Govette considering state school

[BeingFluffy]

Gove, wife and Govette were spotted at Holland Park School today (special tour from the Head Teacher himself!). They came into DD's class.

[Dominodonkey]

roisin are you going to pick his university and wife too?

I highly doubt your son is as stupid as you suggest- I think you should guide them a little but I find the idea that you made the decision without consulting him archaic.

[Devora]

I used to live in the same street as the state primary school where Cameron and Gove send their kids. They lived about two miles away.

Needless to say, my kid couldn't get in there... It was known locally as the Eton of state primaries, and you had to be seriously churchy or seriously well connected to get in. Taxpayers living in the same street? No chance.

[Whatasecret]

I reckon Cameron will go private but for a day school such as Godolphin, Notting Hill & Ealing, Latymer Upper or CLGS rather than for a big name boarding school which I would imagine he would go for if he weren't Prime Minister.

[BeingFluffy]

I had a conversation with a government ministers wife, a couple of years ago about local schools (met via voluntary work, I am not a Tory) and her money was on Grey Coats but I don't know how well if at all she knows the family - if at all - and things can change in a couple of years. Generally St Marylebone seems better regarded among that "set" for some reason! I have no idea why, I have always thought GC was a lovely school.

[gottodecidesoon]

BeingFluffy Have you heard proper rumours about Cameron's DD going to Grey Coat? Just interested as have DD there myself. Don't know whether it would be a good thing or bad thing really - suppose there would be security implications. Be interesting to see whether he bottles and sends her to somewhere like Godolphin or somewhere after all. Grey Coat is nearest secondary to Downing Street though.

[Welcometothemadhouse]

Be very interesting to see where he chooses. What about WLFS - his flag ship policy. Will be irked if they get into Holland Park and we don't as we must live a good (ooh) 20 yards closer than him and reckon we don't stand a chance! (we're 1.5 miles - furthest last year on offer day 1.45miles). Burlington Danes is closer for both Gove and us but for me I want a secular choice and the only one available is HP.

[CecilyP]

Though it wouldn't really be a 'Diane Abbott' as the conservatives are not ideologically in favour of comprehensive education.

MsAverage, if your DD's Catholic secondary can take pupils of all faiths or none, then it is just a normal comprehensive. Other very oversubscribed Catholic schools don't just limit there intake to Catholic pupils, but make regular church attendance, amongst other things, a prerequisite for gaining a place. One of the effects of this is to not to have children for more stable middle class families, but also to filter out all but a handful of lower ability children as shown by the 2011 league tables.

[mumzy]

Maybe Gove, Clegg, Cameron will do a "Diane Abbott"

[BeingFluffy]

Mrs Average - because in this part of London there tends to be a higher concentration of stable middle class families with children at church schools than at comprehensive schools. Catholic schools in this area admit observant catholics only because they are oversubscribed and if you are C of E that gives you a massive advantage to pick a C of E school over everyone else, because regular church goers are relatively few in number.

In my DDs comp, most people with a religion are muslim and therefore excluded from these schools. Her school also has a higher proportion of those with lower incomes and arguably social need. Among her friendship group of 12 or so girls, only two including her, have two parents who live together.

[MsAverage]

Can anybody enlighten me what is special with faith schools?

DD, who is a forth generation atheist, attends a catholic secondary. There are also practising Muslims in the calss - they just do not participate in Christian activities like prayers and that's it. I do not feel any special difference between this catholic school and the secular school DD was attending earlier.

Why are people putting faith schools in the same category as grammas and private?

[BeingFluffy]

My money is on St Marylebone, Chelsea Academy or Greycoats. I think they would reject Burlington as too errm "rough". I see a handful of Twyford kids in North Kensington but mainly boys. I actually would have some respect for him if he did choose Holland Park - DD thought him and especially wife looked very impressed with it. They are moving into the new building in November and they put on a good show. Also a direct bus route to their house unlike some of the others, though I imagine security guard or nanny drives the kids.

[scarlettsmummy2]

I would be surprised if he did go private, however it was any other conservative mp I wouldn't expect them to do anything but go private and nor would I care. They can spend their money as they wish.

[YouBrokeMySmoulder]

Yoko, they don't have a property in the constituency after he was done for flipping his house.

[YokoOhNo]

Interesting. Michael Give's constituency is Surrey Heath. With some VERY good state and private options on his doorstep. I always wondered why politicians who were "torn" about their child's education didn't send their child to a school in their constituency, if better. It's an easy commute to Parliament and I imagine Mrs G works from home crafting her articles about thinning hair and sports day, so no difficulty there.

[olivevoir58]

My money is actually on Gove plumping on Twyford. Outstanding co ed COf E comp just down the road in Acton. He's visited (official) several times.

[BeingFluffy]

I think it highly likely that Cameron's daughter will go to Greycoat Hospital (down the road from 10 Downing St) or St Marylebone, both very good C of E schools in Westminster.

[Farewelltoarms]

Steamingnit - I think that will be the case for Cameron but I do think Gove will go state. I'd have a virtual wager on it. I am surprising myself with smallest smidgen of respect.
Ps am dithering between state and private myself for secondary as where we are the local comprehensive is not at all comprehensive given how everyone deserts it. However I'm not a politician wanging on about dumbing down, terrible teachers etc and if I were imposing the most dramatic reforms on education for generations then I'd feel obliged to be a part of them.

[YouBrokeMySmoulder]

Yes rosin, I had a choice of 4 schools and chose the one I liked the most. As did my sister. Isn't that normal? I would have hated to have been sent to a school that I didn't feel was right.

We were lucky to actually have choices then though.

[TheOriginalSteamingNit]

My guess would be he will make a big thing about how they really did look and they'd've loved to be able to use state schools, but sadly as things stand many schools are still struggling with all the stupid things Labour did to them like funding them and shit like that and so they were reluctantly forced to use the private sector, but he appreciates they are very fortunate to be able to do so and hope that this decision won't be as hard for other parents in a few years when his reforms have reaally had time to make a difference.

[roisin]

Really? If my son made his own choices about secondary school his criteria would have been:

• How big were the explosions in science experiments on open eve
  
• What free food was on offer on open eve
  
• What the uniform is like
  ...!
  
  We told him from a very early age that secondary school choice was not his decision; that as his parents who love him we would do the research and work out the best school for him and he didn't have to worry about it.
  
  He was very contented with that idea, we kept him informed and he was happy with the decisions made.

[YouBrokeMySmoulder]

And I think at secondary level that dc should be allowed to choose their own school from the choice on the table. In our family we did.

[YouBrokeMySmoulder]

Fair enough. I wouldn't think any worse of them for it though, I would expect the, to send their dc privately. Labour and Lib dems are a different matter as they have an ideological objection.

And nothing seems to be political suicide for the Tories at the moment. Why aren't people out on the streets about the NHS. It's astounding really.

[BeingFluffy]

I think it would be political suicide for an Education Secretary to send a child to a private school in the current climate. There are many Outstanding primary and secondary schools in his area, so he can't argue they are not good enough. As a church goer he also has the option of the more socially selective church schools. I would be happy if he sent his children to Burlington Danes - my old school, which is I think his closest one and CofE comprehensive, mixed and diverse to boot. I think he and Clegg visited there recently - saw the pictures on the news - popular school for photo shoots.

[Farewelltoarms]

I think Gove in particular does have to go state given what he's doing to this system for everyone else.
Re other Tories true but it's not a great 'all in this together' look. There are just too many photo ops when Cameron's spotted cheering on at the magnificent facilities of eton dorney...

[YouBrokeMySmoulder]

Why would Tories have to go state if they didn't want to though? They don't have any ideological attachment to it. The point about poor old Nicola Murrays dilemma was that she was Labour.