State schools worth moving house for

[Cortina]

Would you agree? Any that deserve to be added?

State schools

Dr Challoner's Grammar, Amersham
Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe
Chelmsford County High
Chelmsford
Colchester County High for Girls
Colchester
Saffron Walden County High School
Saffron Walden
Pate's Grammar, Cheltenham
Peter Symond's College, Winchester
The Judd school, Tonbridge
Newstead Wood School for girls, Orpington
Bishop Luffa C of E School, Chichester

Any to add? Agree?

Academically selective state schools are not worth moving for if your dc is unlikely to pass the test.
I think a list of state schools worth moving for should focus on those whose admissions are based primarily on distance criteria.

I'm really sceptical of the idea that any school is going to be good for all children. Even in the best school your child could have a bad run of teachers or be bullied or something. And I equally believe the reverse is true. No school is going to bad for all children.

So I don't think any school is worth moving for. Because no matter how good the school is meant to be - it does not mean your child will definately have a good run of it.

What about jobs? And where you would like to live? (city / rural etc.) Making your entire decision around a school seems to be getting your priorities slightly wrong.

As for the grammers - I guess you can sit the 11+ exam and if you do manage to get in then you can decide whether to move or not.

BTW my neighbour did do that - got into the Dr C grammar school in Amerhsam and then moved there.

I moved house to get my children into Saffron Walden County High. It's not perfect, but it's better than the school my dd went to. The sixth form is good, but not for everybody. They kick pupils out if they don't get Cs at AS. They take pupils from other schools into the sixth form, but it's getting tougher. This year they had 250 applications for 80 places.

There's a rumour that a technology subject will no longer be compulsory at GCSE, which suits my ds.

One word of warning - they do options in Year 8 and start GCSEs in Year 9, so joining the school at the end of Year 9 is difficult.

Royal Grammer school High wycombe isn't state is it?

What are you doing with all these threads Cortina?

Are you actually looking for advice on any of them?

seriously

Your other thread is about private preps and you seem to want to rank schools. Are you seriously trying to find a school for your child or are you just randonly ranking schools

I'm a bit confused too - just seen the other thread.

I found a list that suggests schools that are worth anyone 'moving house for', both state and primary.

I wondered why these and not others?

It isn't a list written by me.

I may be moving DS in the future, keeping an open mind and this struck me as interesting. I hadn't realised that all the state schools listed are selective for example. (Knew that some were). It was more I thought it was interesting than wanted specific advice about each individual school. Why would these schools be ranked as so special? (The list dates from 2007).

All of that said, I have had some concerns and may move him in the future. Sorry for not being clearer.

But how would anyone, other than those who have had an oppertunity to spend time in all of them, be able to compare?

If I have a child at one of the schools on the list then I can give my opinion on that. But how can I possibly compare a selection of schools from across the country?

The only likely responses you will get are
a) I know that school and it is great
b) I don't know that school so can only go by what ofsted etc say.

Schools are ranked as special by a number of different criteria across a huge number of people. So what is important to you may only be marginally important to other.

It is very like saying , I found this list of the top ten hotels. are they in the right order?
How does anyone answer that unless they have been to all of them? And what does that really have to do with where I am going to go on holiday? If I chose according to the list will my holiday at the resort voted No 1 be better than my holiday at the resort voted 3rd.
It is nonsense.

Yes, I can see what you mean. Forgive me, blame the hormones :), not a sensible idea I agree. It seemed interesting someone had come up with a seemingly arbitrary list and it struck me as curious.

hormones disclaimer is accepted

i went to one of the schools on the list, you have to sit an exam to get in, it has nothing to do with where you live.

Weird list.

Some are 11+ grammar schools; Peter Symonds is a sixth form college.

Weird.

I agree with the weirdness of the list.
Bishop Luffa is a C of E comprehensive with a 6th Form - if you want to go there you need to either live on the doorstep, or meet the church attendance criteria (weekly attendance for minimum 2 yrs) and live in certain specific areas.

The only school I know on that list is a very academically selective single sex school,(Judd) - so if your local schools are awful,you have a DS,and you can guarantee that he will pass the 11+,in the top few percent,it might be worth moving for.
I assume its showing in league tables is impressive,which is probably how it got onto the list,but so it should be really,considering how it selects pupils.

My DS attends one of the schools on that list and loves it. Doesn?t mean I?d recommend it to everyone - it has a very particular feel and ethos to it and I would have to know someone quite well before I felt comfortable recommending it.

My niece and nephew both attend/attended another school on that list (different part of the country) and have done well, but it wouldn?t suit my DS at all. Horses for courses and all that

My cousin went to colchester royal grammar,its a really laddy atmosphere there, lots of drinking, soft drugs etc. He went in a nice boy, came out very laddish. Apparently there is awful bullying there too, some of the stories he told me about older boys and their initiation things really shocked me. He didn't even do that well in his exams compared to me and my brother who sat exams in the same years as him.