St Edward's or King's Canterbury?

[alexddr]

Hello, I have to choose between these two schools for my DS in the next couple of weeks (offer deadlines coming up) and already know quite a bit about them and have read the related threads here but does anyone know how the children from the two schools compare?

I know King's is more musical and Teddies more sporty. Anyone know which school is more international? (I am Spanish and my DH is French). Which school is more liberal? (concerned Teddies may be too liberal since seeing youtube video of boys dancing around church half naked... might be making a mountain out of a molehill though). What the parents at the two schools are like (similar styles or different? More or less friendly/ smart/ open, etc.)

Thank you very much in advance.

I know both, difficult decision. Teddies has a strong music dept lots of concerts personally I don't think Kings is significantly stronger. Teddies is sporty but there are plenty of non sporty children drama is good as well. Teddies does the IB does Kings? Maybe your not bothered.
Kings has better results but that's because it's more selective in yr 9. Teddies is liberal and Oxford is probably a more exciting city if your a teenager than Canterbury (I know both very well Canterbury probably has the edge over Oxford for me but I'm boring and middle aged). Oxford inevitably has museums galleries and lots more things going on Teddies has the Wall theatre in its grounds. Canterbury is close to the sea a big plus for me.
I know lots parents at both schools my DH would say that Kings parents are Kent surveyors and architects in other words dull and conventional not quite true but looking at our friends with children at both Teddies parents are perhaps slightly more eclectic unconventional and interesting maybe less pretentious. I think there are more international children at Teddies. At Kings the school is spread around Canterbury the kids are often walking around the city to lessons crossing the road etc I know some didn't chose it because of this it wouldn't bother me. St Edwards is on two sides of a road but there's an underpass for the kids.
I've tried to imagine what I'd do in your situation which one I'd choose I know very happy children/parents at both it's very difficult assuming you've met your potential HM at both schools and all things are equal then if you put a gun to my head and made me choose I think I'd choose Teddies but I am hopelessly liberal so that important for me.

Super helpful, thank you for taking the time to write this happygardening!

I think there are quite a few schools that would be ashamed of what their pupils are posting on You Tube. Some of the Marlborough ones are just as shocking. However the HM at Marlborough made the point quite well. I paraphrase but he said: We teach teenagers and they are often foolish and make mistakes - that's what teenagers do.

I agree with Dancing teenagers muck around have fun and sometimes get carried away and make mistakes and then hopefully learn from them. I would always choose a school that understands this particularly a boarding school.
The video which I've not seen doesn't sound particularly shocking or outrageous to me

My experience of Teddies pupils when I lived in Oxford and shared Esporta facilities was not positive. They were rude, arrogant and pretentious. I know that there is a poster here who promotes the school on every private school thread going but my interactions with them were awful.

I lived in Oxford for twelve years and now live in Kent, I definitely didn't find Oxford an exciting city. I found it stifling, either academics, medics or people that lived completely different lives to me. Canterbury is no better or less exciting.

When I lived near Canterbury I used to hear similiar things about the Kings pupils, gossip about them pushing old ladies out of the way at road crossings swaggering around looking pretensious etc, 1 friend who lived in Canterbury was particularly critical of their behaviour and it really put me the school (my children were very little at the time and I knew only a couple of families with children there). Then for three years I saw them nearly everyday going about their day to day lives, unsurprisingly they behaved likes kids going about there everyday lives, occasionally they were a bit selfish at road crossings or if you met a big group of them they expected you to get out of their way but generally they were absolutely fine polite and well behaved. As time went by my DS went to prep and I met quite a few Kings students again the odd arrogant one but most were great. It's the same with St Edwards the odd arrogant one but most I know are great kids.
We have a friend an ex teacher he always says vicious arrogant children are the product of vicious and arrogant parents this has certainly been my experience.

Thank you all, very interesting... I'm thinking Teddies