Would we feel included at north London private schools without shared religion?

[Mixedrequired]

Hope this isnt too contentious but looking at a number of north london private schools for year 7, wanting non religious/multicultural. Keen for children to not feel left out, and also to bond with fellow parents. Will we be left out if not the right race/religion?

Looking for thoughts from existing parents on how the current mix impacts them positively or negatively

NLCS : predominantly Asian
Henrietta barnett: Asian / African
Channing : white (Christian/Jewish)
South Hampstead: (Christian/Jewish)
Highgate (Christian/Jewish)

My honest experience of both state and private is that friends tend to stick together with their own cultures.

My experience is also of making friends with girls from other cultures and then friendships fizzling out as we got older due to different cultural extremes becoming more developed.

a Channing parent here. DD ( nether Christian nor Jewish) has been part of a range of friendship groups, most of which are culturally and religiously mixed. It has been lovely to see her be part of Ramadan ( Eid) treat sharing with other girls , Bar Mitzvah dance routine practice and Carol service rehearsals.. the head is great as recognising and including all faiths and important cultural events in her assemblys and letters to parents .. I think their Unitarian beliefs help make all girls ( and parents) feel included ..

Not a current parent but these are local schools and we have friends in all - it never felt like friendships went along the lines of race or religion, it was more about shared interests, I think.

DD was an ethnic minority in one of her schools, it can feel strange sometimes but it's not about friendships or exclusion.

Thank you to those who have posted, we would like to mix with other parents and dont want to be ostracised/want the children to make friends of all backgrounds

Valid concern, and one that people don’t always like discussing openly. I think much more of an issue in the junior years, when parents are arranging playdates and effectively curating their children’s social lives. And indeed, parent friendships can be quite cliquey and often follow cultural/religious lines. In our school some families of the same religion had very established networks and had little interest in socialising outside them. Not hostile, just not particularly inclusive either.

By senior school, though, the girls seem to make their own friendship groups and it’s much less of an issue.

Hi, so this would be senior school for us

None of the schools you have mentioned are overly Jewish and it’s reducing by the year as the fees increase and even the very well off families go for the Jewish state schools.