North London secondary schools - faves please!

[ZucchiniPie]

DD is in Year 4 so the secondary school question is beginning to loom. Having rented for years in Whitehall Park N19 and driving myself crazy that we haven't bought, I guess it does mean that if we want to think about moving house for schools, we are in a good position to do that.

So, without any dramatic geographical shift (i.e. I don't think we're contemplating a sudden move south of the river or way out to the west), which schools/areas might we want to consider?

I know bits about all the usual suspects near us (Highgate Wood, APS, Fortismere, Acland Burghley, Parliament Hill) but not necessarily the most current information. But for instance I only even heard of Hornsey School for Girls' existence yesterday and it sounds quite good! So that's an example of my general ignorance on schools.

And no doubt there are others further away from us (Hackney, etc.) which we might seriously consider doing a house move for if we found out we loved them.

No definite preference for mixed or single sex. The main concern I have (other than wanting a good standard of teaching and value placed on music, art, etc., not just strict academic performance) is behaviour. Just somewhere where kids treat each other with decency and respect.

Thanks all!

Hi Zinnia,

There won't be any capacity in Harringay for example, all the schools are heavily oversubscribed. There are only 2 schools which aren't oversubscribed one is a girls school with a large muslim intake from outside of the area and one is a Christian school. There is going to be a very long wait for a lot of parents. 2 families I know who are yards outside of the local school are still waiting for a school up there road, they have both had to go to schools much further out and have not been offered a place as other kids are also moving into the borough. Its going to be a white knuckle ride!

I think there will be fewer secondary school places in Camden next year. Haverstock has reduced its intake.

I’m not sure what effect this will haves on the current y5 and y6 cohort.

Islington put on bulge classes when the current Y5 needed reception places. This helped out Camden residents whose children didn’t get a local Camden reception place; A number of Camden children took these bulge places as they were in schools near the Islington/ Camden border.

I suppose we will have to wait until March to find out how much Camden secondary boundaries have changed.

On the other side of the borough there will also be Camden kids heading to Barnet schools (SMSJ in Hendon is very popular with church primary families, for example, and that's a new school in the last few years) so it could still all even out. The Harris Academy just over the border into Westminster will now be attracting those who might otherwise go for Haverstock or UCL... there are lots of variables. But as you say we will just have to wait those 3.5 weeks (and the rest, not that I'm counting, you understand) to find out!

Just pooping back to share an update on this @Crackingeggs - Haverstock have reduced their intake because they've been undersubscribed for the last 3 years if not longer (this from a governor of the school). As has Regent High, in fact, though I don't think they've cut their intake in the same way.

Haverstock benefited when AB was in trouble but now the pendulum has swung back the other way. So there's clearly still an oversuppply of secondary places in Camden, but inherently those places are in undersubscribed schools. Obvious, but of course that won't help oversubscription in the others.

Thanks @Zinnia.

Yes, that makes sense. There are enough secondary school places but not necessarily at the “right” secondary schools! I do wonder if Haverstock will sort itself out in the same way as AB seems to be trying to.
Have CSG quietly taken on a larger PAN? Just a few more girls per year?

Hmm not as far as I know - it's been 120 for as long as I've been aware. The offer distances did go up after Camden (council) started really cracking down on fraudulent applications a few years ago, but they seem to vary quite widely within each band from year to year. So last year band A was 0.80 miles, band D only 0.35. The year before, it was band C that had the furthest reach. Genuinely cohort-dependent apparently. Not an issue for me as we're well out of catchment but I do love a school entry stat!

Where is that overinfested icon when I need it? [ant]

So...they used to have a PAN of 112, maybe pre-2013?

Yes, I know Camden have made it harder (not impossible if you’ve got cash) to cheat the system and the catchments have expanded because of this. DD doesn’t want to go there even though we are possibly in catchment but I’m still over-invested!

Haha Cracking I didn't know that about the PAN, my head was not in a secondary school place in 2013 but even then I knew we were well out of catchment. And unfortunately DD1 didn't turn out to be a musical genius (unlike our friends' down the road). And am v v happy with the alternative though we will have to sit tight on the waiting list to get it. Next Fri (next Fri!) very much the starting gun not the final whistle for us!

I would avoid Acland Burghley, it's rough.

What makes you say that itssquidstella? Do you have children there?

itssquidstella* that’s interesting, it would be great to get an insiders view of the school.

Have your children been bullied there?

Sorry, I should elaborate. I don't have children there but I know there is a problem with drugs, and there are frequently gangs of boys hanging round outside at 5pm ish.

itssquidstella oh a local with insider knowledge-pins you to mat...

Is there something specific about the drug problem at AB you could tell us. I mean I know all secondary schools in London will have drug problems, but is this something larger? Funnily enough the only open drug use I’ve seen locally is children dressed in school uniform smoking in the local play area. Drug gangs is more scarey but I thought the gossip was that the local gangs targeted the
Private school kids more for that now-less likely to be found out.

I wonder what AB boys are doing outside school at 5pm? Do you know the kids? I’m never sure what child is what out of uniform and out of school time. But I’m not phased by groups of teens hanging out with their friends , maybe I should start!

I live near Burghley, don't have kids at the school but know plenty who do. I too see "gangs of boys" hanging out after school. They're unfailingly polite as you pass them on the pavement and no trouble at all. "Groups of teeneage friends" would be a more fitting description than "gangs of boys".

Burghley's head is incredibly impressive, he's turned the school around in terms if teaching and finances and it's much better equipped to face the next wave of the funding crisis than neighbouring schools. It's on the up (with Ellis and to a lesser extent Parli Hill on the way down) to the extent that it was oversubscribed (180 roll} for the first time in years last year. Think the poster has a weird grudge.

I'm interested to hear you say that about Parli @londonista1 - why do you think it's on its way down? The GCSE results this year were really good and the progress better than St Marylebone.

@londonista

I’m interested about PH too! Their progress 8 report is very good, and their GCSEs seem to be too. I really wanted to like it, but, I really don’t. The new head is not to my taste. The vibe of the school on the two open mornings I’ve been to so far left me a bit, meh. The only other time I felt like this was when I went to see an Outstanding infants school a few years back and walked your mud tour as it was so awful. A year or so later the school crashed to the bottom of the Ofsted rating and had to be saved by its junior school. I trusted my gut then and do now.

However I’m up for others feelings or cold hard facts.

As for a drugs problem at AB-that sounds like its has insider knowledge and I want to know! After all, all schools have drugs, so she must know something to single out AB. Please tell

Just from parents of girls I know who went there @zinnia. Bright kids not being stretched and the usual girls school cliques. Got decent GCSEs but went to CSG for A level.

I'm interested in PH too (tho if cut off shrinks won't be an option). DD is currently Y4 so have done some research/talking to people with older kids and I thought it seemed a good bet....
I just don't know! Any recent thoughts on Highbury Fields??

Thanks @londonista1, have to say that's contrary to what people I know with kids there are saying. Pretty much universal positivity - one girl I know with a string of 8s & 9s at GCSE from Parli has recently gone back for A Levels, having initially switched to a different, much-hyped, school. Which probably goes to show it depends who you talk to about this stuff, as ever.

Cracking, I didn't pick up the same vibes as you from the open days - agree the head's speech last year wasn't amazing but thought she was much better this time round. And the results are improving year-on-year. Also seem very hot on pastoral care which I'd be particularly on the lookout for in a girls' school. But we've all got to trust our instincts on these things!

I’ve only heard good things about PH too Zinnia. Lots of people choosing it over CSG.

I agree the head at PH had really learnt a lot since the previous year. Her talk was better as was the organisation. I just preferred AB to PH which I was surprised about.

If I REALLY trusted my instincts I wouldn’t be here

Ha! Know the feeling! We're too far from AB but I'd have definitely looked at it if we lived closer.

Oh f**k. Just got result. Regent High. A school I absolutely hate. Really wanted UCL Academy or AB, even with druggies! Damnit.

JC4PMPLZ I’m so sorry. Was it a choice or was it something you ended up with?

I know the AB wait list moved a bit last year. Do you know what the cut off distances were?

AB wait list being the key question for us too...