Has anyone else not made their choices yet? Pulling my hair out

[Porthminster]

Has anyone else not yet put in their choices for secondary school next year?

I've been to all the open evenings, read all of the prospectuses, been back again to open mornings, read the ofsted reports, checked the results.

I'm still no closer really to making a decision.

There are 3 realistic possibilities for ds, all 3 have their positives and negatives, none quite tick all the boxes and I can't quite weigh up how ds would get on.

For example there's no way of truly knowing whether poor results are down to the school, or the individual.

Ofsted is worse than useless to go by. How can you possibly use ofsted reports as a quite, when the schools haven't been inspected for 5 years?

I've seen schools be rated outstanding then become inadequate on the next inspection.

You could try looking at value-added scores, plus the new Progress8 measure - this shows how much progress pupils make on average above or below their expectation at the end of KS2.

All four of the schools in my local town were dire for this - so my dc go to the school in the neighbouring town.

Even this is a broad brush though, and doesn't necessarily reflect how an individual dc will get on. So many other things to take into consideration: school culture, location, extra-curricular, where friends are going etc. You need a spreadsheet!

Thanks, I tried looking at that but I'll be honest I couldn't make head nor tail of it. I'll have to try again.

There's so much to consider, results, location, friends, extra curricular activities, pastoral, discipline and rewards.

It is really hard! You have some time yet. At this time last year we still had to go to the two open evenings we went to. I would have looked at a third but DS1 wasn't keen and was away on his year 6 residential trip.

Does your DS have a view?

There are 3 realistic possibilities.

Ds is keen on two of them. The third I was quite impressed with but ds wasn't keen.

Out of the two I think ds would be happy to go to either and he changes his mind daily.

School A is very, very close, has fantastic facilities, lots of extra curricular activities, but gets crap results. It's on the borders of a very deprived area though so no surprise really. Ds wouldn't know anyone but being so close there's potential for new friendships.

School B is a bit further, a mile or so, many of ds friends will be going there, it's an 'outstanding' school, better results, plenty of extra curricular still in a deprived area. A bit worried about ds getting there and back, though there is a bus that stops outside.

School C is around 1.5 miles, is a good school in a good area, good results, is a very small school, very strict, good pastoral care, a small school but seemed more focused on the academic side of things than sports and extra curricular, ds wasn't keen anyway.

I imagine a lot haven't- round our way we have very good schools with very small catchments and for sum the only way in is via an aptitude tests which are held mid October with results within a week. Get a poor score and it wouldn't be worth wasting a place on your application knowing you you have no chance of a place.

School B is a bit further, a mile or so ... A bit worried about ds getting there and back, though there is a bus that stops outside.

A mile is no big deal at all. My school was a mile away, it used to take me twenty minutes to walk. It's a good way to build some exercise into the day, plus arrive feeling more awake and alert.

Isxhool b sounds like a solid first choice to me. Results and extra curricular activities is a winner to me. A mile is no distance.

MissLingoss that is true, it's not the distance as such that worries me, it's the area he'd have to pass through to get there.

B A C would be my choice based on what you say.

it's not the distance as such that worries me, it's the area he'd have to pass through to get there.

But that will presumably be the area where some of his classmates live. What will you do if on a Saturday he wants to go and call for his new best friend who lives there?

School B. No brainer.

MissLingoss that's a worry with school A or B. A is very close, but no saying where his potential friends will live and where he'll want to hang out.

Both schools are surrounded by slightly bad areas, by that I mean gangs, knife crime, were in a major city so that's just the way it is unfortunately.

Thanks all, this has helped a lot too.

School B sounds the best option. And if you aren’t comfortable with the 20 mins or so walk you said there’s a bus? I’d go for that one. My daughter walks about a mile to school, there’s loads of kids all walking the same way and it’s good exercise

Google says it's a 30 minute walk, it must be a mile as the crow flies, a bit further walking. No hardship for a teenager, he could cycle in 10 minutes. Or a short bus journey.

Not that far really, I'm comparing with School A which is a 5 minute walk.

B.
A mile is no distance, bus fine, you sat his friends will be going, so he will have his group to travel with.

I live in S London and we are all close up and interconnected to ‘bad’ areas. It’s fine.

School B sounds good. Any chance of trying to get some inside info from the parents of older kids? I feel your pain - we have basically made a decision and I have been impressed by how open-minded DC has been, but i keep getting cold feet!

I haven't!

school A. the only one I truly liked. I think DS would thrive there and I loved it. It is catholic, and we aren't. Last year they took no children who weren't members of a church. FUCK.

school B: closest to us (643m door to door apparently), but NOT our catchment school. Only took 10 out of catchment last year. Seems "ok"

there is NO school C :( I literally have no idea what to put as a third choice.

it's all shit tbh. I have to choose to send him to a school I don't like, which quite frankly is pretty rubbish

I would go B, C, A.

Oops wrong thread!

BAC. If DS v academic then BCA.