Harris Academy St John's Wood - any thoughts?

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New-ish school so not much info on it... any parents with children in this school - what are your thoughts?

Isn't it just a rebranded Quintin Kynaston?

oh I did not realise.. how was it / is it? Does anyone know?

It used to struggle with gangs and other behaviour related issues, but not sure now as the Harris chain is quite strict. I think UCL down the road, is the first choice for many in the Swiss Cottage, St Johns Wood area.

thank you! Crossing it off of my list..

We're too far from UCL, it had 0.76m distance cut off, we're 1.02 :(

William Ellis and Marylebone Boy's is ok for us, but was exploring what else was there.

Sorry but the behaviour of the kids is still really bad. I'm sure it's a minority but compared to the other local secondaries it is really noticeable.

It's only year 1 though so may improve if the new school is stricter

Hey Ladies, I've noticed all the messages about Harris Academy are from last year. Are there any new thoughts on its pupils, performance and behaviour?

This is all second-hand info so don't take it as gospel please, but the Harris reputation locally doesn't seem to have changed much - I do know a family with a child there who are happy with it, but the heyday of QK is far behind it. Such a shame.

UCL has really not helped in terms of taking a lot of the more middle class higher-achieving kids.

If you do like UCL, the catchment widened considerably last year between offer day and September, I know of DC well over a mile away who were offers places in the summer.

Harris does have a very particular ethos which typically doesn't sit well with your average N London MC set. Also I think suffers from the SJW area where so many go private/church, and the Kilburn lot seem to favour St Augustine's or UCL.

You should look too at Haverstock - new Ofsted report and newish Head with lots of ideas and determination, I hear.

Its bloody awful.

Really? Why? Thanks

Hi, I'm wondering if a few years on there is any more feedback on Harris? I've noticed people mention Marylebone Boys and UCL but I know these two to be awful so I am surprised they were rated over Harris. Thanks

Absolutely MBS and UCL are better than Harris. We used to see the Harris kids every day (pre-lockdown) and the school has some serious behavioural issues. If anything it seems like Harris has gotten worse.

Nina2014 - why do you say UCL and MBS are awful?

In Locrating Harris is ranked one of the best for both the GCES and A Level results and this in 2019 how is that possible everyone here thinks it's so terrible? Can you give examples of behaviour issues? Because on paper seems excellent

If anything, Harris has significantly fewer behavioral issues than either Marylebone or UCL. In fact, they are rather strict. I attended several open mornings and evenings in recent years and I saw excellent facilities, smart and confident children, and a very good academic attitude throughout. It may have been less of a good school previously, but its results are rather impressive nowadays.

I agree, Harris is currently ranked one of the best. We opted for it above all the other schools mentioned previously and I am happy with our decision. I think any posts pre-2021 should just be ignored entirely. It’s a huge state school, no doubt about that but it is a very good school.

If you have a child who is arty, different, SEN, musical, sensitive etc Harris is not a good fit - Harris are an exam machine that turns out children who do reasonably well at exams. They move kids about from one Harris to another so they are educated off-site and don't count in their stats for GCSE results and they are very very good at playing the game to get a good Ofsted and the appearance of good results.

Children who can't be moulded into their image do not fare so well. They are staffed with young newly qualified teachers who are worked to the bone and who burn out or leave - they have very poor staff retention.

I work with them professionally and also DD went through one as we live in a very Harris heavy area.

They talk a good game, have shiny open days and people are suckered in - I have friends with kids DS age, a group of 8 - 4 went to two different Harris' and the other 4 went to 3 other schools - all the kids who went to the Harrises have left - one moved away and the others all transferred before GCSEs started. The 4 who went to other local schools are all still there.

do not send your children there. i practically implore you, i was a student at harris academy st johns wood and its 'prestige reputation' is nothing but merely an illusion. i attended from the beginning of year 7 up until year 11 and the school truly has no support system whatsoever. rules are extremely strict and include 'walking on the left hand side, big 6 equipment to school (pen, pencil, ruler, calculator, reading book, planner and now water bottle!!!) if you forget one for any reason you will be penalized with a detention. HASJW love to put up a front to make themselves look like a good and credible educational institution when it is really anything but. the rules are incredibly strict to the point where school feels like genuine prison, all they care about is OFSTED and exam results which i can credit the school does pretty well educationally speaking. many teachers pick fights with students and every student/friend i have known that attended this school shares the same views as me and has had extremely low mental health, do not go, dont even bother applying unless you want your child to be genuinely miserable. so much better schools in london than haris

Bumping this up- any recent feedback for this school? Considering it for DD

My child has been there for 3+ years. It is still a good school. I disagree with many of the above negative comments.

Don't get me wrong, it is far from perfect and it is a very large inner city school, which comes with its own issues.

However, they have lots of opportunities and a great reward system. Yes it is strict and rightly so. I say you need to visit and trust your instincts, it isn't for everyone but in Westminster the options for boys are very limited and I still favour this school over all the other mixed or boys schools in Westminster. However, if you have a girl, I think Marylebone Girls is a better choice.

The school values attendance, punctuality, it is strict but caring when needed. Lots of clubs. The results are good and they offer more vocational GCSEs for the less academic children.

The school is calm, no students are hanging around corridors.

All schools will have issues, I have seen a lot of schools but when I revisit my choice, I would still stick with it. I am not saying there aren't better schools in London, absolutely there are but in Westminster, Harris remains my favourite after Marylebone Girls.

Absolutely worth a visit both for the morning and evening open days as they offer different perspectives (morning sees classes in action and evening shows what it can offer).

Thanks so much @nina2014 really appreciate your input - Marylebone sadly has no space and we have been on the waitlist for two years now - a girls school would be ideal - but we are also not catholics and coke way down in their admissions criteria. Any tips on how these schools can be encouraged to consider your child? My daughter is very apprehensive about attending a co-ed school after being in a girls school from the start. I am seriously considering home schooling - but she is meant to be going into year 10 and it feels like such a gamble.