Travelling to Grey Court school from Teddington

[akenningtonmum]

Hello.

We are moving to Teddington and looking at secondary schools for my sons. I like the Grey court but am nervous of the travelling for my son.

Does anyone have children that travel from Teddington to Grey Court or know many kids that do.

Also interested in Orleans Park and Turing - and experience of those schools.

You might not get in to Grey Court from Teddington - I know a couple of people who haven't got in from Teddington addresses in the last couple of years but that aside, it's really not far and 25/30 minute bus journeys are a perfectly normal commute for a secondary school child.

What is it exactly that is worrying you? It's a very easy bus journey. If you are only moving now then I assume your child isn't yet in Y6. You will find they do an awful lot of growing up in Y5 and Y6 and particularly Y6 and across that summer in to Y7, and a journey which alarms you now, will be fine especially as you can practice it with him across that summer if necessary.

Have you looked at admission distances for the past 3 years? Orleans Park also has a small catchment so you need to be realistic about where you move to and what school you can get from the address.

I also wouldn’t worry about travelling as it should be easy enough + it’s a safe area.

Hello. Thank you for your reply.

I’ve looked at all the admission data for last few years and there has been a swathe of Teddington where children have consistently been offered places.

When I look at bus routes. There doesn’t appear to be a single bus so it would be a bus down to Kingston bridge and then a change. Or I think about a 30 minute walk across the footbridge.

So just exploring options and was keen to see if others who lived in the Teddington had their children in Grey Court s d how the children felt about the commute.

We haven’t moved yet but start looking in earnest after Christmas and will be swayed by catchment areas.

The significant increase in children coming to Grey Court from Teddington has happened since 2018 when Teddington school was rated "requires improvement". Loads of children cycle or walk across Teddington Lock to Grey Court (which is 10-20 mins max) or yes, it is two buses - total time about 25 mins. Agree you need to check catchment distance because you need to live near the river (so your route is calculated over the footbridge).

Lots of kids go across the bridge. There's a little bit of woodland on the other side so some people worry about it in winter, but there's lots of people around and its very cycle-friendly.

Teddington will probably get a 'Good' at its next inspection. Parents seem happy with the new leadership. I remember reading it has a bad financial deficit but its in a multi academy trust now so they might be getting that sorted.

I've got a son at Turing and we're very happy with it. We're looking forward to when they move to their new site next year because they don't have much space where they are. If you're close enough to get into Grey Court then Turing might be too far for you but if not then I think the 481 bus route will go to the new site.

Thank you