you know their class size? Their current school in our city is inclusive and I love it. For sure we want DCs to do well academically, but we don’t want a too competitive environment. Not eyeing on those top rank schools. DCs come from a total different education system and curriculum. I don’t doubt DCs ability but I honestly know very little about expectation on assessment!

We are flexible in living area, all depends on what schools they get into.

Sounds like Royal Russell would really suit you, then. I’ve been to open days and did a tour to see day-to-day teaching (I’m an experienced teacher myself). Classes were definitely small - maybe up to 18(?) There was a lot on offer with most children learning to play instruments, good amounts of outdoor time and sports, languages from an early age and it’s definitely a diverse school too. The intake is more mixed ability than some schools but they do stretch the able pupils (Oxbridge offers etc). Just generally a really nice place to be for kids.

Oh, RR doesn’t have a coach service so you’d need to organise the drop offs and pick ups yourself.

@JoJoSM2 Thanks God to have found someone who has first hand information! It is indeed impressive that RR has mixed ability kids but still achieves in GSCE / A level. Do you know how selective RR is? Admission officer says they would need to sit Mathematics, English and Non-Verbal Reasoning. I cannot find any sample paper in RR's website though.

How old is your son?

@Ramz did you look at other GDST schools? Croydon High also has places for my girls (year 5&6 in sep 21). What is the class size at Sutton High? Are most girls quite academic? It’s like they are quite proactive in admission I say that because they have started 10+ admission

In terms of exam practice, Bond and Schofield&Simms publish useful resources for every year group. In terms of selectivity Sutton High and Royal Russell are about the same - children don’t need to be geniuses but of reasonable standard, prepared and not have any gaps etc.

Thanks my children are ahead of their year groups at current school. But I need to practice a bit with them, after all they have never seen papers in this format. Wondering if schools would discount for students from overseas