St Albans Boys or Watford Grammar Boys?

[EmilyBingo]

My son has got into to St Albans Boys & Watford Grammar for Boys. Is it worth spending the money? Are we mad? Help - Pro's Cons?

Once a decision is made it can be a huge relief. Hope he does really well and enjoys the next part of his educational journey (without the 2 hours a day commuting....!) Plus when it comes to study leave, snow days, being unwell etc,which happens at some stage to most kids, at least he won’t be reliant on coach timetables (or parents going to work late / leaving work early) to get home or to get to school for an afternoon exam having revised at home. I speak as one who had a DC in private education a coach ride away, and a DC at the local grammar down the road....

OP, glad you’ve made a decision.

@Cuddlysnowleopard - DH and I were talking about that exact question yesterday (post allocation day, and we also know a boy who got into St A school but not the top choices in the SW Herts consortium. I don’t think it’s posible to really compare - although St A does maths and verbal reasoning, they also have an English paper and “short interview”, then some boys get invited back for a round of group activities. They also audition for music, choral, art and sport scholarships.

WBGS just has the SW Herts consortium academic test and music test, and to be honest I think they are fairly blunt instruments in determining either aceademic or musical potential. So I can well see that the same child gets in to St A but not WBGS. I guess WBGS probably also has a far greater number of applicants per place. However, ultimately St A has really stellar academic results (presumably due to 100% selection, small classs etc) whereas WBGS has just excellent results.

Although as DH pointed out, what would be really interesting to know is the true added value each school provides in terms of teaching making boys exceed their potential - if you admit very clever boys you churn out very good results...

Hi I know this thread is old but just wonder if you are happy with WBGS? Because now I'm in exactly the same situation and scratching my head! Thanks!

@Smilingapple I am in the same situation and I although I like the pvt option I can't bring myself to say no to the grammar option for so many reasons. My son has been in a private prep in primary and I can see the how much that has helped him (class sizes and extras). But the grammar option is highly sought after too.

It's so difficult isn't it? I'm like yourself more towards Pvt, however DH is more leaning towards state. But my DS went to state primary so in terms of adjusting to bigger class etc he's fine. The state school we're considering is WBGS which feels like a private school in terms of facilities, clubs and teaching ethos. My DS doesn't have a preference and says he's happy with any school. But it's the small class size and the pastoral care that I'm in dilemma about. Also the overall calibre of the students is different too, as the state we are considering is partially selected not 100%. However majority of the non selected intake are through siblings and the extremely small catchment area of the school, where families are all bog standard middle-class. However it's hard to justify the fees for just that. Plus we've a younger son so the cost will be double. See? My heart says pvt but head says state. Do you have the same school options??

@redferrari

@Smilingapple It's habs vs QE boys for us. I wanted to accept grammar but I also don't want a childhood of pressure. My friends son is in Watford and they were happy. Distance wise it's same for us. I think I am worried about the pressure although he has done well without much tutoring. (We did do an hour a week in the last 6 months to focus on exam format but never had any pressure and took time off for holidays etc)