Choosing the outstanding school over our village school and his friends

[tclj2000]

My son has been accepted into a local school which is outstanding, this school is not our village school where all his pre school friends and cousins will be attending.
He has a group of 4-5 really close friends that he has made in pre school and we happen to be friends with a few of the parents too so it is a nice social circle.
We applied for the other school because our village school had a poor Ofsted reputation (although they are making good improvements), we weren’t impressed with how rundown it appeared at the open evening and they use tablets more than the school we got accepted into. The other school was just better! Forest schools, more extra curricular activities etc.
I can’t help but second guess our choice to separate him from his friends, he is really confident at pre school where he is with his friendship group but when he attends his other nursery setting he is a quieter and has struggled to make friends. I am worried splitting him up from his friends will make him go into himself again, he really liked the school he’s been selected for and doesn’t seem phased that his friends aren’t going there, but I don’t know if he fully grasps the situation.

Id love some opinions on this please!

Nursery friends is of no consequence. But you have many years of the school run ahead and it helps to have a circle of friends around to share the load

I wouldn’t pay the slightest bit of attention to Ofsted. That Outstanding school is only one inspection away from a bad one. I know of several amazing school locally who have been Outstanding for years and are now being deemed ‘failing’ and being forced into a MAT. I am a big fan of sending your child to the local school.

He will make lots of friends at the new school and it is the perfect time to move him away from current friends as they are highly adaptable at that age and he wont't overthink it.
My son went to school with some familiar faces from his local preschool and didn't stay close friends with any of them.

You are absolutely right! It is a fail as it is so central to everything.

@Shinyandnew1It’s not easy to remain outstanding if the inspection was 10 years ago. Some schools like the Reading one did get into problems but very few have gone from outstanding to inadequate. Plus a recent outstanding can be trusted as a reasonable guide to the quality of the school. A change of head can bring about change as can other adverse issues, but outstanding or good from a fairly recent report is still preferable to inadequate! As I said, yoyo schools clearly are problematic as you might start on a high point and in a few years it’s failing again. I can show you some schools that have been run by several mats over the years and they are still poor!

I wouldn't worry about friendships as those are likely to change, but don't underestimate the value of being able to walk to school, especially when they get old enough to do it themselves. I also found DC going to the local school was a good way to meet other local mum's, but if you already have friends in the village that's less of a concern.

@Justploddingonandon My DDs could not walk to school as it was an unsafe walking route. Rural dc often have to get in a car to go to school. I’m not sure they really miss out and many parents won’t let dc walk to school either. They don’t trust them. Certainly in rural areas with no pavements!

I know schools that Ofsted have found to be Exceptional in particular areas, which I wouldn’t send my children anywhere near!

Friendships will change. It’s difficult to imagine when they are so little, so personally I wouldn’t base my decision on that. Additionally, you have no control over what these families might do in the future - move house, go private etc …

However, whilst things like Forest School sound amazing, is it something which runs throughout primary or is it just reception.

How far away is the other school? Can you walk/cycle?

From the sound of your post, you really like the other school better. Ignore Ofsted to a certain degree. The goal posts are always changing. Perhaps look at KS2 SATs data if academics are important to you. This will give you an idea of outcomes for the children.

One of my biggest regrets is moving our DS from a just ok primary to the 'best' in the area. Go with what you think will suit your child and don't underestimate how much his happiness matters.

@Shinyandnew1 I’d trust Ofsted in most circumstances if the report is fairly recent. I’ve no idea what exceptional is but outstanding is a whole lot better than inadequate with staffing issues etc etc. Parents rarely know the full extent of problems in a school either and a dislike of an outstanding school
is somewhat odd. Many dc in such schools can be pretty bright in the first place so they don’t need an intense education I’m thinking you despise. I’d read reports in more detail because very few outstanding schools are like this. Parents of course might be!

At primary I would choose a school that is walkable and where he will have very local friends over one that is a drive away and where not many of the kids will live in your area. Not sure if that is the case for your outstanding school.

At secondary priorities would be different

My friend goes into schools and nurseries to ensure they know how to play the Ofsted game and gets paid handsomely for it.

A year ago I’d have said he’ll be fine, he’ll make new friends. And I’m sure he will.

Just the same, DS still has a strong bond with the children he was in nursery with (none of whom are at his school.)

@Skybluepinky Well some schools don’t have the brightest heads! I have never ever seen that and it’s not a game. Most mats and LAs have improvement partners and they work with heads on school improvement but they are not really consultants. Most heads use them to improve their own professional knowledge and practice. Even I know what Ofsted want! It’s sustained good practice in all areas and if a head needs telling, they are not good enough! No consultant ensures a school keeps staff, doesn’t have loads of disruptive pupils and can actually bring about change. It’s about how a school is run, not about ticking boxes!

schools are such a personal choice, we have a large amount of primaries in our town and surrounding villages therefore a lot of children at nursery made all new friendships on transition to primary. My primary was choosen on walking distance and had decent outside space. I had a good vibe on open day. The head changed quite suddenly after we choose it so definitely things can change. Ofsted only give a view for a select period.

@Lovingbooks Many parents look around a school for YR and make decisions about dc who are 4. That’s never ever going to be the same as Ofsted looking at the curriculum and the education provided for all dc. If ofsted have inspected fairly recently, it’s reliable. Some years ago, no. What parents need to know is what the school delivers for all years and parents are poorly placed to make any evaluation of the curriculum, ethos or anything else about a school from a couple of visits. It’s a subjective opinion at best and about feelings. Outside space, for example, isn’t that important if the education received is dire and the school has yo-yoed in and out of inadequate for years! Most parents would choose a great school with less space in that scenario. My DDs attended schools with plenty of space but I’m not sure they cared by the time they were 7.