Waldegrave Girls or LEH?

[Badgoushk]

My dilemma is... Should we sell our house and move into the catchment area of Waldegrave girls school (very good state school) so our two daughters can have a good, free education. Or should we stay put and pay for a private education at somewhere like LEH, presuming they get in. Obviously Tiffins is the ideal scenario but we would need to move well in advance of admissions deadline (maybe even 2 years before) so would have to presume that the 11+ isn't an option.

What would you do?

The cost of a private education for both girls is about the same as the total cost of selling and refurbishing to our taste.

All thoughts welcome.

I should add, I am talking about a genuine move to the Waldegrave area, not some dodgy rental just to get in!

If your children are that young, there is a very strong possibility your Requires Improvement school might have achieved the improvement it requires by the time they make it to secondary stage.

DS's school became RI when he was in Y9. Huge amount of work, new head, annual inspections, new governing body, now Good with Outstanding Features in three and a half years. Didn't affect his schooling - has 11 x 7 - 9 level GCSEs and holding offers from two very highly respected Russell Group unis plus they have continued to get Oxbridge places every year. You may be panicking both too early and totally unnecessarily and there have been a number of cushy Outstanding schools that hadn't had an inspection for 10 years that have found themselves RI under the new Ofsted regime.

It really bugs me when people write off their local secondary when their kids are barely even out of Reception (or sometimes barely out of nappies).

@MelBasys as the thread is 4 years old you'd be better off sending a direct message to the OP, or at least tagging them. Though I suspect their DDs still haven't reached secondary age.

Some things have changed in the last 4 years since those original replies were posted. Waldegrave has recently got a new Head. The previous Head, who was much respected, wrote to parents at length about how Austerity funding was impacting the school's offer. Class sizes were increased, and experienced teachers who left were replaced by much younger, cheaper staff (its now a Teaching School, which means some staff are learning on the job). They are still getting great GCSE and now A Level results, but the experience in years 7-9 is more mixed. Some parents of girls lower down the school, say they're not getting quite the same experience as their older sisters. Some very academic girls complain of being a bit bored in some subjects. There is no setting in year 7. It's still considered a very good school though, and the austerity problems have hit all state schools to some extent.

I don't know anything about LEH or Tiffin, so can't comment on them.

@repebdi.
Thank you very much for all the information. I had no idea about all the new arrangement and changes in Waldegrave. Really good point. I have to rethink it. Thanks

In terms of your question on Waldegrave A and B, you should take a look at the Richmond council website admissions section. I think 85% of admissions are from Area A (which is closer to the school than Area B). Area B is the other side of a line that is shown on the map and includes a few streets on the Twickenham side of Richmond Bridge and Richmond itself. Easier to understand if you look at the map itself.

There's a zoomable map online here which shows the size of the areas after waiting list movement in previous years www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=1yAHk1HEQtqt4qyqTnpPUkYOa3qA&ll=51.44414630279813%2C-0.30960049999998773&z=12

MelBasys - time has moved on you might have all your answers or made all your decisions but to answer your area A and B question:
Catchment A is essentially based on simple proximity to Waldegrave. 85% of places are awarded to girls in catchment area A. Because the school is popular this catchment extends roughly 1200metres from the school (you need to check I'm not sure on this distance but few girls need to get public transport in catchment area A 🤣 )
Catchment area B is historic I believe (not totally sure of the history of it however) 15% of places awarded to catchment area B and it essentially covers the town of Richmond (at least in practical terms) It starts just the twickenham side of Richmond Bridge and extends through Richmond
My daughters were at Waldegrave from year 7 and got places in catchment area B.
Waldegrave is a great school in my view (although my experience as limited as anyones in that assessment 🙃) I think there can be some challenges socially to begin with for girls in catchment area B because the majority of their classmates live near the school and one another - while they on the other hand will be in a significant minority of girls in their class who get the bus to school - they are also unlikely to have gone to the most common feeder schools to Waldegrave - rather they will come from Vineyard; St Stephens; Marshgate; Darrell; Holy Trinity primary schools in Richmond and again be in smaller numbers compared to the feeder schools from catchment area A (not necessarily a bad thing - depends on the child)
Impossible to advise anyone of the decision you describe because its so based on your circumstances, priorities and the children.... We were living in the catchment for Waldegrave and hated the whole 11+ nonsense in west London so ended up going to Waldegrave. I don't think you can compare the state and primate school experience really - there are significant pros and cons to both and I think a key assessment comes down to the importance of extra-curricullar opportunities - drama, music, art, sport, visits and trips - in my experience these are very limited in a state school - in a state school however
the pure academics I think will be ok certainly if you daughters are bright and 'school shaped'

Good luck

LEH 100%
....if you can get in!

I’d say LEH too. Although it’s expensive it’s definitely worth it. The facilities are amazing but the important part is the ethos of the school. The girls all want to learn and do their best and are encouraged all the way by the school.
Waldegrave has a great reputation but I’ve heard a few cases of bullying. I also think the hours are quite odd - they only have a very short lunch break and seem to finish at 2pm some days.

@mynameis2 - 100% agree!

What did u decide then? Plz do share