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Secondary education

Connect with other parents whose children are starting secondary school on this forum.

Original poster

St Philip Howard Barnham or Bishop Luffa

22 replies

Marypoppins19 · 05/10/2018 05:49

Does anyone have experiences of these schools and can perhaps tell me some of the differences between them?

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OrangeCinnamon · 05/10/2018 06:13

Only anecdotal from friends and not inpressed tbh

OrangeCinnamon · 05/10/2018 06:18

Pressed too soon. Pressure seems to be ramped up with little thought for pastoral care .

Are you prepared to move? they are quite far apart ? Most places taken up via religious category

Original poster
Marypoppins19 · 05/10/2018 06:21

Oh dear :(
I though pastrol care at SPH looked good

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KnockMeDown · 05/10/2018 06:27

I have a daughter in primary near to SPH, and many friends whose children have gone to both. Both are highly sought after in the area, and most speak highly of them. You will probably need to prove church attendance to get in to either.

Have you considered Felpham?

Original poster
Marypoppins19 · 05/10/2018 06:34

Yes we looked at felpham too. We are a church family so feel more comfortable with SPH and luffa, just can’t decide the order to go with. SPH is smaller??

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OrangeCinnamon · 05/10/2018 06:45

Check distances with admissions it will make a difference. Friend only just got in to SPH and she was in Barnham, not Catholic but C o E. Ive heard similar regarding Luffa so depending on where you live closest too will be the driver I imagine.

ElizabethinherGermanGarden · 05/10/2018 07:08

Both are among the strongest schools for miles. The religious element is an important admissions factor and both are wildly oversubscribed. If your child gets in to either, they will be fine. Chichester High School (for girls/boys) used to have a poor reputation but has seemingly also really improved in recent years. Luffa has just got a new Headteacher - good general vibe so far from him.

Original poster
Marypoppins19 · 05/10/2018 19:11

How do you think SPH and Luffa differ?

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KnockMeDown · 06/10/2018 07:44

Luffa is far bigger and CofE. In Chichester. SPH is smaller, Catholic, in Barnham near station.

Where would your DC be travelling from?

Original poster
Marypoppins19 · 06/10/2018 08:43

Thank you for your reply,
When we visited the size difference was clear but I’m just trying to think a bit more about the ethos differences, the choice of clubs, any differences in terms of what’s on offer etc.

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Original poster
Marypoppins19 · 06/10/2018 08:44

The work we saw at luffa was of a VERY high standard, just pondering if a child is more middle of the road and sporty, which might be better??

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OrangeCinnamon · 06/10/2018 11:56

I know both have big D o E cohorts. Larger schools tend to have more clubs etc but my perception has been that friends whose children have gone to Luffa have done more in terms of extra curricular whereas SPH friends have tended to look outside the school for drama clubs , sport etc

OrangeCinnamon · 06/10/2018 12:06

What about The Chichester Free school? They have lots of extracurriculars apparently?

Original poster
Marypoppins19 · 06/10/2018 12:43

Seeing CFS on Wednesday.
Extra curricular is important so I’ll ask at SPH

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Original poster
Marypoppins19 · 08/10/2018 06:10

Any other knowledge out there on these two schools?

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ElizabethinherGermanGarden · 09/10/2018 19:41

CFS is very quirky and individual. You will either love it or hate it. Passionate staff.

ElizabethinherGermanGarden · 09/10/2018 19:43

Experience of pastoral care at both BL and SPH has been outstanding - BL more recent than SPH. Guess you just need to consider the 'feel' of the three. There are no hidden nasties, as far as I know. I'd go with your own Christian denomination, all other things being equal.

Fuzzyend · 09/10/2018 19:58

We've been happy with Luffa - academically solid and lots of clubs. But I have to say that I've also heard good things about SPH.

We're lucky to have both in the area. I would look at travel times, denomination (if that's important to you/ more likely to get a place) and the general feel.

I'm not convinced by the free school yet.

Original poster
Marypoppins19 · 09/10/2018 19:58

Thank you Elizabeth. That’s really helpful

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KnockMeDown · 15/10/2018 15:16

Hi OP interested to know how you got on at CFS? I've heard some not great things from other parents going to an open day recently.

Original poster
Marypoppins19 · 15/10/2018 23:20

Hi
I thought it was fab. Really amazing building and really engaging staff. You can see they are all adapting and it has a few things to iron out but if travel wasn’t an issue, I’d put it first!

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Kcrc1010 · 21/10/2021 17:09

Hi Marypoppins19,

I would be interested to know which school you picked n the end and if you had success with either? We are currently making this very difficult choice and SPH is a definite for us, Bishop Luffa I am really struggling with as they didn't seem to present very well despite its excellent reputation. Any thoughts from anyone would be appreciated on:
School start and finish times
Teaching style, it appeared self directed to me
Balance of religious activity over academic study
Extra curricular activity
Bullying issues (both schools, like so many avoid this question)

Thanks

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