Why did you choose your DC’s primary school?

[Cloud1220]

We’ve just started to look at schools for a reception place next year and I’m interested to know what others have found to be the key deciding factors when you’ve been choosing schools - what really ‘sold’ it to you?

Walkable, but we have 8 primaries within a mile of us (yes, really), so that didn't entirely narrow it down.

We visited 5 of them. I spent a very dull evening ploughing through statistics as to which schools had reached which criteria for entry over the past few years, and worked out our chance of getting in.

We went for the one where we felt DD would fit socially and where there would be a good number of other children with similar strengths. I think we got it right.

We went small and local and it was a mistake. Headteacher and teachers couldn't be bothered, no after school club, very little sport etc etc. There was a crisis and a huge number of parents pulled their kids. My oldest son was left in a year group of 4 and the only boy. We then moved them to a larger school which is ofsted outstanding and a breath of fresh air - loads of clubs, after school clubs and a much more positive attitude. Do your research and don't just go local as it is pot luck! Too small is problematic in my experience.

Equal balance of male/female teachers, so boys got to do football and rugby etc. Also, security - school was on a military base so behind wire. Also, stuff like whole school being taken up in a Hercules transporter to do a circuit of the city or two. Fun stuff like that.

It's a good all-rounder and felt both nurturing and a good fit for DC1. We also felt it would suit DC2, who started 2 years later.
Secondary selling point was proximity.
Overall it has been a good choice that we continue to be happy with, and DCs are happy there. We balanced the shortfalls with extra curricular stuff.

We looked at some that were either overly focussed on the academic side or the opposite: just didn't seem academically ambitious. We didn't get a good feel from those. Some schools would have suited one DC but not the other, so we discounted those.

Because it was in the village/nearest

@Takemetothe90s

I wanted a certain school for my child although out of catchment(3 miles away) It is a faith school of which we’re the same faith. They’re many schools of the same faith closer. I was persistent, wrote to the la requesting this school and got it, although many told me it would only go on distance, clearly it did not.

If you're in England then they have to follow the admissions criteria, and writing to the LEA to request a particular school because that's the one you want won't make any difference. They won't try to argue that you should go to the nearer faith school- it's done by a computer. If you listed the school you wanted on your form, you must have just met the admissions criteria for the school (very believable if faith is part of the admissions criteria).

Honestly - because it was the nearest.

We are lucky in that all the schools around are decent and so we put the closest down.

If a school has more than two forms per year, a school that remixes classes each year is highly preferable. It means pupils get to meet and make new friends, classes can have better gender balance on average, and problem children can be separated.

We chose the nearest one that wasn’t religious.

Nice tie

Thank you so much for all these insightful responses. Lots of food for thought! I work in education and have previously been a school governor so feel like I should know what to look out for, but when it’s your own child it feels very different!

We have 5 schools within just over a mile and the closest is 0.2 miles and that one is probably the ‘best’ (no ofsted as new, although I take ofsted with a pinch of salt anyway) and the most oversubscribed, so we’re very lucky we have an excellent chance of a place at that one. But I didn’t want to just blindly choose that one without looking at what else is out there; their breakfast club also doesn’t start quite early enough for us!! (Joys of working parents!)

To the poster who asked about whether our schools are doing tours; yes we have been able to attend/book both open sessions and individual tours. Feel very fortunate this year!

Quality of lessons and homework
Excellent inspection reports
Gut feeling about the school in question
Number of after school clubs and trips etc
Staff experience and turnover

I knew eldest was extremely bright - I put her down for the highest achieving school in the county which was 6 miles away. I was told by other parents that we would never ever get it.

I went and saw the head and explained the circumstances - very bright DD, she had a medical disability and in those days she brought in extra funding but however wouldn’t need it. She knew of me and my role at county level. It was a church school and I was also a deacon. I had an interview so did DD and we got a place.

Younger DS also applied to same school and got a sibling place. By then the headteacher had changed and within 6 months it was transparent DS was extremely unhappy and a lot of parents the same - pulling their kids out. DS was then given a placement in another specialist school for a year. Lockdown happened and we relocated - but if we hadn’t relocated he will have been pulled out - he refers to it as 0/10 extremely unhappy and no friends.
We relocated 3 outstanding primary and 1 in special
Measures I know the area and spoke to parent there were 2 that were outstanding and recommended. One was full and the other happened to have a place in his year. We took it and it calls it 10/10 and he has thrived - local teams, local friends etc

For me an outstanding school and local are musts - I was silly really and with secondary I should have moved to the town of her grammar and we would have been fine.

We are just debating this very topic at the moment. We have 4 schools in town. We have dismissed two based on:

1. One is not within walkable distance
2. One was 3 form entry and we just didn't get a very good feel from it.

We have a choice of a RC Primary, one form entry who are aiming for Ofsted outstanding at their next inspection (DD is Catholic0. They get the best results with their test results. Feels like a very lovely and nurturing school.

The second school is a 2 form entry, a 5 minute walk away. Not as good results, but has far more enrichment and extra curricular opportunities on offer and is consistently good. It is also the most subscribed school in town.

We are completely torn - we are weighing academic up against an all rounder. I keep swaying between the two. The RC has a very strong social media presence, whereas the other school doesn't so it's good to see what they get up to. What puts me off the RC club is the afterschool clubs are restricted to football and rugby, whereas the two form entry has things such as karate, music, dance and drama clubs. Not necessarily for reception, but thinking ahead to later on and the enrichment opportunities available.

It's a tough decision and I am going to sit and read all of the responses.

Whether the children who showed us round were well mannered (held doors open, chatted to us, looked us in the eye etc).

Clear evidence that they responded to the needs of individual children.

Nice, positive wall displays.

Good head teacher.

Proper uniforms (not polo shirts etc).

General air of happiness and busy-ness.

Views of parents who already had DC there.

Above all: gut feeling.

These were the criteria when I was choosing prep schools for my children.

@IAAP

I knew eldest was extremely bright - I put her down for the highest achieving school in the county which was 6 miles away. I was told by other parents that we would never ever get it.

I went and saw the head and explained the circumstances - very bright DD, she had a medical disability and in those days she brought in extra funding but however wouldn’t need it. She knew of me and my role at county level. It was a church school and I was also a deacon. I had an interview so did DD and we got a place.

Younger DS also applied to same school and got a sibling place. By then the headteacher had changed and within 6 months it was transparent DS was extremely unhappy and a lot of parents the same - pulling their kids out. DS was then given a placement in another specialist school for a year. Lockdown happened and we relocated - but if we hadn’t relocated he will have been pulled out - he refers to it as 0/10 extremely unhappy and no friends.
We relocated 3 outstanding primary and 1 in special
Measures I know the area and spoke to parent there were 2 that were outstanding and recommended. One was full and the other happened to have a place in his year. We took it and it calls it 10/10 and he has thrived - local teams, local friends etc

For me an outstanding school and local are musts - I was silly really and with secondary I should have moved to the town of her grammar and we would have been fine.

This would never happen for a state school in England these days. They are not allowed to interview and have to follow the published admissions criteria.

@Cloud1220
As a governor I’m surprised you take an ofsted report with a pinch of salt. An old one I would, it not a recent one. As they are evidence based I think they do tell parents where the school sits when compared against other schools. Schools that go in and out of RI or worse are best avoided. Some schools struggle to maintain improvement and I would avoid them if I could. Therefore the ofsted inspection history can be very informative. They can also highlight poor progress by children, lack of an inspirational curriculum and poor behaviour. I wouldn’t take any of this with a pinch of salt.

My DDs went to our local state infant school. We were in catchment and it was first class. The junior school it fed into wasn’t so good. DD1 got lucky with 3 out of 4 teachers. DD2 didn’t and there was a disastrous head appointment. So generally I would go to the local catchment state school.

When we looked at a private prep for DD2, we looked at destinations. There are so many different preps, you need to decide what you want at 11 or 13. There are huge differences. I would never choose a small school of any type. Larger schools have more going on.

Best inspection report in the area, best facilities, no composite classes and it was attached to the nursery the dc attended.
It wasn't our catchment school so we had to do a placing request but it was the best decision and the kids did so well there.

Our catchment schools (we had 2) were run down, huge composite classes (P1-4) and had poor reports with a culture of bullying in one.

Just no!

In addition to the ofsted report it’s good to check the reading and writing results of the school
www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/

Breakfast and after school club for reception up.
Outdoor playing fields.
Walkable.
Decent parking for the rare day I might need to drive.
Welcoming head. I rejected one school where no teacher even said hello on the tour and it was left to year 6 kids. Friends who later chose that school moaned that communication was awful between parents, teachers and head.

Closest = the only one we had any chance of getting a place at. Bulge years are no fun and we got one of the last non sibling place at 670m from the school.

@TizerorFizz yes I appreciate that comment may sound more throw away than I intended. I am looking at reports and as you say looking at historic progress (or lack of) can be quite telling. I suppose what I meant is that it’s not the main deciding factor for us and particularly at the moment since they are so out of date. All nearby are good or outstanding so we’re thankfully not having to consider anywhere with major concerns.

It was the nearest.

Walking distance didn’t even feature on our list. We both work full time in jobs that means we have to use wrap around at both ends of the school day. Wrap around care was our most important thing to consider.

Because it's 200yds up the road! 😆