Would you move for the secondary schools?

[Mamameela]

Family with v. young DC, live in an area in London with lots of antisocial behaviour. Looking to move before DC start primary school. Would you move to an area which ticks all the boxes (green space, transport, lovely family friendly amenities, primary schools) but which only has mediocre / poor secondary schools?

Or would you search out an area with good secondaries so that if you settle into the area you don't feel forced to move by Year 5?

It seems strange looking for good secondaries when DC is still in nappies but I guess this is what people do? It's called adulting?

I absolutely made my decision to move on the basis of being in catchment for outstanding primary and secondary when my DD was 1. Don't want to move again, perhaps ever, and don't want to have to move in 7 years or so. Difference between us being I moved to another bit of London.

Thanks @flowerpootle Sorry if I wasn't clear in my OP. We are definitely staying in London! Just need to find a new area.

Can I ask which area you found with good secondaries?

Ooh! Sorry. Just assumed it was the classic leaving London move. We are in east - between Victoria Park and London Fields. Lots of outstanding primaries and secondaries.

I’d ensure the food secondaries also. We moved somewhere that was supposed to be 2-3years so I made sure we had a good elementary and middle school (US system). However 8yrs later and one is about to go to high school. We can’t afford to move. The HS is focused on sports rather than academics. No choice now though

Also looking at your list - Hackney is very green, lots of amenities (bmx track, farm, horse riding, parks, lots of leisure centres with indoor and out door pools). I think it's amazing.

We have moved into an area with excellent primaries but rubbish secondaries, so we are planning to move again in 6 years. But 6 years is a long time away and who knows, the secondaries here could be outstanding by then! What I'm trying to say is there is no point moving with an eye on secondaries now if your children haven't even started primary as a lot can happen in the next few years.

Totally. We didn’t move from a terrible primary as we were near a great secondary.
Everywhere we would have moved to would have been the other way round and secondary trumps everything for me.

Not in London, but am doing similar. Competition for places is tight so often need to be in a feeder primary, so catchment for that was a consideration.
Although in the end we are in walking distance from both primary and secondary, but that was a happy accident
Baby isn't even out yet, so it did feel strange to be considering secondaries this early (plus who knows where life will take us in 11 years!!)

Where in London are you now OP?

It’s difficult to future-proof because, you know, future . We did similar to you - moved when expecting DD to an area with good primary and secondary schools. While I don’t regret it I’m now very aware that the good secondary might go up and down in the near-decade before DD goes there (it’s slightly fallen out of fashion), and the “oh of course we’ll get in” primary (on our street!) we might actually be out of catchment for. And we’ve got two baby siblings turning up this year all being well, instead of the one we ordered - so we may need to move anyway, for more space. So by all means plan, but I’d allow for some flexibility.

That's kinda how I'm feeling @FakeColinCaterpillar however @Jasmine11 also has a point about how secondaries can improve...

@EssentialHummus Canning Town

I would move with secondaries in mind over primaries, although keep in mind a lot can change in a school by the time your DCs are ready for secondary.

We moved some years before we had kids and picked an area with lots of good lower and middle schools, not giving a thought to upper for our at-the-time non-existent DCs. They are now 5 and 7yo and our eyes are beginning to look towards secondary (since we moved the schools have all switched over to 2 tier). Our options are an awful school, a slightly less awful school, hoping we get the grammar (will mean a long bus journey each day for DCs, but they should have a good chance of getting a place according to their teachers), or moving. We have roots here now and really don't want to move, so will have to plough everything into the 11+ and keep our fingers crossed!

We are just about to move for secondary school. We stayed put for primary, which was not the best but okay, but he's sort of in the middle academically and I'm worried he'll get lost in a large and poor performing secondary. I think I've been able to support (coerce) him to do stuff at home to help him with things he's struggled with, but I imagine he'll need to be more independent at secondary so we'll be relying on the school more.
I do think my DS will be fine, but if I'm honest I wish we had thought more about this when he was 3. He doesn't want to move. Even though he's friendly and pretty confident and people have told me that they make all new friends in Y7 anyway, I'm concerned about how he'll find starting a secondary school where he might not know anyone.

A lot depends on your budget.

Lovely green parks, cafes, restaurant, cinema in catchment for the Charter schools in N and E Dulwich. (Expensive housing)

Excellent choice of Outstanding and Good primaries and Outstanding secondary Dunraven (and they have just taken over nearby Elmgreen) in Streatham Hill (cheaper housing than E Dulwich) , close to Brockwell Park and Streatham Common.

I’ve seen secondary schools turned around by outstanding principals, and I personally went to an excellent school during the term of a weak principal who ran it down.

A lot can change in 8 years, so for the moment I’d focus on excellent primary schools and keep an ear to the ground re secondary.

We wouldn’t even look at houses unless it had well regarded schools in catchment at all levels. That is the main criteria in selecting a house for us.

We have long entertained the fantasy of moving about half a mile from our current home, but it would inevitably put our child into a different secondary, which while also top rated would have a horrible commute. So moving is out of the question.

They do change so the house move does need to work for you all in other ways too

Kids don't want to move schools and have to make new friends at 10 years old. I would ensure the move you make now is OK for the long term.

We did this quite a few years ago, but hindsight is a wonderful thing and if I was in the same position, I wouldn’t have done so. And like other posters have said, the secondary school, which was the best in the area, at that time, isn’t doing so well these days.

We purchased our current house when our eldest was two in an area with excellent schools all the way through (it was my top priority). He is now off to an excellent local secondary in September with his friends he has been all the way through primary with. We compromised on size/style of house and the ability to walk to the beach to achieve this. We have local (ish) friends who have found it more difficult due to the school choice in their areas. Personally for me they childten spend so much time in school it was important to aim for somewhere they could be happy

We moved with DC aged 3 absolutely for secondary schools.

I disagree that schools change in what is, in real terms, quite a short period. I'm guessing that your DC are maybe 2 or 3, you'll be applying when your DC are 10 so it's really only 7 or 8 years. In my experience the biggest factor in the schools performance is the demographic of pupils and thats unlikely to materially change in that period. Whilst a school's OFSTED rating might change, the real worth / performance won't vary too much.

I agree with a pp that you (and your DC) won't want the upheaval of moving areas for secondary, the stress of timing that when it's something not completely within your control (how long it takes you to sell, market where you'd move to etc).

We bought a house for a good
Primary but had to move for secondary. We were ready for a bigger house anyway but if you can get a great house, I’d choose secondary over primary. Though yes, they change!

Just moved for secondary (DC year 5). Local primaries were good, secondary shocking. Don’t regret it but you need to be careful talking to other parents. Some will judge you for moving, think you’re a snob etc.

Have just done it. Moved from an area in Lewisham borough where primary schools are decent but high schools awful, to an area in Bromley where both primary and high schools are generally decent. Children are 4 & 2

We moved to an area based on it having an outstanding secondary even before my kids were born. You wont want to move plan it now if you can afford to. My daughters now in primary and Im really settled with quite a few nice mum friends . Id hate to move in 5 years.