Moving to London and looking for feed back for Primary Schools in Maida Vale area

[SabsDom]

Hello - we are moving to London in August, we are behind on school applications (because we just found a flat).
There aren't many schools with spots left. I received a list from the eadmissions office, I am trying to do some research but the more I dig the more I confused I get. Lots of moms saying not to trust Ofsted or Snobe ratings.
Any feedback?
Here is the list of the schools i was give with either spots left or short waiting list.

Ark King Soloman Academy
St. Joseph’s Catholic Primary School
Edward Wilson Primary School
St. Edward’s Catholic Primary School
St. Mary Magdalene CE Primary School
Our Lady of Dolours Catholic Primary School
St. Mary Bryanston Square CE School
Barrow Hill Junior School

St Mary's Bryanston Square is very close to Marylebone Road so has pretty poor air quality unfortunately (though they are working to combat it). School location would be a major factor for me if other things are equal - how close the school is to your flat and how close it is to a busy road.

I don’t know any of those schools, but would suggest that as you now know where you will be living you look at the journey to help you to eliminate any impossible choices. Remember that London traffic is always slower than you think, that walking is often quicker than driving over short distances. Factor in cost as well if you will be taking your child on public transport, they will be free ( depending on age) but you won’t be. Also think about getting to after school activities, parents evenings, play dates. Would your child be able to do the journey when they are in year 6? Are any of the schools closely linked to Secondary schools you might be interested in.

I would take the location of your flat as the starting point, then put the schools in distance order then try to get info on each in turn. At least that way travel issues will be reduced. You probably won't end up with a brilliant fit but those schools sound reasonable possibilities.

Thank you for the replies.

All the schools but one are no more than 0.7 miles from the flat.
King Solomon is the closest one
I pulled some stats online. Not sure how accurate they are.
Academy sponsor led
Reading 1.5 Above Average
Writing 3.0 Above Average
Maths 2.5 Above Average
Pupils meeting the expected standard 71%
Pupils achieving at a higher standard 6%
Ofsted - Outstanding (last inspection was Dec 2023)

Those are good scores suggesting the children make good progress at the school and it has a recent Ofsted which is a bonus, as the school won't have changed much since then. If this is the closest school it's probably a good option. Do you have any option to visit? Or maybe ask on local Facebook groups.

I have not heard of an option to visit but I will reach out.
Thanks for the Facebook suggestion, I will check it out.

We got accepted at King Solomon but am not certain as well if we’re going to send our child there. It has an outstanding rating from ofsted. What do you mean that ofsteds rating cannot be trusted?

Nice - i still don't know if she will get accepted there yet. Still waiting for the admission office.
I read when doing some research that you can shouldn't only trust Ofsted but i personally don't know anything about that. I was using Ofsted as a base while looking for schools.
Keep me posted if you decide to send your kids there. What is your hesitation? Have you heard anything?

I’m really not familiar as well, friends told us to look at the ratings, hence it was our basis when we applied. I’m trying to find answers as well here in the forum if its a good school. Otherwise we’ll just carry on in her current nursery and find other schools for year 1. I just wonder if its easy to get placements for year 1?

It can be very difficult to find a school place in Y1 @Ccb90, so I would take the reception place. Is she summer born? Otherwise, she will need to start reception at some point during the 2024/2025 academic year.

Schools that have had recent Ofsted outstanding ratings are probably going to be good schools, though they may have an ethos that you don't think would fit your child (strong discipline, lots of homework etc).

I think when people say don’t only rely on Ofsted, they can mean that some schools that receive lower ratings (good, requires improvement or even in some cases inadequate) can still be quite good schools. Also schools that haven't had an Ofsted visit in many years (usually 'outstanding' schools) may have changed drastically since (Ark King Solomon Academy's inspection was recent so much more reliable).

The suggestion is that you go and visit the school and judge for yourself whether it would be a good fit for your child. Also helpful to ask current parents and the facebook suggestion is probably good for this. Looking at the pupil progress stats is also informative, which you have done.

I would be cautious of King Solomon, it’s got a reputation locally for a very bad bullying. St. Joseph’s, St. Edward’s and St. Mary’s are smaller and seem more caring schools.

But do they have places available in the relevant year group?

From what I know, all schools in that area are undersubscribed so getting a place should be possible.

Anyone has a feedback on Ark Atwood Academy?
We are on the waiting list with a good chance to get in. Just looking for personal experiences with this school.
I heard it is supposed to be very good.
Thanks

@Jackal313 good to know and thank you for explaining this further. Do you know if it's still possible to ask a different school at this point? I think we might be too late to change, so we thought our only option is to continue the nursery until year 1. Yes she’s summer born and should start reception this year.

Ark Atwood is brilliant. Both my DCs went through it - the teaching is extraordinarily good, the community is really special (both the DCs and I made better friends than we'd ever have imagined) - my DCs have finished now but I'd do it all again in a heartbeat. If you can get a place, take it.

Oh, and if you join the Maida Vale Parents2Parents Facebook group you'll be able to get more up to date opinions on the schools from parents who have got kids there now - and you can probably arrange meet ups before school starts (if you want to.)

@Puffykins thank you so much. So glad to hear that. I will join the Facebook page for sure.