Best Yorkshire school for quiet, bright but shy girl

[lavendersun]

We are reconsidering our options after my mother's recent health scare, instead of moving further away from them (Upper Wharfedale) we are looking into moving North.

Could be anywhere as work is very flexible and from home.

DD is fairly bright, excels at music, art, English, loves Science, struggles with maths, hates most sports (self confidence thing), excels at swimming - bit early to pigeon hole her I know. Most importantly she is too kind, fairly shy/quiet, doesn't make friends easily, her self confidence away from home is easily squashed.

If we do move it could be fairly soon, within the next six months (in yr 5). We want a school that she can join now and stay at.

I don't know the Yorkshire schools, apart from Leeds Grammar I have no recent experience. Don't think that would be for DD at all but then that is because I only know rugby loving very lively boys there so I could be wrong.

Any ideas for us to think about would be great. We would want to live rurally but not in an isolated place, reasonable transport links close by. Nothing suburban or in town. Doesn't have to be in the Dales, or too close to M&D. We will be entirely led by school choice, wanting to be within 8 miles max.

I clicked because it's Yorkshire, not private schools, and yes, that's another topic.

I'm just saying, and particularly based on the Yorkshire independents that I know - they exclude based on money, obviously, and that is very apparent. You could look somewhere like Pocklington, which is more wealthy farmers' kids and not over-posh, but it doesn't sound as though it's the environment you're after.

Of some schools mentioned - Bootham is relatively down-to-earth, but I don't know what level of exclusiveness you're wanting to avoid. St Peter's much more flashy, and The Mount is probably poshest but smallest. Nobody is allowed to say anything about QE ...

You're right - can't move for flash cars and people off on expensive foreign joints at our local state schools! I guess the locals don't care enough about their children to make those 'sacrifices'

Of course schools that require fees exclude on money but there are down to earth options and I am not going to apologise for both of us working bloody hard from uni onwards and having enough money to pay school fees seek.

Not asking you to! Anyway, those are the things I have to say about some of the schools mentioned - and Giggleswick is a lovely place but yes, expensive. (I guess everyone there worked even harder ).

I doubt it Seek, I doubt it. Oddly, your opinion means little here, I wonder why.

Skipton Girls is held in very high regard. I don't think she will fall down the cracks. Save yourself the fees, close to Settle. Skipton is a lovely place. What more can you ask for.

Be very careful with the old Northern traditional boys boarding schools. All are slipping down league tables. All have had to take in girls to keep numbers up.

I went to Skipton Free, if we get that close location wise we will look at it.

But I don't want to go 'home' necessarily, just within 90 mins of it, although that could change depending on what we find.

We were planning on moving to France before my mother became ill so quite a mind switch!

Gosh, how rude. Well, ok - you work harder than the people who can't afford fees, but the people who have more money than you didn't work harder than you.... ooookay .

I hope you find somewhere nice to live and a school you're happy with.

Well, I clicked too because I thought I could be useful, but didn't realise you only wanted private.

Anyhow: if she's bright enough, Clitheroe Grammar is not a million miles the wrong side of the border; or Keswick High School in Cumbria gives you lots of good stuff plus a state boarding option, and just at present, enough water to satisfy the keenest swimmer.

Not rude Seek and those words are all yours, not mine. Just a typically mnet bitchy response from you earlier up thread. Of course I would expect Giggleswick to be more exclusive just because of the cost, wouldn't anyone expect that? Yes, we could just manage it but that is not what I am after at all, yet you had to pipe in with you 'helpful' response about exclusivity.

We had always planned for a private secondary, she can be painfully shy and often hides the things she knows because she is embarrassed to show them.

Knowing her as we do, we think she will be better off in a small secondary that offers the things she excels at as EC, those things give her confidence which can only be a very good thing.

In what world is it not rude to say 'your opinion means little here' to a random stranger?

Or indeed to call their (remarkably restrained) response 'typically mnet bitchy'?

Are you having a bad day ?

What, the words your opinion means little here, I wonder why are mine? I'm confused.

Anyway - your thread title doesn't say you're only looking for private, and I noticed it because I live in Yorkshire, I've spoken at and sent children to schools in Yorkshire, and attended events at schools in Yorkshire; I know people who work in and send their children to schools in Yorkshire, both private and state. Your comment about not wanting anywhere that feels exclusive felt to me like something that might be a bit difficult to achieve, if you're only looking at private schools. I'm sorry if you interpreted that as 'bitchy' (or was that 'my word' again? ).

Would you look at West Yorkshire?
My DD is also very bright but quite quiet and shy, she is going to an xcellent small private school that just happens to be very close to where we live.
It's comparatively cheap as well (£10k ish per year)
PM Me if you what more details but where we live is nice but not as genteel as Harrogate/skip ton etc

Not at all bad day - I just can't see the point of joining a thread to be obtuse, sorry if you were meaning to be helpful seek but it certainly didn't come across that way and I don't entertain for the sake of it.

DD's first school wasn't exclusive at all, ordinary people who were worried about all the local schools being in special measures.

Thank you Hopping, doesn't have to be genteel, does it cater for both Primary and Secondary?

I joined the thread because I live in Yorkshire and have two daughters who have been to school there .... perhaps you should have made your thread title a little more.... exclusive?

Thanks for the apology

But if what we wanted existed in a state school, small, nurturing, music speciality etc., even joining in Yr 5 - then we would consider it. Fact is it doesn't, or I didn't expect to but having left for uni and never lived there since maybe it could.

Hence the thread.

The problem with the state sector would be finding a through school.

Because otherwise I would have recommended moving to Harrogate, and living near enough to St Aidan's or Harrogate Grammar (depending on whether you're religious), with Harrogate Ladies as a private option.

It's 3-16 lavender
I went to another Private school that might fit the bill as well but again West rather than North Yorks - that one was in quite a posh bit though.
Both that school and the one DD is going to have a mix of wealthy parents but also ones who make financial sacrifices to send their DC to Private school.
My best friends owned a chippy!!! A lot of people we know who use Private schools own their own businesses ( which is what we do)

If you don't need to live too close to family, what about Barnard Castle? Or further afield I have friends who rate Scarborough College.