Where to move for schools in NE London, Essex, Hertfordshire?

[Wheretogo44]

We currently live in the London borough of Redbridge. We have two DDs aged 4 and 8.

We are thinking of moving out into Essex, Hertfordshire or to another part of North/East London.

Our biggest priority by far is secondary schools. Both DH and I went to very average comprehensive schools and we've always dreamed of sending our DC somewhere better. Unfortunately we can't afford private.

Our budget is about 800k, ideally for a 4 bed. DH needs to commute to Bank but my job can be done pretty much anywhere.

Where would you go for the best secondary options? I like the idea of a grammar but we are wary of pinning our hopes on it. I attend church (C of E) if that opens up any options. We would be happy with either girls schools or mixed.

It looks like Redbridge schools are very good?

www.compare-school-performance.service.gov.uk/schools-by-type?step=default&table=schools&region=317&la-name=redbridge&geographic=la&for=secondary

You can use that website to browse schools in different areas.

parmiters in Watford is a very good grammar school (although competitive to get into), as is watford grammar girls. you would find a 4 bed house for your budget in watford itself. you could also consider Letchworth Garden City, where there is the highfield secondary,again it is a good school. the Lordship area of Letchworth is a desirable area and you would get a house there for well under budget

Harpenden, Brentwood or Welwyn Garden City would all be good choices.

Bishops Stortford, but be mindful of the crazy catchment/feeder school system.

As an aside, I went to Highfield @sleepismysuperpower1 and am staggered that it is now considered a good school- is it really? I am old, so much must have changed

@jojosm2 yes, everyone always says that!

It's true the results in Redbridge are above national average but to me the non-selective comps - at least near us - seem pretty uninspiring. I went to a school which was ok (not in special measures or anything) but plenty of low level disruption, very easy to coast along etc. I'd love for my kids to go to a school which is genuinely excellent, where learning is really valued and encouraged.

@Wheretogo44 Sounds like you should try for a grammar or save up for a top indie. I worked in the state sector for ages and visited a number of indies and there will be kids sitting at the back twiddling their thumbs wherever you go.

Brentwood, Upminster, Hornchurch, Chelmsford

Harpenden or Brentwood

But Redbridge has grammar catchment, so why move if that’s your preferred option?

Also, why not cut your house budget by £100k and put your daughters through private school if that’s what you want? Bancrofts, Forest, Chigwell all great schools. You could get a lovely house in Redbridge/Waltham Forest for £600k for example, and be able to save plenty for independent fees/cut your deposit and save some to pay for fees.

FYI Walthamstow Girls’ is an Outstanding school, so you could move just a few miles and live near there. Walthamstow is pretty grotty though, so perhaps not something you wish to do.

I’m from these parts if you want any further info.

Also Beal and Seven Kings High are both Outstanding, and at different ends of the borough... where in Redbridge do you live? Woodbridge and Wanstead High always had bad reps when I was young. Roding Valley in Chigwell is a very good school, and state I believe.

Roding Valley catchment:

www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-62671029.html

Apologies, it’s more towards Loughton than Chigwell as mentioned in my above post. I speak to a number of the students there every year through work and they are excellent, high achieving, personable and motivated.

First choice - Bishops Stortford
Second choice - Chelmsford (unless DC can get into KEGS or CCHS, in which case first choice)

I live in this area (Redbridge.) Suggest Bishop's Stortford.

As per previous poster - if you can afford a 800k house you should be able to afford to sacrifice the house for your kids education. It's a matter of priorities

Also came on to say Bishops Stortford.

Our closest schools are Wanstead and Woodbridge. I don't know much about Woodbridge but I do know Wanstead is meant to be on the up.

It still isn't what I imagined for my DC though. I have friends who LOVED school, enjoyed a very supportive environment and learning culture. Although in fairness most of them did go to private single sex schools...

Am I just being very idealistic about schools then? Maybe what I'm imagining doesn't actually exist...?

We've done the maths and we don't think we actually could afford the privates, even if we reduced our mortgage - the fees would come to something like £50k a year for both girls. Maybe I need to look at it again though.

I'm more happy to try for the grammars than DH is. He doesn't like the idea of putting that much pressure on the DDs.

Will def look at all the places suggested, thank you!

If it helps, schools near to us which I've considered are the Ursuline Academy in Ilford and Davenant in Loughton. We'd have a shot at both based on our current location although it's not a certainty as we're relatively far from both.

They’re both very strong schools. It would make no sense to move if you can get those. Or move nearer one of them to ‘guarantee’ a place.

Grammar prep needn’t be pressured. Just a bit of extra work and the attitude that the grammar is fab but so is the back up option.

Indies can be more affordable. For example the GDST group of girls’ day schools. I’m in S London and the fees are about 17.5k a year and you’d get a sibling discount. So a 600k house could probably do it.

Davenant is definitely on the up, they’re starting some kind of new STEM endeavour there, I think they’ve got a Super Head or some such at the helm these days. It was always a fairly solid choice when I was young, I had a few friends I knew through extra curricular stuff who went, and they were nice kids.

Wouldn’t send my kids anywhere in Ilford regardless of OFSTED reports, it’s quite dangerous there, and drugs, knives, gangs are all commonplace. Not at Ursuline itself, but the area it’s in... I would be terrified if my DD was hanging out in Valentines park after school for example, or anywhere near the station.

From your described catchment I can guess where you live, and I suppose you’re going to need a £800k budget these days if you want a four bed house. Lots of private schools have bursaries and scholarships, so also something to think about.

I would definitely check out Roding Valley anyway, good school (due an OFSTED inspection too by the looks of it, so perhaps keep an eye on that), great kids and a lovely area with central line for your husband’s commute. I think there’s a good school in Epping too, but it’s a bit far out for my knowledge!

You should definitely look into the West Herts consortium [[https://www.swhertsschools.org.uk/]] of schools in Watford. As mentioned above, Parmiter’s and Watford Girls Grammar get the best academic results. They are semi-selective, which means only a proportion of places are allocated by an academic test. Other places are allocated to siblings (so if your older DD got in, your younger DD wouldn’t need to sit the test), or via a music test, and some of the schools also have a sports test. Then some places are available based on distance, although you do have to live pretty close by to get in via that criterion (but wouldn’t have to do the test)

All the data about who gets in under which criterion, including max distance for the distance one, is available on each school’s website.

As they are semi selective, not all children at Parmiter’s and the girls’ grammar are super super bright, so the level of the work does have to cater for a range of abilities. So they are not like a normal grammar. Happy to answer any other Qs about them!

800k should be ok for a 4 bed in Watford or maybe Bushey. Watford Junction to Euston is 16-20mins on the train, probably about an hour’s commute door to door to Bank. Very frequent trains at rush hour.

Sorry, working link!

South West Herts consortium

OK. I can add a top girls’ school to the list. Rosebery School in Epsom. Completely non-selective in a nice, safe area. Wrong side of London, though and 40mins to London Bridge or Waterloo.

What about Woodford County Highschool for Girls? That should be pretty close to you, no? It's very competitive though I think.

I think it's actually in Redbridge..

@catinthefireplace WCHS has amazing results but yes it is incredibly competitive.

I do agree with the PP upthread that grammar school entry prep doesn't have to be pressured but we would want to be happy with our back up options if we were targeting a grammar as competitive as that.

@fi1982 thank you, that is incredibly helpful. I can tell you are a local! I think I agree with you on Ilford unfortunately. To be honest I think this is an issue in common with many of the Redbridge schools, even if the schools themselves are good or better.

@jojosm2 from a little internet research, the Rosebery is EXACTLY the kind of school we had in mind. I don't know if we would rule out a move as big as that (it wouldn't be completely off the cards) but it wouldn't be my first preference.

@wigeon very interesting! The school sounds ideal. I don't know Watford at all but will certainly take a look.