Forest and Bancroft

[upsidedown80]

Hoping to hear from people who have had an offer from Forest or Bancroft?

Which do you think you will choose and why?

Or for those whose children went or go there - what did you like or dislike about it?

I really like the look of both for different reasons. I'm keen to send DS somewhere that will teach him learning techniques and to become independent and organised.

We are a bit further away from Bancroft (45mins on 2 buses so says city mapper) - is that too far? Is the Lea Bridge Road going East out and coming West back at the end of the day impossible?

Is Bancroft really a hothouse? In what ways do they put pressure on the children?

Do the children at Forest come from a bigger variation of schools?

Thanks very much, finding it such a difficult decision to make.

I have no direct experience of either but have a few friends whose kids go to Forest and live near it - my MN name is a good few years out of date!

I'd say 2 buses to Bancroft's sounds like a bit of a nightmare. So much potential for delays. It may be 45 minutes on a good day, but what if one is late and it has a knock on effect? Are there any other options like school coach? The traffic around both schools is bad & frankly Lea Bridge Road is pretty awful most of the time. Not impossible but would add at least 15 minutes to predicted journey time to allow for traffic. The road out from Walthamstow up to Bancroft's also tends to be pretty busy. I know parents who haven't considered it because the journey from Walthamstow was bad with no good public transport options.

The kids I know at Forest are from pretty normal backgrounds, not massive houses, skiing holiday types. A few go each year from our state primary and seem to be happy and successful. Think there are quite a few coming in from Essex as well as out from London so imagine there is a decent mix. I know for mums' nights out, they often end up in Wanstead as a good in between meeting spot.

Not exactly what you were asking, but hope this helps build a picture.

Two buses up and down the Lea Bridge Road evey day sounds awful. I'd try and find a different way to either school - Can you get onto the Central Line easily for Forest at Snaresbrook, or the Chingford Overground service to pick up the 179 bus to Bancroft's?

Forest takes many children from Hackney & Islington and this is reflected in the school bus services they offer - they have a pretty decent network. Bancroft's does not have a school bus service and (it seems to me) has a catchment more locally oriented although my daughter does have friends that come in from Whitechapel/Bethnal green way.

There's plenty of rich kids at both schools - the fees are the fat end of £20k a year so you have to be well-off to go to either. The lady dropping her 3 kids off out of a Maserati at Forest sticks in my mind. But for the most part, most of the ones I've met seem fairly normal and nice.

Is Bancroft's a hothouse? Dunno - Forest seems to give out massively more homework than Bancroft's does.

It is also possible to take the tube to South Woodford then go up to Bancroft's by bus, or tube to Loughton, I think there is a school minibus from there.

Bancroft's is more selective at admission, so as long as teaching is good and supportive there is no real reason why the school would have to put a lot of pressure on the kids. They don't have lots of clubs and activities available so I don't think the myth of it being "all about academic" is correct. Most families I know choose Bancroft's out of the two if there are no other major factors (siblings, distance, scholarship etc).

Sorry I mean * they do have lots of clubs!

I turned down a job that would mean going down lea bridge road everyday. Im not against a commute but LB road is up on my list of worst places in London.

Thanks for this - does your daughter go to Bancroft's currently? Does she like it? Do you have a child at Forest?

Sorry that was meant for Tonicwaterparty

Thanks everyone for posting. Tried the train to chingford option at the weekend with bus at the other end and that was quick, just a shame that it is 20min+ walk to get to Clapton.
Forest is much easier - just one school bus (albeit up Lea bridge rd) but is Bancroft's worth the extra reach? We know of a couple of parents who were disappointed with Forest because their children had to retake A-levels, and the Sunday Times has it at 175 vs BC at 55 despite Forest apparently being much harder to get into because so many more people apply, which would suggest they must take in bright children. The difference in results at GCSE isn't problematically different but something definitely happens at A-level.
If anyone has any further thoughts I'd be grateful to hear them

Forest is much easy to reach and is one of the few private schools based in East London, close to a tube station. It receives a high number of applications but many children apply to a few schools to guarantee an offer. Not all of them will have Forest as their first choice.

You know your child - that extra reach to Bancroft's would be extra time every day for the next 7 years and could impact on their ability to participate in after school clubs etc.

I'm quite surprised to hear about children failing their A-levels at Forest. The kids I know there have been successful. But if the academic results are most important, Bancroft's has better outcomes.

Don't most kids move around at A Levels? If the GCSE results are good and it's easier to get to can you not send your DC there till GCSE and then let them decide? They'll be much more knowledgeable about the distance and what it entails. Does forest have a lot of kids join at sixth form? Might be why there is a big difference in results.

@upsidedown80

Thanks for this - does your daughter go to Bancroft's currently? Does she like it? Do you have a child at Forest?

Yes. Two at Bancroft's. Both went to Forest for Prep and decided to move for Y7. My older daughter saw the Sea Scouts group presentation at the Bancroft's open day and immediately made up her mind that she wanted to transfer - "I want to go to there and do that". I suspect that the younger daughter had had enough of spending years and year with the same tiny group of little girls in Forest Prep all getting on each others nerves in the way that only little girls can do.

Both are happy with Bancroft's, they don't regret the move and neither do we, although I would also have been perfectly content if either or both had wanted to stay on at Forest. Forest is a good school with lots going on for children of all interests.

Which school is easier to drop off/pick up by car - sorry to hijack!

I have two DC at Forest, one in the prep and one in the seniors. They moved there from our local state primary going into year 7 ad year 3 respectively. We've been very happy with both parts of the school. The main reason we chose it was for the sports facilities and extra curricular activities on offer. One DC is making the most of these, the other not so much but is enjoying the experience nonetheless and has felt well supported by staff during lockdown struggles. The only downside is we live quite far out and the friends mostly seem to be Hackney/Islington way so lots of ferrying around!

Which school is easier to drop off/pick up by car - sorry to hijack!

Neither are particularly easy for this but Bancroft's have a staggered drop and go system in place, I believe, and I have managed the Forest pick up/drop off for the younger DC for a couple of years now with no major problems. Just be prepared to go a bit earlier for pick up to find a parking space nearby.

@TimeForLunch

Which school is easier to drop off/pick up by car - sorry to hijack!

Neither are particularly easy for this but Bancroft's have a staggered drop and go system in place, I believe, and I have managed the Forest pick up/drop off for the younger DC for a couple of years now with no major problems. Just be prepared to go a bit earlier for pick up to find a parking space nearby.

Thank you - where do you park near Forest?

I went to check the pool out a few years ago, I couldn't find anywhere to park - I don't know how the school parents manage!

DD was at Forest from pre-prep to GCSE. She moved to Bancroft’s for sixth form. I would have been happy for her to stay at Forest but she felt that it wasn’t very supportive of her at that level. For example, she wanted to start 4 a levels and then drop one as she was a NatSci wannabe and wasn’t sure about Bio or Physics. Bancroft’s had no problem with that. Forest would not allow it. Having moved, she felt there was a significantly higher standard in maths and sciences at Bancroft’s and had absolutely no regrets about the switch. Whether that was because of the more able and competitive intake or the teaching - hard to say. A bit of both probably. Plenty did fine at Forest although she did hear of friends who were disappointed in their a level results. If academics are the most important I’d go for Bancroft’s or plan to move later but they do only take about 20 at sixth form (pre covid- who knows now!). Parents don’t often park at Forest they just drop off and go before the car is towed away!

@CoolKitkat there are some residential streets a short walk through the forest or a car park for the forest along Snaresbrook Road. Otherwise I just pull up on the double yellows for 5 minutes.

Thanks @TimeForLunch

@HemmingsMark what is your problem? Do you even have kids of an age where being so obsessed with forest would be of any help?
What makes you think parents who are about to fork out all this money for school, haven't checked this info. You come across as very bitter and condescending.

Forest doesn’t have a great rep where we live. Both of my DCs had classmates at primary who went to Forest - 4 in my eldest’s year & 2 in my youngest’s. None of them were particularly academic at that stage at least. They didn’t go through the first round at Latymer for instance and were not offered places at the more academically-selective London indies. I got the impression that their parents knew they would be academically average at the local state secondaries so Forest was one way of purchasing some sort of advantage.

If your DCs are academically able, they might be better off in the top set of your local comp.

@HemmingsMark I'm assuming your name is Mark hemmings in that case? And you don't understand the concept of an anon forum. You seem to persistently comment on any post about this school and it's just ridiculous. I refuse to believe anyone who pays for private education doesn't look at league tables unless they are not bothered by them. There is absolutely no problem with a headteacher saying that, they are publishing an honest opinion. This gives people choice. They can choose that school or not. It would be worse if he thought that and kept it to himself. I don't understand why you've decided to be some kind of vigilante against forest. It's very strange.