Harpenden schools?

[duchessa]

Hello! We're relocating from overseas and our kids will be starting Year 1, Year 4 and Year 7 in September. I would love insight into Harpenden junior and secondary schools... DS1 is bright but quiet and sensitive so we are not looking for a hothouse/super competitive kind of place. Really hoping for more of a nurturing atmosphere and it's so hard to know which places fit that bill when we're thousands of miles away!

Feedback on St George's, Sir John Lawes, Harpenden Academy, Mainland, St Nicholas and Crabtree would be greatly appreciated. I'm sure we're going to end up on lengthy wait lists at this point but I'd love to know which ones to really hope for.

Thanks so much in advance x

I've just seen this but have you joined the Harpenden Network on Facebook? Lots of people there will be able to help.

Unless you attend church regularly (and can prove it), you can forget St George’s. Church attendance comes before proximity to school for the admissions criteria so someone who lives further away from the school but attends church would get a place before you living next door. They are ALWAYS oversubscribed on church attendance criteria.

Looking at this years admissions statistics, ALL secondary schools in the town (Katherine Warrington, Roundwood Park, Sir John Lawes and St George’s) are all at PAN I.e. full. As are all of the St Albans schools except Townsend CofE so you would probably end up being allocated a place there. St Albans is close enough and with good bus links that you wouldn’t win a “fair access” appeal for a Harpenden school.

Harpenden is usually very “full” when it comes to secondary school places with not too much movement. You may well have to be prepared for whichever school has a place come up first - you would be very lucky to have an element of choice.

I don’t know anything about the primaries though.

@duchessa Hello :)
We are also moving to Harpenden in late summer and our little girl will be going into year 1.
Would be lovely to know how you’re getting on and perhaps we can meet for coffee at some point x

May I highly recommend The Kings School in Harpenden, Fee paying but very reasonable in comparison to most independent schools. Co ed from reception to year 11. very good pastoral care but academically very good too, support those who need more support and stretch those who need stretching! Christian School, with very caring staff who, because of small class sizes really know their students! www.thekingsschool.co.uk