Dear all
Newbie here. Grateful for all help.
Some background:
Son is 16 years old and currently at Eton taking GCSEs this summer.
He has been a boarder since prep school so very used to boarding, as we used to live in Asia. He was boarding before at a great prep in Somerset, not Millfield, though we did look at the prep school back then.
We had Eton on our list for senior school and were pleasantly surprised when he was offered a place. He was also considering Radley and Teddies but we chose Eton. Radley was first choice as he was scouted by the head of rugby and they were desperate for him. Had good vibes re Radley and Teddies was recommended in case he needed a slightly easier option. Also nice school.
He is very, very sporty and talented and a good allrounder in everything else, drama, etc and academically good but this translates to average at Eton, we have found.
Two things have transpired since he joined Eton; the sporting level is not as good as we thought and his peers are also not very sporty, so he finds it frustrating and prefers to keep in touch with his "more interesting friends" from prep school.
We should have seen this coming but we did not realise most parents live locally in London or Home Counties and aren't at all independent, as most have never boarded.
Teaching is predictably good but not as good as we expected. Some quite weak teachers.
Societies is a very strong aspect of Eton.
Also, dealing with Eton isn't pleasant as they are quite arrogant towards parents and communication is terrible. Not much works either it seems in sleepy Eton. House master is very nice though, which helps.
Anyway, enough on Eton! We would not choose it again if we had another son. Not for us at any level but we can see why parents send theirs sons there.
We are neutral on the Co-ed or not issue, hence considering Millfield.
Millfield:
So, we have decided that DS should focus much more on sport and go for a career in it. We know it's competitive but it's his dream, as long as he keeps up his academics. He is a very talented rugby player (and pretty much any other sport but that's his favourite).
He would attend Millfield for Sixth Form and study 3 A levels and we think he would do well in them (if the teaching is good enough. Always hard to know if academic results form schools are driven by the calibre of the pupils or the teachers!)
We know Millfield, as mentioned before, and hubby played them at sports years ago. We know all the public image and the excellent facilities, etc but I wanted to ask if anyone can offer any first hand experience and clear pros and cons.
We know it's not as academic as Eton but the main reason is the sport. We are sure he will be one of the best rugby players there so not worried about him being ignored (as we have heard Millfield can ignore less sporty kids), and we assume most are very boarding type kids due to the location.
But what is it really like? How does Millfield handle the location as we live abroad? Are there regular buses end of term to airports etc? Is the school itself, not too arrogant with parents?
We realise Millfield has always been quite "upmarket" but schools change their feel (Marlborough good example), so really keen to get honest views.
Thank you all for taking the time to read and reply!
Sonia.