Grittleton House School, Wiltshire

[SarahJ190]

Has anybody got any experience or knowledge of this school. Comments gratefully received. Thanks!
Sarah

Thanks for the tips! I did look at the ofsted. Might go to look at Wycliffe as well and move that way a bit! It's not totally out of the question. Thanks all!

I think Wycliffe might be ok we met the head of special needs she seemed really switched on although she might of left by now, the head is very likeable ?too likeable (God I'm a suspicious old cow). A boy we met there with dyslexia was also doing better there than either he or the school predicted.
The area is I suspect cheaper than where you currently live and its very close to Stonehouse station (not exactly the London underground but its a train service) you can do varying length of a day in the senior school as well. If you moving for a school its better to move closer to Wycliffe than Grittleton.

Ofstead don't inspect private schools beyond nursery age.

The ofsted was for the whole school in march 2012 and they were a 'Good'. It seemed ok to me. Wycliffe was 'outstanding' that was in 2010. Although I think perhaps the ISI is the newer provision for independents? I'm not totally sold on the criteria that Ofsted judge by anymore and I know its changed recently to be even more interested in 'PC' stuff!

I didn't know Ofstead inspected independent schools. We learn a new thing every day.
ISI report are not great I didn't recognise my DS's prep from the ISI report.

We had our wedding reception at Grittleton House. It was lovely.

Completely irrelevant to your dilemma, I just wanted to share!

The building is beautiful, the grounds are beautiful, it's a lovely place. I have doubts about it as a school.

If you might move nearby then what about downside, Kings Bruton, Monkton which are supposed to have excellent dyslexia support. If your DS is sporty then you don't really want a school too small for a team. Sorry see you've discounted Monkton.

Just wondered are you in catchment for Beechen Cliff as I know several families with children there who have additional needs and they are very pleased with it. They discounted Kingswood et al in favour of it.

waves at MrsCB

Idly curious about independent schools being inspected by Ofsted.

Apparently it happens if the school is not a member of any of the independent school associations:
here

I'm not sure whether the inspection criteria are the same as for maintained schools - as the Grittleton House inspection starts off by saying that it is simply checking whether the school is suitable to be registered as an independent school, I wonder whether a different set of criteria are applied.

Had a couple of friends' DC who moved from Grittleton to SBL due to financial circumstances changing. The older one couldn't cope with the change and was borderline SEN. She moved back to Grittleton and was much happier but didn't do very well in exams. Possibly not Gritteton's fault. It does seem to cater for less academic DC compared to other private schools locally. I don't know anything about it's dyslexia provision, though.

Or move to the Deer Park cirencester catchment area the SEN support is supposed to be excellent.

EJ, I can certainly imagine a move from Grittleton to a huge Bristol state school could be daunting for anyone used to a small 'family' type school. I think anyone in this area with academic children would chose either the selective Bath or Bristol schools where academic results are pretty much a given if you have the ability. The challenge is to find a good school that can achieve the best possible for those less-able kids, without pushing them to within an inch of their lives but give them confidence to do the best they possibly can. That might mean only a couple of GCSE's for some, but I would expect to get better results in an independent school than a state school. I know of kids that have ended up with all D's in 5+ subjects in our local state school, would they have got C's or B's in an independent school, who knows...

For many they see C's as a poor result of private education, but for some children this may well be a really good result for them and the school.

I found this link when searching for The GHS website. It has been interesting to read people's perceptions of GHS, some accurate and some misleading. Both my sons have been to GHS , one academic and one not so. My youngest son is still there.

GHS has pupils who are in the top 5% of pupils in the UK academically and they are supported by the Gifted and Talented program. It is a small school granted, but staff turnover is low which brings many benefits for the children as the teachers know there strengths and weaknesses . Both my lads found/find it a very nurturing environment. Children develop emotionally and physically at different rates and in a small environment this difference can be magnified, but by and large the tutors and staff are supportive and most things get resolved. The plus side of this is that the groups can be very supportive of each other as they know each other well.

The GCSE options are standard and the children are supported to gain the best they can,with up to 9 GCSE's ( you only need 8 for entry) They also offer Latin for the more able children along with Spanish and French.

It is not a school for every child, but every school State and Independent has its own culture and atmosphere and does not suit everyone.

On the down side, communication about activities are sometimes vague as there is an expectation of assumed knowledge by the children and parents. This is improving though .

The school may not have the facilities of Kingswood or King Edwards, but it is developing and improving.

My eldest son joined the school from a State primary that was listed as one of the best in the region, it was not working for him and we saw his motivation crashing. He went to GHS, they quietly without fuss took him aside and built his confidence and English language skills , he gained a B in English and 9 GCSE's at A and B.

We looked at options for my youngest a son and decided that we want him to get a good grounding in English Maths and Science and a more traditional education, where he can actually enjoy learning, he can specialise or take more vocational subjects post 16.

He is an academic boy and yes probably would gain more GCSE's at King Edwards but we want him to enjoy learning at this stage.

I would suggest you visits on your own and then with your lad and see if it matches his needs and personality.

These have just been released and I think it speaks for itself. It works brilliantly for some children and helps them achieve their best.

SATS and GCSE Results 2013

SATS 2013
73% of Year 6 achieved Level 5 in English
50% of Year 6 achieved Level 5 in Maths
These are well above national averages!
(the average pupil across the UK will achieve a Level 4 in English and/or Maths at the end of Year 6)

GCSEs 2013
86% of Year 11 achieved 5 GCSEs graded A*-C (significantly above national average)
51% of all the Year 11 GCSEs taken this summer were graded A*-B
Our Year 11 top achievers were L P and J W who each achieved 9 and 7 A*/A grades respectively.
A number of Year 10s took their Maths GCSE early and I am very pleased to announce that they were all graded A-C! In addition to this there were five Year 9 pupils who gained a mixture of A-B for their Latin and Roman Civilisation GCSEs ? again, well done to you all.

I am so pleased you posted this, as nobody said anything good and I was worried! But yes I saw the results and was inspired and delighted, as for a non-selective I think they are pretty impressive. The results aren't everything but if I'm paying I want mine to do the best he can, without extreme pressure or feeling inadequate which I think he may at say Kingswood. Mine is quiet, but sporty and I guess the facilities and opportunities for sport at Kingswood are better, but he probably isn't academic enough to feel happy there. Thanks again, you have made me feel a little happier that this is still an option for us.

I have experience of both Kingswood and Grittleton - both have strengths - In my opinion Kingswood would suit very able/sporty/robust kids with a very full on 8-6 day and excellent facilities. Grittleton is the other end of spectrum - intimate, nurturing, maybe more suited to sensitive, anxious or just kids who prefer a more relaxed environment. Lovely house & grounds but under-equipped and with modest facilities lending an informal atmosphere. Our daughter was over-whelmed at Kingswood but loves Grittleton. Don't discount Grittleton if a happy child is your priority!

Not so under equipped these days. Senior school has new IT suite, supporting the most up to date software. Interactive whiteboards will be installed this term. Sports facilities are improving, but in fairness to the school it is hard to compete, as they simply do not have the numbers of children.

It is a small, quirky, non selective school, that offers a traditional education in a supportive environment. Some children simply need a bigger pond to swim in and that is where Kingswood and King Edwards work better.

I am so pleased to see this thread and see some positive reviews, we are strongly considering GHS for our ds. Funnily enough we live in Bath but are considering further afield alongside the schools here.

Beechen cliff is down the road from us and the local parents can't praise it enough, everybody I've met says it is a fantastic school.

They have an open day at GHS on the 12th October . Worth going to see it. It's still on our list as I believe many of the things they are offering are what we are looking for.

We have made a decision and it will be Grittleton for us. Kingswood was totally overwhelming for him. Lovely school but I could just see that my DH would not fit in there. Really high expectations, long days, masses of homework and very academia focussed. Grittleton was softer more inclusive and friendly. It was never about A*'s for us just a well rounded education somewhere he didn't feel that he was bottom of the class for everything but also had a chance to do well. Small class sizes was the main decider as he needs more attention to get the best out of him. I think the comments by Rustbucket are spot on. No school is right for every child, but having weighed everything up I think it is the right one for us.

I'm not sure why this ended up on this post as its regarding Stonar. It was never a contender for us anyway, although I know it was mentioned at one stage. That is not a good account for the school, although I know their reputation on MN is not that great, however, I know someone with a child there who is certainly not wealthy (in fact I don't know how they afford it) and their DD loves it, was bullied in state school and that is why they moved her. It just shows there is good and bad in every school, although the safety issue is a real concern.

Hi Sarah. I've just noticed your post and wanted to add that my sister, brother and I all went to Grittleton and loved it. We still talk about it fondly now. I was taken out of a big state comp to go there and the smaller classes and nurturing environment was so much better for me and I think my GCSEs were better than they would have been because of it. The school gave my confidence. Some children thrive on small classes - being a big fish in a little pond! Yes we had to do a-levels somewhere else but by then we had enough confidence to cope. And not everyone who goes there is unacademic - my sister has a phd in microbiology and is very bright. I think it brings out the best in its pupils whatever that may be. I hope your son is as happy there as we were.