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?

It was a mildly hippy (no uniforms or dress code, all teachers on first-name terms with children, lots of Forest School despite being in a city centre, very much embedded in local concerns), religion-free environment with a wide social, national and ethnic mix — DS’s class has recently-arrived asylum seekers and our architect’s son and my gynaecologist’s daughter, plus lots of children, like ours, transferred in from abroad — and lots of parents in the creative industries, which is great for exposing the children to art, theatre etc.

Same as others - location was deciding factor. It’s the village school that we can walk to and then friends live very locally.
Yes some people decide it’s not ‘good enough’ and shop around so they have to drive their children to other schools, but barring special needs, I think the starting point should always be the local one for quality of life. Yes

However having said that, the things that would put me off and drive me elsewhere would be -

• too small
• no wraparound care
• bad ofsted (possibly, not necessarily discount a school because of this. Would find out more about the context)

We didn't choose it- was allocated it after not getting into the village school on our road...very disappointed at first but it's worked out well for us and it's better (not Oftsed 'better' as it's a 'good') for us in lots of ways. Only snag is the driving/parking twice a day which is a mare but we have to just get on with it. Second on the list for the other school but really wouldn't know what to do now if we were offered a place and our child is only in Reception.

Some posters have written "sounds silly but..." around sendings to the nearest school, nothing silly about that at all, it's how it should be. And if the system ensured that everywhere people like me wouldn't be unnecessarily clogging up the roads to drive 4 miles because other people across town decided they wanted our local schools instead. It's utter nonsense.

Our area doesn't do catchment, they make out it's to stop inequality around housing prices etc, but it's still the rich ones who have more transport/childcare options to use a wider variety of schools, I don't see how it's improved equality at all.

Only one class per year
Good results

Might sound preemptive, but check Secondary admissions arrangements as well. Our area has Catchment areas and feeder schools... so choosing a further away Primary school could decrease chances of getting local Secondary school.

@name3958

Some posters have written "sounds silly but..." around sendings to the nearest school, nothing silly about that at all, it's how it should be. And if the system ensured that everywhere people like me wouldn't be unnecessarily clogging up the roads to drive 4 miles because other people across town decided they wanted our local schools instead. It's utter nonsense.

Our area doesn't do catchment, they make out it's to stop inequality around housing prices etc, but it's still the rich ones who have more transport/childcare options to use a wider variety of schools, I don't see how it's improved equality at all.

Absolutely agree. What I like about DS’s school as well as what I said already is that the reason it does have such a wide mix of pupils is that it’s in a mixed city-centre area and everyone is local, and walks or cycles. It would be a difficult school to drive to your children to, as it’s on a busy city street with no parking and only minimal pull-in opportunities.

I live in a tiny Henley with no school. We do have a catchment infant and junior school though. Transport is provided as it’s an unsafe walking route. When my DD1 was in YR she was one of 2 children where we live who actually went to the local schools. A few went to a tiny village infant school and drive to it. Some went to private schools. In all the years my DC were at the catchment schools, hardly any DC from here went with them. If i included secondary age children, I counted that they were at 14 schools! So much for stating local!

Combined nursery/ infant/juniors on one site(not all that common round here). Outside space that wasn't tarmac eg: a field, a swimming pool onsite wrap, around care in the nursery. Not part of an academy chain.This was a state village primary, but not the closest.

@TizerorFizz

I live in a tiny Henley with no school. We do have a catchment infant and junior school though. Transport is provided as it’s an unsafe walking route. When my DD1 was in YR she was one of 2 children where we live who actually went to the local schools. A few went to a tiny village infant school and drive to it. Some went to private schools. In all the years my DC were at the catchment schools, hardly any DC from here went with them. If i included secondary age children, I counted that they were at 14 schools! So much for stating local!

Well, that’s an obvious result of the freakish, competitive anxiety about ‘good schools’ manifested by virtually every post on this thread, which is exactly why everyone doesn’t send their children to the nearest school.

We live abroad and it's either the local catchment school or an independent one. We have chosen the independent one because it's bilingual, it offers a better fit in terms of curriculum should we move back to the UK. It also feels more closely aligned with out values. Apart from that, I work there, so that makes it easier in terms of logistics.

We weren’t allowed to visit any of them because Covid, so had to go on Ofsted reports and the schools’ websites.

Our first choice, which we didn’t get into, is a foreign language immersion school with a big focus on scandi-style outdoor learning in EY. Our backup, which we did get, is our second closest non-religious school.

Closest school “needs improvement” and can’t fill its spaces, so we wrote that one off. There is an outstanding RC primary close by but it is very oversubscribed and we aren’t even Christians let alone Catholic, so we’d have had no chance.

Current school is outstanding with great academic achievement despite a very mixed intake and high levels of FSM/pupil premium. Spanish lessons from Y1. The afterschool clubs are interesting (dance, science club, gymnastics), rather than just unstructured childcare.

I’d like it if they did Forest School (DS did a lot of outdoor learning at nursery and loved it). I’d like it if they did more music and art, but I guess if they did, they would spend less time on maths and literacy.

We’re pretty happy overall. DS is about average academically, but shy and very gentle/well-behaved. We were worried about him getting lost in a big three-form primary, but they have been great with him so far.

@Verfremdungseffekt

I didn’t mean Henley! I meant hamlet - but the situation still applied!

The local infants school had 2 entry forms and now has 3. It was, and still is, an exceptionally good school. The junior has upped its game since our day. None of the parents who sought other schools had DC who needed a small school, or any other type of school but they sought other village schools that were perceived to be full of people like them. They even used 6 independent prep schools! When you then added in state grammars, state non grammar and another set of independents it’s no wonder the children didn’t know each other! It could have been very different but we are a collection of individuals who have houses behind high hedges (as my DM says).

The first primary my DS went to was the 'catchment' school, although in the next village and the DC were bussed in, very small school - three classes total! We then relocated and for two terms DS went to a very good RC school (we are not RC but the reputation was very good), we them moved again and he went to the closest to our home ... fortunately all schools were generally very good and the moves didn't seem to do any harm. He's now 2O and working & living away from home for his 'sandwich' year at Uni ...no problem making friends and joining new clubs, sports teams etc.

I chose my son's school based on the fact that it was a nice, small, church school. It moved to a different area whilst he was there, and expanded considerably. It was an infants to start with and he was in the first year of taking the 11+ after it included juniors. It was also under-subscribed.

My DD's school I didn't choose at all. I wanted her to go to the school, where she attended nursery and I also put down my son's primary, but she didn't get any of our six choices.

She was allocated a place at our nearest school, one that I didn't want her to go to, and which went into special measures a few years after she joined.

Thing is that you'll never know if your child will like or get on at a school, until they've started!
We had a choice of 4 primary schools in our village/town, all of which are good. Our deciding factor were:

1. Wraparound care - we both work and need the before and after school club
2. Non-religious
3. Distance - didn't fancy having to go to the other end of the town past 3 other schools (although that was really not a big issue because our town is small)

That narrowed it pretty much down to 1 that ticked all these boxes. We didn't even bother visiting it 😬 and got a place. Fortunately, both DC really like it there!

Well, that’s an obvious result of the freakish, competitive anxiety about ‘good schools’ manifested by virtually every post on this thread, which is exactly why everyone doesn’t send their children to the nearest school.

Who would knowingly send their child to a shit school just because it's the closest? That sounds more "freakish" to me

Obviously you want to send your child to a school you think they'll be happy at - that's not necessarily the most academic school, but it also may well not be the nearest one either.

because DH & his brothers went there
because it's an outstation school
because PILs live even closer to it than we did so we knew they could help with school run

in summary: because it was there and we could

The catchment school. We're rural and the council organise a bus/ taxi to pick the kids up and take them to school. Having driven up and down for for six years doing the nursery run I'm keen for them to get on the school bus!

Walkable, very highly regarded in the community, great ofsted/results, I loved the headteacher on the tour and felt like her ethos on education was most closely aligned to my own, very academic and strict but also prioritised having fun and building confidence.

I would say (son in year 1) I do like the school but the main benefit has been it being close and walkable. My friends' children all go to other local schools and the children's experiences seem roughly the same and the schooler chose has definitely got its weaknesses like any other!

@Changechangychange

Well, that’s an obvious result of the freakish, competitive anxiety about ‘good schools’ manifested by virtually every post on this thread, which is exactly why everyone doesn’t send their children to the nearest school.

Who would knowingly send their child to a shit school just because it's the closest? That sounds more "freakish" to me

Obviously you want to send your child to a school you think they'll be happy at - that's not necessarily the most academic school, but it also may well not be the nearest one either.

When everyone sends their child to the nearest school, schools are much of a muchness.

Obviously you want to send your child to a school you think they'll be happy at - that's not necessarily the most academic school, but it also may well not be the nearest one either.

At the potential cost of pushing out the children who are actually local to that school. But no so long as the parents with the means and time to get their kids to the school they want can, screw everyone else. I have to drive my kids 4 miles (getting stuck at every school along the way) because of attitudes like that; it's crap for the environment, my work life balance and my kid's independence.

Nearest non faith big school. Wanted walking distance & community school. Liked it when we looked round although it's changed a lot since.

My daughter has been attending our local school pretty much since birth, first to their weekly playgroup, then stay and play sessions and finally nursery. By the time we were applying, there was no question of which school we wanted. It’s also the closest school which means we can walk, has a great reputation and has lots of outdoor equipment which is a high priority for us.