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Original poster

Which Devon grammar for DD?

58 replies

Tabbyabby · 23/10/2018 10:45

Help! Trying to decide by the weekend which of the South Devon Grammars to go for but we currently live in the West Midlands - very last minute as DH only got new job at the end of August.
We are relocating to the Exeter area for DH's job and DD, currently yr6, has passed the 11+ with eligible scores for both Colyton and Torquay Girls.
We have visited both schools, but have only seen each one for about an hour and cannot revisit as this week is Devon half term.
It would be really helpful to hear how girls , particularly, fare at Colyton - we weren't able to speak to any pupils when we were there - and what the extra-curricular offer is like there. DD is academic, esp languages and sciences and loves reading, but also loves the outdoors, climbing trees, swimming and singing.

Wonder also about the pastoral side?
Re Torquay Girls - most comments on MN very positive and seemed a happy school but noticed skirts turned over at waistband, immaculate hair and make up etc ( though didn't meet many girls) and wonder if there is much pressure to conform or bullying or whether all types of girl are included and supported by their peers as well as staff?
And any other advice/comments welcome! It's very difficult making the choice from a long distance without any prior knowledge of the schools.
Thanks in advance!

OP posts:
coldagain · 23/10/2018 11:16

I don't have personal experience of either school but I think Colyton is considered 'better'. I would think the decision comes down more to where you live as the schools are a long way apart and if your DH's job is in Exeter then Colyton seems the most obvious choice.

onewhitewhisker · 23/10/2018 11:30

I have relatives who have DDs at Colyton, they also had the option of Torquay. Their feeling was that Colyton was somewhat gentler pastorally speaking, based on discussions with friends with older DC I think. Both DD very happy. My relatives find the curriculum a bit narrowly EBACC focused (e.g. recent scrapping of DT) but I don't know how unusual that is at a grammar and both are taking an Arts GCSE. socially the DD getting on well, they are not cool crowd but seem to do a range of things with friends including bonfire parties and camping parties and craft stuff as well as shopping /fashion so i don't get a sense of image pressure at all. Lots of lunchtime clubs, they do lot of sport, D of E and Ten Tor and also quite a bit of music, the DD are good though not outstanding at both but seem to have lots of opportunities to get involved.

Original poster
Tabbyabby · 23/10/2018 12:42

Thank you, both responses really helpful.
Coldagain - we are in the fortunate/difficult position of making decisions on schools, where we live at the same time, and the deadline is closer for schools so we're focusing on that first - not a very scientific approach! Interested that you think Colyton is the more obvious choice from Exeter - I wondered whether the train link with Torquay would give that the edge?
Onewhitewhisker - thank you so much for your detailed answer - just the kind of insider knowledge I've been struggling to find from 130-odd miles away. Especially good to know that involvment in sports/music is open to varying abilities.
Do you have any knowledge of whether problems eg bullying are dealt with effectively?

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coldagain · 23/10/2018 13:46

I'm probably slightly out of touch as when I was at school ( a v v long time ago...) most of the people at the Torbay Grammars lived in the area although I suspect they come from far and wide now.
So my thinking was that I'd much prefer to live around Exeter than Torquay and that Colyton was more likely to have pupils from Exeter than Torquay.
Does your DD have a preference for single or co- Ed?

folduptheocean · 23/10/2018 13:50

How do you get into the Devon grammars when living out of area? Genuine question. Thinking of relocating but don't live in an area with 11+

Can you do the exam elsewhere even if our if catchment?

onewhitewhisker · 23/10/2018 13:51

tabbyabby I don't sorry - i know they haven't had any problems of that sort which is hopefully a good sign but of course doesn't tell you how the school would have reacted if they had... re location i would agree with cold though i only know the areas from (fairly regular) visiting that colyton is more obvious from exeter. Living-wise, east devon is lovely, e.g. sidmouth is a nice small town where a young teen can have a bit of independence then go into exeter for more excitement when older... not that south devon isn't lovely! lots of DC i believe travel a fair distance to both schools.

Namechangeforthiscancershit · 23/10/2018 13:52

Awww I was at Colyton soooo long ago and I loved it. I don’t think my info (left in 2002) is current enough to help you but I definitely had a great time and didn’t feel pressured at all. It was just starting to get kids from Exeter when I left and now I think there’s quite a lot.

goodbyestranger · 23/10/2018 13:53

East Devon is a far nicer place to live than Torquay and has better communications by far. I'd live near Colyton and let your DH commute to Exeter. Colyton is a significantly better school too.

Namechangeforthiscancershit · 23/10/2018 13:53

Oh and yes when I was there you didn’t have to have any skill or talent in order to be involved in extra curricular stuff Grin

Original poster
Tabbyabby · 23/10/2018 16:16

Thanks for all the replies everyone - really helpful.

Coldagain - no, she herself doesn't mind if single or co-ed but isn't a very girly-girl and currently has both boys and girls as friends. Has had a few problems with exclusion from the cool clique of girls at primary and obvs we would like this to be avoidable at secondary - so maybe co-ed, although Torquay Girls would be a much bigger pool of girls and haven't heard of bullying problems so far....
Onewhitewhisker - that's interesting about Sidmouth - we haven't visited yet but I'm embarrassed to say I had a preconception that lots of people retired there and that there wouldn't be much for teens.
Foldup - you can take the Devon 11+ regardless of where you live as the grammars don't have catchment areas, but you have to travel to Devon to do it.
Thanks for the tips on where to live - can anyone recommend villages on the Colyton side which have a good sense of community? I think buses go from Chard and Axminster as well as Exeter, so a really wide spread.
Another thought - does anyone know whether Colyton or TGGS has a thriving PTA or friends group? Perhaps it's tricky with students' living over such a wide area?

OP posts:
Original poster
Tabbyabby · 23/10/2018 16:26

Namechange - thank you! I imagine it has changed, think numbers have increased for sure, but always encouraging to hear someone has happy memories!

OP posts:
Original poster
Tabbyabby · 23/10/2018 16:33

If anyone out there has knowledge of Torquay Girls, it would be really good to hear your insights.
(And any more thoughts on Colyton!)
Brilliant help so far - first time I've posted on Mumsnet for this kind of advice and so chuffed with responses - thank you

OP posts:
onewhitewhisker · 23/10/2018 17:21

tabby you're not wrong about sidmouth, it does have an elderly population and a bit of a retirement feel and i'm sure it's not exactly teen mecca!. But it also has a cinema/swimming pool/beach/branch of costa/quite a few sports clubs/places that offer saturday jobs... People i know moved from a small village partly in order to give the DC a few more ways to have an independent social life without endless lifts when they were around the 11- 14 age bracket - now they are a bit older, they go into exeter more.
Also colyton has a Friends/PTA group.

Blarneybear · 23/10/2018 17:23

Does it have to be grammar? Woodroffe is great and lots more extra curriculum than Colyton

Original poster
Tabbyabby · 23/10/2018 17:36

Onewhitewhisker - thank you, we'll go to have a look at Sidmouth. My daughter would really like to be near a swimming pool and other activities but she's desperate for us not to live in a "big city" ie Exeter (where we live now is a lot smaller!) so she might like Sidmouth.
Blarney - we like the look of the grammars, but I know that Woodroffe and King's in Ottery are good too. The big snag is that we are not yet in Devon so can't put Devon (or Dorset) schools with catchment areas on our form at this stage. We can only do that on a revised form once we have actually relocated... It's a minefield.

OP posts:
HighOverTheFenceLeapsSunnyJim · 23/10/2018 20:58

So how do the grammars distinguish between candidates if it isn’t catchment - is it scores & distance? Do people really get in from the midlands?!

goodbyestranger · 23/10/2018 21:04

People can get in from the moon if they want. It's done on scores only.

folduptheocean · 23/10/2018 21:19

That's great news. If my dd does get a high enough score I would relocate. We would go for Colyton.

GemmaB78 · 23/10/2018 21:29

I lived in a small village just outside Sidmouth which had a lovely community feel once you were welcomed in (as much as a grockle can be in Devon!). A friend's daughter was at Colyton until recently. Nicknamed Anorexia High due to the pressure it can put on its pupils, though as an alumni from a Kent single-ed grammar school I'd say that's fairly common. My friend was very happy with Colyton as a school and her daughter thrived. Sidmouth is a lovely little town but it does all shut down by 9pm! Husband and I had easy commutes to work in Exeter. I also lived in Ottery St Mary for a few years which is a fantastic little town. More going on, but easy to get to Colyton from there. And king's is a good nongrammar option.

I've no experience of Torquay girls, but as others have said, East Devon is much nicer than Torbay.

Namechangeforthiscancershit · 23/10/2018 22:24

Ottery and Sidmouth are both nice in their own way. Sidmouth was actually our Big Night Out venue embarrassingly Blush. Well there or Seaton. It does have an older population but lots of teenagers too, and the beach is nice.

goodbyestranger · 23/10/2018 22:25

With the greatest of respect Gemma, Colyton has never had a nickname of Anorexia High, certainly not in the forty years I've had of living in the immediate area. That's a totally unfounded comment given the numbers of DC in the school with health issues of that nature compared to other schools with a similar intake in other parts of the country. I'm very aware of the numbers involved and think it very unwise for someone without even a single child at the school to toss out such a silly comment without regard to the damage it could do.

Namechangeforthiscancershit · 23/10/2018 22:33

Oh yes the numbers have increased haven’t they? 155 year sevens, I think we would have had about 110. Off to stalk which teachers are still there now. I notice the uniform hasn’t improved at all!

I don’t want to be to specific when I’ve already said what year I was in, but eating disorders in my cohort were a lot less of a problem (in numbers terms) than in other schools in the area where friends went, and I think the same goes for general pressures. One of the nice things about being so rural I think is that most people were still really good friends with primary school people from where they live so your social network was pretty wide- stopped things getting too insular and I certainly never noticed us working any harder. But as someone said, there are very good local comprehensives so lots of high achieving kids all over the place.

GemmaB78 · 23/10/2018 22:34

I'm directly quoting both the mother and the daughter who used it on a number of occasions. I don't know whether they coined it themselves or it came from another source.

Stellarbella · 23/10/2018 22:38

I was at colyton 13 years ago (eeek!) and it was fantastic. Far better than Torquay - my mum went there. Colyton is also far and away the better school league table wise. I also think there’s a lot to be said for a co-ed school.

In terms of where to live, colyton itself is great community-wise. Also branscombe and beer. Frankly, outside of Exeter there is nothing much going on in Devon of an evening - it’s not really somewhere you go for the nightlife!

Namechangeforthiscancershit · 23/10/2018 22:40

Stellar no nightlife? But surely you have happy memories of the Grove and hanging out behind the Co-Op car park*

note I do not know Stellar* and am not casting any aspersions

Excited to see basically all my favourite teachers are still there Grin