Ordering primary school preferences

[Purp1e]

Apologies in advance for the long rambling post but I feel like if I write it all down and hear what others have to say it will sort everyone out in my head and I can finally make a decision.

After a few weeks of looking at all our options, sifting through reports and visiting the schools, we have come up with three schools that we like but for different reasons. We thought we had done the hard bit but it turns out that the hard bit is actually putting them in some sort of order. We seem to keep going round and round in circles about which to put first so I’ve taken to MN to see what everyone else thinks and a bit of advice.

We have three schools; Green, Blue and Red (based on jumper colour not how much we like them). Over the last 3 years all applicants have been given a place so whatever we put first is going to be our school.

Green: this is our closest school (>400m away) so we are guaranteed a place. The academic results are poor taken at face value but when you dig into them it seem like a lot of kids missed out by 1 or 2 marks. Progress is below average. Have a lot of visitors and workshops, outdoor eduction, visits to places and give the kids lots of experiences. We like the idea of what is has to offer and that is is our local school. However, the academic side is slightly concerning. EYFS and KS1 were judged to be good. However, it is KS2 that is concerning in the long term because it requires improvement.
When compared to another school a very similar distance away in the opposite direction which has very similar results, well below average progress and is limited on the experiences they offer, green is the better school. The teachers are behind the school and the parents I’ve spoken to didn’t seem to agree with the recent OFSTED.

Blue: seems to be a very good school and is the smallest (1 form Entry compared to 2). They have very good results (110+ for the majority of the kids) and every child gets 100 (or just misses). The kids make average progress (seems strange considering high results?). They don’t seem to offer the various experiences the other schools offer with the exception of outdoor learning. We like the idea that DC will be in a smaller school and we will not have to be constantly worrying about whether the teaching is any good or not. It got good in its last OFSTED.

Red: furthest away and have to walk past green school to get there. Their results are pretty in line with the nationals averages, and progress there is well above average/above average across the board. They have a lot of visits, trips and experiences for the kids. It’s a very mixed/diverse school with kids from council estates, privately owned homes, parents who work at the university and those who are only just learning English. We like it’s diversity, what is has to offer the kids, the progress they make and the fact all the parents and teachers seem to love the school. We just don’t so keen on having to walk past our local school, the fact it doesn’t do as much outdoor learning and the KS1 teaching can be very variable in quality according to the last OFSTED.

So, the questions we have are;

1. If we put green first, is there any point in worrying about the order of or putting the other schools down?
2. Are we being completely stupid by not sending our kid to blue school with fantastic academics when we have the opportunity to?
3. By going for green have we already limited what our dc will achieve because they won’t get the higher marks later on?
4. If red school is only average in terms of academics would it make sense to go for greens and see if it improves in the next few years?
5. Does the progress score of the school mean more than the results the kids get? Ie should we be looking more at red with well above average progress as better than blue with average progress?
6. What would you order the schools if you had to decide based on the information above?

Again, sorry for rambling.
Thank you.

You put them in the order you want, I think you're clear on that, so if you want your nearest school you put it first, but you may want it anyway.
Above average results but average progress means they start with good kids but don't do much with them.

And the progress, scores etc etc mean nothing if you don't like the school or your DD doesn't.

I'd go for the nearest school. 7 long years you'll be doing the school run. Way better to be able to get there quickly. It's not just to and from school, it's the workshops, assemblies, parents evenings, performances, parents lunches etc.

No school will be perfect for every child. Although, I like the sound of the diversity of the other school, that'd do it for me too! I think the blue school sounds meh.

The mismatch in Blue's results would make me think they cram for SATs which would put me off completely.

My DS went to your ‘green’ school but upon entering Rec they had an ofsted inspection and received the lower rating (can’t remember what it was but it required Improvement sort of thing)
However my DS thrived in that school, he could pretty read well by the end of Y1, the staff were amazing and he really loved it. We moved areas so he didn’t stay there but I maintain that those first few years set him up well.

Although I do like the sound of your last school, I would put your middle school last

You've listed all the facts but what did your guy or heart say as you visited? We're in a similar (but different because none of ours are guaranteed) situation and I'm going on what one felt nicer.

If you still can't tell how you feel, is go for the nearest and make it easier. Any of the schools could get better/ deteriorate in the 7 years they are there.

*gut not guy

I would put green as your first school. By the time your dc gets to ks2 it will most likely have moved out of requires improvement anyway. It’s your closest and local school, kids will have friends nearby and it seems like parents support the school. Our school recently got requires improvement but it didn’t bother me in the slightest, my dc were doing well and were happy. They have recently had ofsted again and it’s now good. I personally don’t like 1 form entry schools as they are too small with a small number of kids to make friends with. If your dc isn’t in the in gang then that can be difficult

Don't obsess over SAT results. Every Year 6 class is 30 different children with 30 different needs and ways of learning. The results are really only relevant to those 30 children.
Plus hopefully by the time your child is Yr 6 the SATS nonsense will be long gone.
Go for the nearest.

I worry about blue school, because to achieve 110+ for most pupils but progress being at best average suggests that the school is not pushing its pupils.
The red school will be getting higher progress figures partially because of their EAL pupils, who normally make better than average progress when they have acquired good english language.
Green school you can argue the results both ways. If EYFS and KS1 are strong but KS2 is weaker, then that might be that the school is over-stating the KS1 teacher assessments, which would then lead towards a lower progress figure or it genuinely does have weaker KS results, which can obviously worked on in the next few years. I would not be thinking what your child might achieve at KS2 or be held back in some way as a reason to not consider school green, especially when it is your local school.
Personally on what you have said I would go for green school as first priority, followed by red school and then blue but to some extent you should go on gut feeling - where do you feel most comfortable and where you believe your child will feel most comfortable.
You also do need to be clear that whilst green school may be the nearest school that does not mean you are absolutely guaranteed a place, so your 2nd and 3rd preferences do become important.

I worry about blue school, because to achieve 110+ for most pupils but progress being at best average suggests that the school is not pushing its pupils.

That is not necessarily true. The progress measure is only between the end of KS1 and KS2 and there can be lots of reasons for above average attainment and average progress. All it does mean for sure is that attainment at KS1 was high and so the KS2 targets for each of the children were particular high.

When this happens, the children can get extremely high KS2 scores but still only contribute a small positive progress score. In schools with lower KS1 results, it is much easier to show higher levels of progress because the targets for the children will be much lower.

Thank you everyone.

I’m glad lots have said that they think Blue is cramming for SATs. I had a small suspicion but I though I was seeing thinks that weren’t there.

@LetMeLayAmongTheStars. That’s really interesting. Thank you for that. It’s really useful to know.

I think I’m tied between Green and Red tbh. Local does sound better in the longer term now it’s been spelled out to me.

Maybe I’m just worrying over nothing...

*things

Its like you're describing my school choices, right down to jumper colour. We went for Green school (literally!) Its FAB, granted we're only in reception year but DD is so happy. Loads and loads of outdoor time, forest school, her reading is absolutely storming along, she skips into school in the morning and it is the bees knees having a short stroll to school and being able to invite friends to pop in to play, or having other parents locally if you have an emergency and need help with pick up.

I'm not hugely worried about academics. I think in primary, a child from a supportive home who is happy going to school and enjoys learning will do just fine. We have a nearby school with amazing SATs results but they seem so regimented right from YrR. It wouldn't suit us at all.

I would go Green, Red, Blue based on your analysis.

Then I would reconsider towards the end of y2 and then maybe put name on waiting list for Red or Blue if the juniors at Green is still below par. You'll have a better idea by then how your DC is getting on, and will know parents in higher years you can get a vibe from.

Green all the way, 😁 my DD went to your green school, right down to Ks2 being requires improvement, and lowish Sats results. In fact their uniform was also green 😁 and the other two schools are red and blue (is it our school)!

Seriously though DD had a fab time at that Primary and she and another boy went on to Grammar School and have no problem keeping up. The other DC from her primary went to the local secondary and most of them are in the top half of the year despite coming from the primary with the lowest sats compared to the other two schools.

Walking / driving past green school every day for 7 years will grate. It sounds a lovely school and I wouldn’t sweat the KS2 results.

In our authority if you don't get your first choice you are put on the list for your second choice in geographical order not first choices then second. If yours is the same and your preferred school is further away then you don't lose anything by putting it first then putting your safe one second. The ability of y5/6 to walk home is also a bonus though. And finally progress is measured from their starting point so if children come in above average and leave above average progress is just average. Depends on catchment.

Catherine I'm not quite sure what you mean re 'geographical order'?

In England all areas follow the equal preference system.

They see which schools that you applied for and order the lists.

If you qualify above the cut off line in terms of numbers for more than one school then they offer you the school that was highest in your order of preference. If you don't get #1 but for some reason you put a school 50 miles away as #2 and qualify for it (because it was undersubscribed probably at that distance) then you will be offered #2 school, even if #3 was your catchment and you also qualify for that one.

So you put schools in your true order of preference, but make sure you have a banker in there somewhere, even if you hate it, as better a poor school on your doorstep than a poor school 45 mins away.

In the kindest possible way, I thibk you're over thinking it.

But maybe I've always underthought it!

I've never looked too much into progress scores and SATS achievements as it's not a reliable measure of what I want for my child.

For me, going to a local school, that you can walk to, where you get plenty of adult interaction and helped to get along with others and where behaviour and respect are encouraged is important over and above achievement.

Mine go to a very small school where just one or two children not achieving well (bereavement, distress, learning challenges) can massively sway their figures. It means nothing for how my children experience their education. However, being able to walk to school and have local friends and play dates has been brilliant.

Dial I agree with you but only up to a point.

What you (I mean I) want from a primary school is that the DC leave with confidence in English & Maths, and a willingness (or better still enthusiasm) for learning. They need to be 'Secondary ready'. Some schools don't succeed very well at that.

But I loved walking my DDs 10 minutes to primary. It was always a lovely part of the day.

I did the thing of putting the "green" school first a sit was so close to our house even though we had hesitations. Lots of lur friends kids went there, it wasn't the best school, but most convenient...and hey its primary school right? Thry must all be much of a muchness really?

Fml. Hind site is a bitch. My kid had the most horrendous reception year. Was bullied to the point that kids made a game out of pinning him down and hurting him. Teachers defended it with "they're still learning".
He is a pretty bright kid and we were told he was already exceeding but they didn't bother to give him anything to challenge him...
We are now moving him to the achoo kthat is actually the furthest of the 3. Instead of ealjng a few hundred metres we have to drive a couple of miles. Seems ludicrous to have to do it, but my kid is excited to move and we only regret not having made a different decision when we selected schools.
It should be as easy as choosing the local school that makes life easy but my experience tells me if you have reasons not to.. Go with those! X

I seem to agree with most that Green is the one to go with. I think overthinking and a dodgy OFSTED have put doubts in my mind over it.

I’m really after a school which can get the basics right. I want my DC to have a good grasp of maths and English so they have confidence and love to learn. Green seems to provide this early on so maybe like you say @TeenPlusTwenties, go with it and reconsider later down the linen of things aren’t working.

However, I still like red I got a good feeling from there but I did from green. Another thing is that maybe because a lot of people from Green jumped ship because of the OFSTED that could be swaying me.

Definitely a lot of useful advice for everyone which I will seriously consider.

I just noticed I made a mistake in my original post Green is less than 400m (but never mind, everyone seems to have got the gist of what I meant aha)

*later down the line if (I hate autocorrect)

By geographical order I meant how close you are to the school geographically. Some people think they're put on the list in preference order.