Where to move in London for secondary

[LondonSchoolsHelp]

Feel like this is a classic topic but haven’t found a recent one.

I’ve got a boy and girl, currently year 2 (summer born) and preschool (autumn born). We live in an area with lots of well-off families and private schools (which we can’t afford), a couple of super selective grammars (which are 95% Asian - we are white and I wouldn’t want the kids to be in such a small minority, even if they got in). As a result the local comp isn’t really a comp, results not great and there is a drugs problem.

Planning to move to the catchment of a good state school in the next couple of years. But where?

It’s very early to say but I don’t think DS would get a place in a super selective grammar - he is in the top handful in his class (and is summer born) but it doesn’t sound like this would be enough (or is it too early to tell at 6?). I’d be more confident about DD who is only in preschool but ahead of the game (typical girl). But I think really for safety we are looking for a good comprehensive.

I work near Liverpool Street and DH works in Victoria, though I am in the office 3-4 days a week and DH only 1-2. We’ve always lived East but I don’t think there are any areas near us that fit the bill.

Our house budget is probably £1.3-£1.4m if we were to move now…who knows in a couple of years.

I feel sad as love our current area and we have made so many friends here, but I can’t see things changing at the local school, even with the VAT increase. All the parents at our (excellent state) primary are just saving up for secondary.

So where should we go and when?

You want what you had as a child for your own children and we have that here

Interested to hear what state secondary schools you'd recommend?

Thanks for the responses… Im worried anything I post could be misconstrued as a racist dog whistle so wont reply in depth but what a shame for the native values and culture. I was brought up to celebrate diversity, but 95% is not diversity is it. Hope you get your answers OP, sorry you feel like you have to displace yourself from your home.

It's just facts really being discussed

Ashmole Academy in Southgate is good.

Just to be clear, where we are it’s the double whammy of the grammars creaming off a lot of the less wealthy high attaining kids and the selective private schools creaming off the wealthy high attaining kids.

I don’t feel displaced from my home as such and I’m very privileged to have the option to move and a good budget etc, and the wherewithal to try to navigate the system in a way that will hopefully lead to a good outcome for my children, so I am not complaining at all, just looking for tips on good schools!

Your problem isn’t your area then, your problem is ethnic minorities OP?🤔

Not at all - have you read all my posts?

Kent and Bexley have grammars and Bromley has 2 super selective grammars I. Orpington , which are exceptionally hard to get into. There's no guarantee that your DCs will pass the 11+ even if they definitely should.

DC1 has just graduated with a 1st from Imperial, they also got 4 x Astar at A level, so you'd think they would have easily passed the 11+ but they didn't. In fact they did not even come close to passing and they did go to 11+ classes at primary school.

Anyway, they did very well in the comp and due to being so bright and also motivated, DC1 got a lot of individual attention and extra challenges.

That is very true. The express streams get the best teachers. The other streams are left to their own devices.

Ealing has the 4 Twyford Trust schools, all C of E but only one of them has faith admissions criteria. It's a bit of a bun-fight to get into the others, you have to live very close. Your house budget would work, it's a lovely part of London, very good transport connections (Elizabeth Line).

Other outstanding secondaries in the area too.

Mossbourne? Hackney Downs or Victoria Park are not so far from where you are, easy for commute, great diverse areas and good schools.

@dizzydizzydizzy that’s what I’d worry about - 11+ sounds like such a massive lottery, especially for kids who can just have a bad day. Well done to your DS!

@Hypercatalectic Ive heard good things about Ealing as an area so will investigate.

@MumonabikeE5 we used to live in Hackney (pre kids) so love it there. I’ve heard some bad things recently about the discipline at Mossbourne though - do you have any inside intel on that?

North Kingston / Ham in Richmond for either Greycourt or the Kingston Academy. You could also try for the Tiffin grammar schools if you wanted. £1.3m would get you a three bedroom house easily.

Bromley/Bickley/Chislehurst - move to the golden triangle of catchment area of Bullers Wood Girls and Bullers Wood Boys (excellent non selective comprehensives) but leaves open the option of Bromley and Kent grammars and the Bromley super-salectives. And excellent state junior schools.

Hit post too soon - Bickley/Bromley South straight into Victoria and Chislehurst/Elmstead Woods straight into Cannon Street (Zone 4). Just be careful re getting in the BW catchment (which is shrinking yearly!).

I normally skim posts but felt compelled to write here. OP should not have mentioned race if they were just looking for advice on schools. Stating that 95% of any population is too many whilst many commenting here would probably have no problem sending their child to a 95% white or even 95% french or Swedish school suggests the problem is colour not culture based. Nor would it be seen as odd or intimidating for a child of colour to go to be asked to go to a 95% white school.

Having a strong academic grouding is one of the few ways parents of different cultures can help their children survive and thrive in sometimes hostile workplace cultures that don't have diversity. That is why emphasis is placed on channelling funds into education, not because they love to deprive their children of downtime or their childhoods.

It's absolutely fine to want the best education for your children but conflating that into putting down other cultures isn't ok.

I strongly object to the implication that I am in any way racist because I stated that I wanted my children to go to a diverse school, or that there is anything in any of my posts in which I have put down other cultures.

I mentioned the lack of diversity in the 3 types of schools in my local area, not just the grammar schools, to explain what I am looking for for my kids.

I said very clearly and categorically that 95% of anything would not be diverse enough for me and yes that includes white. All I want is to find a school that reflects the demographic of the locality, and includes in terms of academic achievement and income as well as race.

Sorry, what I meant is that epsom and woking (and maybe guildford, but not sure) are in catchment for some grammar schools (which are technically state schools). So Epsom has loads of children at the sutton/London grammar schools - Nonsuch, Sutton, Wallington, Tiffin, and the boys one with the name I always forget! - but also has regular non-selective state schools such as Glyn and Rosebery which are highly regarded.

I just looked and I am not sure what grammar schools for Woking but I have met families whose children were working towards grammar school places in the area so I'm not sure where though - would they have travelled to London?? That does seem a bit odd (I don't live in Woking or Guildford but spent a few years working in the area so met lots of locals) so maybe I misunderstood - it was af ew years ago and at the time both mine were in primary and the oldest was definitely NOT grammar eligible so I didn't follow the details that closely. I do know that the Woking families were generally pretty happy with the high schools although I have a vague memory of a few of them also being church schools (don't quote me on that).

You’ve said you are east but I recognised Henrietta Barnett and QE Boys as similar demographically. It’s not racist to not want your children to be in a minority of 5% where the overwhelming majority are children from strict backgrounds hothoused to within an inch of their sanity - and I speak as someone who used to tutor 11+ in north London!

@Gasp0deTheW0nderD0g mentioned Haberdashers in se14 - it has had a bit of a dip in recent years but the new (three years in?) head seems excellent and it is a good comprehensive school by all accounts. Genuinely mixed and with a lot of aspiration for its students. Had a recent Ofsted after ages and had favourable comments. Your budget wouldn’t buy you a house in Telegraph Hill proper but would buy something lovely on the other side of the hill in the se4 side. Say if you want more info (or a guided tour!). It’s a brilliant area for families.

I went to a London girl's grammar school in the 90s and it was majority south Asian. They were not really allowed to mix socially with non-Asian girls, certainly not at weekends, no sleepovers and were generally on a much much tighter leash than the rest of us (black,white and mixed race girls) It did cause a divide. This was a while ago and they almost all had parents who were not born in the UK. I think the issue is cultural difference not colour.

All I want is to find a school that reflects the demographic of the locality, and includes in terms of academic achievement and income as well as race.

You only really get this in outer boroughs or outside of London I think.

Having said that faith schools tend to have a real mix in terms of income & nationality.

Richmond Borough has already been mentioned but there are some great schools here out west, and it's a lovely place to live. The Hounslow schools are good too, you don't hear of any 'must avoid'. Plus you have Tiffin grammar in Kingston if you do happen to have a brainiac!