Hamilton Scotland... To go or not #Curious

[fearlessoptimist29]

Hello mums, It's really an honour to be here I heard a lot about this site about the lovely people and all 😃☺☺

Mums I have been offered a job in Hairmyres. It's really exciting and all but unfortunately I can't find any houses near it! I mean there are but not that much informative.

While I was hunting for houses, Suddenly Hamilton caught my eye! Its a 15 minute drive to Hairmyres. The house rents are quite cheap which is really excellent

I need to know a few things

1. How is Hamilton as a place? The society and all?

2. What's the difference between Grammar and State Schools in Scotland? Lets say if my daughter is in Year 8 does she have to do an entrance exam to enter for Grammar or no need?

3. What documents do I require for the school? Can u please suggest me the best schools? What are the steps I have to do?

4. Please provide me any more information! Thank u so much for taking out your time to answer these questions! Please don't hesitate to let me know more I don't bite 😉😘😍❤

-Ria

I live near Hamilton, it has some nice homes but very limited town centre. I do prefer it to East Kilbride though. The grammar school I know little about, sorry. Have a look at Bothwell, Strathaven and Eaglesham. Nice towns near East Kilbride.

I like Hamilton but as with any town of that size there are good and bad areas. I also like Bothwell and Uddingston. Loads of people who work in Hairnyres commute from the south Glasgow suburbs like Giffnock and Newton Mearns.

There is no grammar system. Hamilton grammar is a private school.

Hamilton Grammar is a state secondary, no entrance exams or fees required.

My friend works at Hamilton Grammar. They have a lovely additional needs unit and seems to get good reviews from my other friends with children there.

I am confused Hamilton Grammar is a state school right? No exams required? @Groove can u please ask your friend if I can take admission in mid semester? Plus please give me more reviews on the schools and place

I actually tried to search homes in East Renfrewshire but most of them are expensive sadly 😢😢

It's Hamilton College that is the private school.

Think Hamilton Grammar is a state school but there's no grammar system as such, it's just the schools name.

Bothwell really nice. It would be my choice (but can be more expensive)

Yes its a state school we don't have grammar schools, its just called that as over said.

My friend says to call the school office about admissions.

Holycross is another state school in Hamilton worth looking at. It's a Catholic school but you don't need to be Catholic to attend. I live in a neighbouring town and some of my neighbours kids attend Holycross. It gets good results - even better than the Grammar according to my not very religious neighbour who sends her kids there.

The other place to consider icing if you're going to be working at Hairmyres is Strathavan, which by all accounts is a great wee town/village - only have an hour's drive from Glasgow not at rush hour . Strathaven Academy has a good reputation.

It really depends on what sort of locality you want to live in: rural, village, town, city.

Unlike England, schools have fixed catchments, so they just need to see proof of address. Although as you'll be coming as an in-year entry, it will also depend on whether there is space.

If your daughter is in Year 8, she'll either be in S1 or S2, depending on her birthday. If she goes into S2, she'll be at the young end of the year (and vice versa). There is more flexibility in Scotland for you to choose which is best.

National 5s (the equivalent of GCSEs) are sat in S4.

Hello mums thank u for ur prompt replies today I went to view a property in EK. I must say it was absolutely beautiful and the people are really kind. I was wondering one thing what if a school is at the border of catchment areas? Actually I use schoolguide to know wether a school is in catchment or not. Will I get the admission?

Contact the school or local authority for confirmation as to whether or not a particular house is in catchment.

Many schools in the West of Scotland (St Ninians in East Renfrewshire excepted ) are able to accept placing requests anyway, so they're probably your best first port of call.

Just to reiterate: there are no grammar schools in Scotland - the whole country has been comprehensive since the 70s.

The names of schools are historical: so some schools are called Academy, some High School, some Grammar, some Secondary. No difference between them.

Ditto with the private schools: some are called Grammar School, some Academy, some High School.

Hello mums again! 😂😘😍❤

Well for schools I have come to this conclusion

a) Williamwood High School
b) Calderglen High School
C) Duncanrig High School

Which one is better? Okay leaving Williamwood since there won't be any places now. I might plan for Williamwood in the next six months probably... So overall what do you all think?

-Ria

You might get more answers about the specific schools (or other possibilities) in the Scotsnet topic.