Do different types of primary school REALLY make any difference? How do I work out which is best?

[elliott]

I am in a dilemma about whether to change ds's school when we move house. ds1 and 2 are currently in yr1 and preschool. Current school has a mixed catchment area, so-so SATS results, an emphasis on creativity and broader curriculum. Its not perfect, but they are happy there and it has a nice family feel (ds1's yr 1 teacher is FAB, last year's was merely fine). It is about 20-30 mins walk from new house.

Potential new school is about twice as big, catchment is MUCH more affluent, sats results better (as you would expect), quite a few kids go on to private schools, school is always oversubscribed with people from out of catchment area. Its about 10 mins walk from new house and most local kids are likely to go there. I am due to go and look round in a couple of weeks, but am really confused about how I work out which is best! I am anticipating that the new school will be more pushy and less 'caring' - but I might be wrong about that. I suppose I'm slightly prejudiced against new school - is it possible to be unhappy at primary school?

What do you think makes the experience better, from the child's point of view?? How can I make this decision from just a quick showaround?? Eeek - the responsibility is scary!

Yes I think different types of schools can make a huge difference. I'm sorry I don't know the answer though. It's a difficult decision to make I know

Go and have a look round - are the kids happy?

For a start I'd disregard the SATs results as a major indicator - nstead I'd ask the teachers who show you round what the school's policy on the SATs is and what emphasis they put on them as far as the children go. Poorer SATs results may not mean a poorer school - they just might have the guts to not make a big deal of them. Any school that overly-focuses on the tests and make a big hoohar about them would set alarm bells off for me.

The school your kids are at with the emphasis on creativity and wider curriuculum sounds lovely. But you won't really know for sure until you go to the other school. Go on your gut instinct. Look at the displays, the layout, how the kids move round the school, how the staff talk to them and how they respond to staff. Look at the Ofsted before you go and ask any questions that crop up from the Ofsted (areas for improvement) and see what their response is. Ofsted inspections are useful but they don't always tell the whole story.

And, yes, I'd say of course it's possible to be unhappy at primary school so it's important to choose the right one - the one where your child will reach their potential academically but, more importantly imo, socially. You know them best so you will be able to make the choice when you've seen the new school. If in doubt, book to go and look at another school that you have no intention of going to - just to give you another idea of how schools can appear.

thanks moomin. I know this is a really impossible question to answer but your pointers are useful.
One problem is my children are very different, so might be suited to different approaches. It is ds1 I most worry for as he is likely to find moving quite unsettling.
the Ofsted report for new school is glowing - but I take these with a huge pinch of salt as I have yet to read a bad ofsted from a school with an 'easy' catchment area.

Another issue is that it seems quite difficult to actually meet the teachers at the new school - I am being shown round by an administrator. I suspect they don't really need to make an effort to sell themselves. I was told there was a meeting for reception children but that is after you have to make the choice!!

Personally I would prefer a school that tries to create a more-rounded person, which is what their current school sounds like. Unless you KNOW that your children are very academic and want to be very academic. And then there is personal character. DD is a relatively bright child in her class at the moment, but in a much better SATs school she might only seem to be doing so-so and this would discourage her -- I honestly think DD is the sort of child who does better as a big fish in a small pond. Whereas, admittedly, DS might achieve more than he currently does in a school-culture where most are striving hard to be academic achievers.

Yes it does, I'm afraid. My dd went to a fantastic nursery where she developed an enormous love of learning and then went to the local primary, a small school which only went up to year 3. She very quickly stopped enjoying reading, writing and sums, and became miserable, was bullied for being the youngest in the class (and the teachers all insisted that as they had a bullying policy there was therefore no bullying!). The school she's at now goes up to year6 with 200 pupils, the teachers are fantastic, she has rediscovered what fun learning can be, is no longer bullied, and is happy. The SATS at both schools are comparable, and neither of them particularly brilliant.

Will you even get into the new school, if it is oversubscribed? Won't it be full? I suppose if you move in time to apply and get DS2 into reception then ds2 will be first on the list for a place in Yr 2 as a sibling once one comes up...which could mean you doing drop-offs at 2 separate schools for a while???

Yes Blu there is that added complication - should definitely get a reception place for ds2 (we are well within catchment) but will have to take a chance with ds1 - though I think it will be ok as they do have quite a regular throughput.

My feeling is that if I keep them where they are it will be harder to keep up social links due to the distance, and also there will be no one locally who will be able to share pick up and drop offs (big issue for me with work).

Also, if no place for ds1 then shoudl be ok to get ds2 into reception at current school as it is normally undersubscribed.

Convenience is a big factor I think, esp with you working. And you should also consider the friends your dcs will make - life will be so much easier if their friends live close by for playing, etc. By the sounds of it, the new school doesn't seem like a bad thing at all. If it was the other way round I'd be a bit more wary. But also be aware that a school can still do badly in a good catchment area, it's not a given. The school I teach at now used to have a very bad rep because the Head was very complacent and knew parents would support their kids and he let the school rest on its laurels. If the new school has had a 'glowing' Ofsted then that must apply to all areas (academically, teaching and learning and pastorally) which sounds pretty good. It sounds to me like you're worried about the upheaval for your ds most of all. Children are fairly resilient though - Im sure he'll settle in soon.

Yes, I'm most worried about getting it wrong and having ds1 telling me he doesn't enjoy the new school....I suppose it is because the schools are (on paper) so very different that it worries me a bit - if he's happy where he is now, perhaps he won't be happy in a very different set up...

Also dh 'remains to be convinced'. There is a bit of inverse snobbery going on there really!
Whereas I think I would have to really hate the new school NOT to move them, because in the long run it will be far easier to be going to the local school. Let's just hope it all becomes blindingly obvious when we go and see it...

we faced an even-handed decision between "academic" and "well-rounded" primaries - equal distance between 2. we felt strongly that we as parents had a better fit with the second school. the decision was really made for us as we wanted dd1 to attend nursery 4 sessions a week rather than 5. the "academic" school would not countenance it. the headteacher talked about how they expected their pupils/families to fit into the school and not vice versa. the second school was much more accommodating and were happy for her to attend fewer sessions even though they'd not had anyone request it before. that flexibility towards her needs was a good sign to me that they were better at catering to difference rather than squeezing all their children into a single mould. so far she's thrived at the school (academically as well as socially) and i'm very happy with the choice we made.

but in answer to your original question it was quite obvious to us on the basis of and open day (our school) and being shown round by the headteacher (the other school) which was right for us as a family. i'm sure when you've visited the other school you'll have a good gut instinct which is best for your dcs and if you don't have strong feelings one way or another you can choose on the basis of convenience.