Secondary School

[Horsesforcourses23]

Hiya,

I think I am in the right place for posting but apologies if not. I am after some general opinions please.

I have no children but my nephew has come to live with me on a permanent basis. (There is a whole long back story to this, which I won't get into but and he has suffered some trauma which is relevant).

In the shortest way possible, all of his friends are going to go to 1 high school, which 1) I am not in the catchment area and 2) The only way he could logically get there is 2 public buses.

Ok, so 1 - I am not in the catchment area but because of what has gone on, I have been advised that he would be entitled to go to that high school this would would negate any additional anxiety and keep him close with the solid friend group he has already made.

However I am really not sure if I should let him go to school on 2 buses. I don't know if I am overly worried, or just being protective or is 2 buses completely reasonable - for reference travel time would be about an hour.

The other option is to put him in a high school near me. He is not really shy (he can be a little bit) but I am quite confident he would make new friends, who would live closer to where he lives etc. The downside to that is I am not in the best of area's and non of the schools are particularly strong either.

In addition he does struggle academically.

So I am just after general opinions or thoughts really?

Thanks for any responses.

Take the bus journey with him - show him what catching two buses really means. He might prefer to make local friends. There is a lot of change in friendships in high school.

I would do the trip with him and make sure he is confident before choosing.

A popular thing at my school is "Walking Buddies" (Just for reference - I'm going into year 11 in September, I also might used the word "kid" or "Child" but I don't mean it in a rude way :) )

Basically the child tries to make some more friends and then see's if they can walks to school with them - this way they get to know each other more and can talk for longer ect...

If you know any parents in your area with nice kids, maybe try introducing them and see how they get along - 2 busses is a lot for me (I have severe anxiety and I get nervous in public places) especially if your running late

See what they feel more comfortable with - it would be beneficial to go to a closer school because if they're having a hard day and just need to go home - it's not too big of an issue but if the kid feels alright on busses and would be more comfortable with friends then he should probably stay with them