Confused. Should I move my child to a prep school?

[Tamster2451]

Hi,
Just looking for some advice. My daughter is due to start Year 3. She is going to start Year 3. We are very confused what to do and would like some advice. She has been offered a bursary at a very small prep school (class of 13). We couldn’t usually afford private school but feel this is an great opportunity. The school is very small and doesn’t have great sports facilities but is good in drama & music. It also has lots of international students. We are unsure whether it might be too constricting as it is small but appreciate the benefits of small classes. Our daughter has done brilliantly for SATs at her current school and got a scaled score of 115...much to our surprise.
To add to our dilemma we recently moved her from a catholic school in Year 2 which has had poor ofsteds. Academically she has done really well with her new school but has struggled with making friends. We were even thinking of moving her back to her old school because she might be happier. We now realise she would do well where ever she is. What should we do?? Any advice greatly appreciated. We need to decide soon. Is if damaging to keep moving school?

I'd keep her with the school that helped her with her KS1 SATS and work with then to improve her friendship circle particularly as she wants to stay.

As others have said there's a number of reasons to be wary of the prep school.

A different option is to start saving now for a private secondary school for her. Otherwise she could finish her prep school then go to the local comp which would be a culture shock from a very small girls school.

Far too many alarm bells. Desperate to fill places and too small to be viable. Walk away

I wouldn’t move her again. You have chosen this school for her so stand by that. She will get a chance to start a fresh year at the beginning and will hopefully find some friends. You can then do your bit with play dates. Use the money you save for extracurricular activities which will offer different friendships and enhance her education ie: music lessons, stem clubs, are there any children’s language classes near you? Etc.

and remember that either way you'll be committed to the first term's fees?

Ignore the private school place. It’s clearly not a top prep and is touting for business. I would avoid as I’m not sure what real advantage your 50% of fees will secure.

I think your real issue is to stay put or go back. I’m inclined to say stay. There will be different dynamics next year and she will have a greater chance to make friends. She is looking forward to her new teacher and I’d give that a chance too.

If you can get involved with the school (PTA?) it might help you too!

I am going against the grain here but I would go for the prep with a 50% reduction - I would check out its accounts first though as a pp has suggested. 13 girls gives plenty of friendship choices if it’s single sex, probably similar to a state school. If other parents are happy then I would consider that indicative of a happy school.

We moved my son to a prep last year for KS2 which similarly has poor sports facilities. It is non-selective but it is academically challenging, significantly less disruptive and gives a broader range of subjects - he loves it and has made fantastic progress.

It’s not ideal to move so frequently, but assuming you are confident about finances then I would be very tempted.