Ibstock place school

[Familymummy]

I have a child at Ibstock and I am appalled by the school’s lack of communications with the parents and the fact that the head of prep left mid year, apparently after some sort of disagreement with the headmistress. An exodus of teachers then followed and we are completely in the dark as to what is going on. The deputy head is retiring and I cannot believe we will have an excellent choice of head going forward as this is very late in the year to be looking for competent staff. Although my child is reasonably happy there; would you start getting prepared to move schools given these seem to be warning lights? In my experience most kids seem to be happy with their primary school anyway and I am very concerned about the future. This is also their fourth head in eight years so I am assuming there must be recurring issues. Any advice? They also recently changed their sibling policy last minute and although that did not affect us it affected a lot of people in the school as only a very short notice was given to the parents. What should I do? Did you ever experience that in your school?

We have a child in prep and due to terrible management by the ex-head , I have no confidence they will be prepped for 11+ so we are jumping ship to a new school.
new current head is great but his changes won’t take effect quickly enough for my child’s year

I am curious, who is the new head? Apparently at the moment the headmistress of the senior school is the head of prep... and they havent hired a replacement yet. And the deputy head is retiring!

@Familymummy is your daughter happy at the school? Have you had good support for home learning?
I am considering moving my DD to Ibstock so am concerned to hear your experience - however I also think that schools are under a lot of pressure at the moment so it may be difficult to hire at this time?

I think the home learning has been reasonably good if you have a child who is year 3 or above but it seems it varies a lot depending on the teacher that you have. Re recruiting someone- the issue I have is not that they have someone to recruit but that a head has left MID YEAR without notice... I don't suppose there will be a selection of amazing candidates this late in the process. Similarly the circumstances of all the previous heads leaving makes me wonder why they cant keep someone in the job for longer than two years. The school is not very nurturing and very focused on testing. I have no problems with the tests as my child does well however I dont think they look at a child from a holistic point of view and perhaps they want them to fit a mould which may not be suitable for their ages. Ask about cycle tests at year 5 (one test per week, a report showing exactly where you child is in relation to the rest of the class every three weeks). This is something most teachers disagree with and yet the school imposes. Prepare yourself for shocking communications (or lack of I may say). On the other hand, if you want coed in this area your options are limited and thats why we stick to it for the moment.

Interesting. It sounds like the opposite end of the scale from our lovely state primary - very caring and friendly but the academics have slipped a bit the last few years and home school support has been very random. I agree that the head situation is odd. Just a couple more questions - Are the children happy and friendly? Does your DD enjoy herself at school?
Is there a good provision of other activities - art / sport / clubs / music?

Generally lovely friendly families and children at Ibstock. The prep art teacher is fantastic and her lockdown lessons have been amazing.
Sport after school once a week from Y3-6 and music is also strong with choirs, orchestras, rock bands and tuition (charged separately) in most instruments offered.
The current prep music teacher is leaving so there will be a change from September but with a well resourced music room I'm sure it will stay good.
My impression is that the prep head was asked to leave rather than 'has walked' (perhaps once it was realised staff were voting with their feet and parents were also complaining ) and given how weak she has been I think that can only be a good thing and shows that leadership are aware when there are problems and act to resolve them.
Definitely a time of change in the prep school but I have faith that ultimately it will be a positive shake up.

In response to your question I think the kids are happy and the families are lovely. However, in my experience, most primary school kids are happy anyway wherever you put them, unless there is something seriously wrong. I agree that the head was inexperienced but they seem to always have weak heads; the rumour is that the position carries no power as everything is decided by the headmistress of the senior school, despite the school claiming that they are separate schools. Fingers crossed things will change for the best; however I recall saying the same thing two years ago.... !

Thankyou @Avebury and @Familymummy for the honest replies - I’m sure there are issues like In any school, but It sounds like there are many positives too. Will see if all works out for us!

Coming late to the thread , but I recently took my child out of the senior school and it was the best thing I have ever done.
Terribly negative atmosphere in the senior school, they have lovely kids and parents in the school but their spirits are crushed and such an emphasis on discipline and punishment rather than reward and positive encouragement.My child has found out that you can actually love school.Please be wary.

I really don’t have the same experience - our DD joined the senior school over a year ago, and we moved younger DD In sept to the prep. We’ve been pleasantly surprised at how friendly and inclusive the school is. Yes there are rules and high expectations of behaviour, I can see why it might not be the right school for children who don’t cope well in a structure environment. But for my dc it has been a fabulous school, they have settled well, have good relationships with teachers and enjoy everything it offers incl sport, dance, drama - even during Covid

Hello everyone and happy New Year. I am researching schools to transfer my 7 year old into (from a state school) as we will be moving to Barnes soon. I am struggling to find an occasional space mid year 3, which I expected but hoping someone here would have some advice or tips to helping my child get into one of the nearby schools. Tried Harrodian, and now Ibstock Place. Considering Putney High as well (not as convenient). My concern with the last 2 schools is that I hear they are pressured environments and extremely academic?

I wouldn’t say that Ibstock is highly pressured. There is a focus on academics and the quality of teaching is very high, but the co-curricular sport, art, drama, creative arts are also great. There is a range of abilities - e.g. sets for maths, spelling - and all seem well supported, with good stretch for the academic kids but doesn’t seem stressful.
Putney High is definitely more selective and the academic standards are high, but it’s hard to get in for that reason... if your DD passes the entrance exam then am sure would do very well there. Sport is very competitive and standards are high.