Hillpark Secondary

[MotherOfMonkeys0]

Hi,
Looking for recent experiences - good or bad - of Hillpark Secondary. I know there has been a new Head in recent years and things are improving, and there's also a big push for children to attend their catchment school. Just information gathering just now, we're a couple of years off S1.
Thanks!

I have been asking around about Hillpark. Haven't heard anything negative yet.

I asked on a Facebook group and a parent replied saying they have a ds there and find it to be well run school. Someone has else said it has a good reputation. I spoke to a parent who had two children there.who have left now and she was very positive about it.

I have been to the open evening for p5/6/7 parents twice and it each time I liked it.

My ds has been to a couple of visits (he is p7) and he enjoyed it.

But everyone I know says they don't want their DC to go there and are submitting placing requests for other schools.

I know quite a few kids who're there/been there via the local rugby club, who have done well. It seems to be a decent enough school (not as good as Shawlands though but I'm biased ). As ever, a lot of the success of kids is as much to do with parental support as with the school.

Sorry about typos in my previous post. I think that's the problem I have with Hillpark. Other parents always telling me other schools are better. One of the parents I know has chosen Shawlands Academy. Like prettybird she thinks it's better and made a point of telling me that. Other parents I know want East Ren schools.

It makes me sad I have pressure all around me not to send ds to his catchment school. Especially when I liked the school/teachers and office staff. I found it to be good when visiting but I don't know what it is like to be a pupil there. Is there a reason so many parents don't want to send their dc there or is it because it had a bad reputation many years ago? This is the question I can't get an answer to.

I have submitted a placing request for my dc. So don't know if he will be going to Hillpark.

Just to add - the only reason I think Shawlands is better (and I did caveat it by saying I was biased ) is because ds went there

I wouldn't dream of making a point of telling friends whose kids are at Hillpark effectively that they'd made the wrong decision.

All the kids that were ds' age who were at Hillpark are now at Uni and doing well

Thanks both. I am in a similar situation apple. I know lots of positive stories of kids going there, I have visited and was very impressed.
All the other parents seem to diss it but that doesn't seem to be based on anything concrete. My DD is now hearing lots of negative things at school about it and is worrying about going. I am a strong supporter of the state system and in going to your catchment school. I am trying to be as supportive as I can for her.

Hopefully there will be someone on here with a dc at the school who can tell us what it is like.

If my placing request is not successful my ds will definitely be going there.

I knew what you meant prettybird

Hopefully if ds goes to Hillpark I will like it as much as you like Shawlands Academy 😊

I have 2 friends with kids at hill park, both say it’s a shite hole. One has daughter and is v v worried about crowd and the fact she has been bullied relentlessly for over a year.

The other has a son there who is academically great but under supported due to teachers fire fighting problem children a lot.

confused I think this must be what most parents know. It has been very difficult for me to find out the negative things. But I suppose many schools have the same problems. Perhaps it is particularly bad at Hillpark ☹️

For every bad story I hear, I'd say I hear 3/4 good ones. Which makes we wonder - is it just a normal comprehensive full of teenagers, some who get bullied, some who aren't interested in working? It's hardly the roughest area around. I just wonder how much it lives up to the negative reputation.

I have never heard anyone refer to a school as a "shite hole" before. I must admit it is a bit off putting.

But, I still feel quite positive about the school. Many kids seem to get on well there.

I went to Hillpark and really liked it (and I'm successful now if that makes a difference) It's got a very mixed catchment so some really deprived areas as well as some pretty wealthy ones. There is quite a spread of pupils in terms of their socio-economic backgrounds. There was a 'rough' crowd when I was there but my friends and I just stayed away from them.

I don't really see it being rougher than any other school in Glasgow South.

Late to the party, but so happy to find this post (it could have been written by me!).
Just wondered what decision you came to re. Hillpark?
We still have a few years to go but I am completely 50/50 about whether to send my kids there or try for elsewhere? I do strongly feel that if more of the ‘good’ (hate that term) kids went to Hillpark, then perhaps it wouldn’t have such a bad reputation.

It's a difficult decision. We moved into the catchment for Hillpark but as my ds would not have known any pupils there we decided against him going. He stayed at the primary in the area we used to live in and now goes to the high school there. It would have been good to be at the catchment high school but I just wasn't sure about it.

Are your dc in a primary that feeds into Hillpark? Have you visited it and do you know parents who have children there?

My mum works at Hillpark and I spoke to her recently about this as someone I work with wanted to know more and her response was not a good one.

@Cherrytree1621

My mum works at Hillpark and I spoke to her recently about this as someone I work with wanted to know more and her response was not a good one.

Can you give any more detail? I'm also interested in current views on the school.

We are in the catchment. We are still a year out. I still have only heard baseless negative reports, and plenty of concrete positive reports. Negative reports are things like - 'I wouldn't send my dog there', with no specific reasoning why, 'my daughter got a knife pulled on her' (turns out this was completely unrelated to the school ). Positives - their support during covid has and still is reported to be excellent, lots of opt in study sessions, kids are in if they want to over Easter holidays. Exam grades are improving every year. % of catchment children attending is increasing every year. Their music drama and sports facilities are excellent, they have a big push on supporting lgbt community. Lots of positive examples of well balanced kids coming out with good grades. I have heard that S1 and S2 can be harder to get through if you're a child who wants to work, but once subject choices etc kick in that falls away. Surely that's the same in any Comp? It was in mine. We're still undeterred and scratching our heads at why the mad panic to move to East Renfrewshire or pay for private.

It is good that you are not put off by the negative comments. I didn't realise that the majority of catchment pupils did not go to Hillpark. But now I think about it I think the majority of kids where I live go to East Ren schools and we are Hillpark catchment.

My ds is S1 and has no problems getting on with his work in the classroom. So I am not sure that is something you should expect.

I worried so much about High School. All the parents I know did. But all our kids settled in really quickly. They are all at different high schools and all of them getting on really well. Some of them are at Glasgow schools and some at East Ren schools. Don't think there is much of a difference with how they are getting on at this stage. Not heard of anyone finding it difficult to get on with their work in the classroom.

It's a big school and in big schools, most kids find their niche. It's a very mixed catchment, taking in some lovely areas and some less lovely ones, and there are positives and negatives to that. The previous HT was pretty weak, but I think things are better there now. I know a couple of teachers who work there and they're hard working and dedicated.

Thanks. I don't think it is a particularly big school, less than 1000. Smaller than Shawlands and half the enrollment of some of the East Ren high schools. But I agree about finding their niche within mixed catchment schools, attending schools out of area when I was younger just wasn't a thing. Some teachers I know who don't work there, rate it's reputation from a teaching standpoint highly.

Any further updates? Did anyone send their child to Hillpark? We attended their open evening back in October and were genuinely impressed (I say this as a high school teacher). Our child will be attending but it still seems to be the elephant in the room amongst all the P7 parents! No one wants to say where they’re going!

We had a really bad experience due to bullying, which unfortunately appears to be rife, especially with girls - if they don't fit a certain mould.
We've moved to another local comp where DD is thriving.
Teaching staff at Hillpark were great, Pastoral care were willing to listen and empathetic but ultimately ineffective. Lunchtime and afterschool clubs were present on paper but in reality often cancelled, poorly attended or for specific year groups only so chances to make new friends outside of your class were very limited.
I now know quite a lot of girls, and some boys, who have had similar experiences, and moved schools.

I do know some kids who have been fine at Hillpark, especially if they're in to sport.

There were very high levels of disruption in class as well which often led to no work being achieved by any, and/or the whole class being punished. Think DD had a particularly bad class. Seemed to get an awful lot of 'free periods' spent on their phones in the gym hall too.

Sorry to hear that OP, sounds horrendous. I'm glad your daughter has settled in her new school.

I had posted on here under a different name, Appledeapp.

Ds ended up going to an East Ren school and everything has been great. I dont know anyone who goes to Hillpark because everyone same age as my ds got placing request accepted.