Help me choose a school!

[Kb90]

I live in an area with plenty of good primary school options but limited good secondary. We’re between two schools…

School A - DD is in a primary school pre-school class and has settled well. This school is in a three-tier system. It’s a great infant school but the junior doesn’t have a great rep - average results nationally but not great compared to other schools in the area. It is, however, a feeder for a secondary school that is good.

School B - our local primary (20 min walk) is a lovely school, results well above average, good facilities and head. It isn’t a feeder for a secondary school.

We live in catchment of an excellent grammar school which is consistently in the top percentage of schools in the country. DD is a lovely, bubbly, clever kid and a total sweetheart. Friends and fam tell us she is bright enough to get into the grammar but I worry about this - it’s a lot of pressure and she’s only 4! Who knows how academic she is or how she’ll handle grammar school stress. Also, it’s single sex, so DS won’t be able to attend.

DH thinks we’ll do what we can to get her into grammar so should opt for School B. I wonder whether it’s better to go the ‘safe route’ of school A which is a feeder to high school, but has the added complication of an average junior school. We also have DS to think about…

What do we do?!

i would pick school B. A lot can change between now and secondary but you know that now school B fits what you want more.

B

There is no way to determine if you daughter stand a chance to get to superselective grammar at this age. There are thousands of equally bright kids who do not get it. Entry exams are not testing IQ but everything is down to speed.

Thank you. This is exactly how I feel, which is why I’m leaning toward school A, so at least there’s a route to a good normal state secondary if grammar is not the way forward?!

I’d pick School B, but on the basis that it is the better fit for the child you have now rather than as a stepping stone to a particular senior school. You can’t predict now which senior will suit her best or even what the senior school arrangements locally will be when she’s moving up. Pick the junior school that’s the best fit for your child as she is now.

People do not send kids to good primary just because of prospects of getting into grammar schools. Just check leavers destination page of each school and you will see how many got to grammar.

People even move to be in a good catchment for better pastoral care, better educational focus, quick reaction upon bullying( and trust me the older you DC gets the more you will understand how important this issue is ), better extracurricular activities.
Kids from better state primaries have better results at SATs in y6 and have easier start in secondary school and are better prepared academically.

B.
All things considered this sounds the best option for her, cross the high school bridge nearer the the time.

I would definitely choose School B. A boring junior school turns a child off learning and creates a whole bunch of problems you get with bored kids like bullying etc, the 4-11 education is so mich more important than I thought when we began.

We’re not expecting to pick B and get a magic pass to grammar. The risk in my mind with choosing B is if she doesn’t get into the grammar, the local senior school to us has never been good for as long as we’ve lived here and we would be out of catchment for the secondary that A is a feeder for. Moving in the future is not an option for us.
Thank you for mentioning reaction to bullying and extra-curricular activities. Antibullying policies for both schools are similar but I’ll speak to parents on this.

Thank you. Hadn’t even thought of her getting bored but I know what you mean! In my head, secondary choice is more important than primary so appreciate your view. It’s just the risk that with school B she ends up being limited to our local secondary which has had issues ever since we moved here! But as you say, might be more sensible to just focus on primary for now

Also - would you fabulous helpers not put too much weight on the fact that she’s already at A and settled? Tbh she’s pretty easy going and settled very quickly (no tears etc)

Are you absolutely sure she wouldn’t get into the non-grammar secondary without attending a feeder school? Bear in mind that the past is not necessarily a guide to the future. Current Y7 were a very high (peak) birthrate year and this put pressure on secondary places. By the time your DD (from a low birthrate year) gets to that age there may well be surplus secondary places, unless there are local factors like extensive housebuilding which skew the demographics. NB this assumes that you are in England.

What are the admission criteria for each school? Do you meet the criteria? When you are looking at schools, you are stating a preference. ‘Choosing’ implies that you can have what you want from alternatives. That isn’t the case. It depends on whether or not you meet the admission requirements.

Well, you seem to know your choice before you asked. Why bother asking?

Re: your local secondary. Even in very mediocre secondary are high achievers, mid achievers and low achievers. Some pass GCSE 5+ some pass at 7+ and many pass below 5+.
Even in your local state secondary are high achievers who will get excellent GCSE grades and this will impact their A level and university options.
Your DC is more likely to have better start in secondary school nearby you with school B.
However, you have to think if her educational success is important for you or if you are a relaxed parent who will not motivate and push a child for better results. I am not saying that the latter is a bad choice. Not everybody has to go go uni, not everybody has to become a doctor, lawyer, director or so on

I wouldn't unless she has a prior history of problems with getting used to new places or of she is SEN child for the reason as ASD and so on.

Check what "feeder" means in your area. For some schools, there is genuine priority given to children from particular primaries. With others, it's all done on distance of home address, and their primary feeder schools are only called that because the geography means children tend to go from one to the other, and the schools may sometimes work with each other. Sometimes church secondaries will regard the church primaries as their feeders, and whilst they might preferentially admit children from those primaries, it's not always the case - or they might come below regular church attenders from further afield, for example.
There's no point in going to the feeder school if it doesn't actually make a difference to your chances of getting into the secondary.

It can also be the case that being at the infants school does not guarantee a place at the juniors - although if the juniors is less popular you're probably safe on that one.

Thank you. You’re right that the past doesn’t dictate the future with this kind of thing. I’m just going based on previous years furthest distance admitted, so definitely might still be an option for when the time comes. Really good point

Based on admission criteria we have an excellent shot with both schools. But you’re right, it’s definitely a preference rather than choice! Where we lived previously, schools weren’t competitive but around here it’s mad and the catchments are tiny!

Sweetie my original post stems from the fact that I have a preference for ‘safe’ choice A as DD is settled there and it’s a feeder for a secondary and DH is swaying towards school B as it’s a nicer school with better results. That’s the reason for asking opinions

Thank you. I’ve checked this out based on your post and all 3 schools are under the same trust and are proper feeders

Thanks all for posting. It seems like school B is the best fit and I shouldn’t worry too much about secondary - cross that bridge when we come
to it!