Colfes or Eltham

[Dipali]

Hi, we are having to choose between Colfes School and Eltham College for Septemebr 2021- Secondary. It'll be great to have views of both the schools. Looking at the league tables, Eltham scores much higher than Colfes but we want to look at other aspects of the school other than the league tables. It'll be great to hear from parents sending their children to these schools. Unfortunately due to the pandemic we've not had a chance to visit either of the schools. Thanks.

Hello, our children do not got to Colfes but I would choose Colfes over Eltham. We know lots of children and they all seem so happy at Colfes.

Sixth Form results are fantastic. The head for Colfes comes across as just a fantastic Head, and I think that counts. They also seem quite a diverse school and offer opportunities to local children who can't afford fees.

Colfes comes across as a friendly, very special place and academics seem on the up.

I do not have much insight into Eltham.

Why don't you ask Colfes for a walk around - I know they may not be able to say yes but it is worth a try.

Hi, I have one child at each school so should be able to help! To be fair, both schools are excellent so there’s no bad choice here. My eldest is in Y13 at Eltham, and my youngest is Y9 at Colfes (both are boys and both joined in Y7). Eldest chose Eltham in preference over Colfes as he liked the atmosphere of the school. He is very bright and we liked the strong academic focus of Eltham. Younger DS liked both schools and would probably have chosen Eltham to be with his brother but missed out on an offer as his English exam didn’t go so well. Personally, I think Colfes has a more nurturing environment and was always going to be a better fit for him - a more sensitive soul who might have sunk in Eltham’s more ‘sink or swim’ environment. As such, I was actually glad that the decision was taken out of our hands!

Happy to try to help if you’ve any questions.

The head at Colfes is indeed fantastic and I agree with everything else @throwbeck says.

Eltham is no doubt more academic and pushes its pupils more .... but doesn't seem to get the significantly better results that you would expect given the academic profile at intake.
It also does better at sport as its a bigger school so if that matters to your dc then obviously something to be taken into consideration.

I feel for you, must be so hard not having looked round. My son is now in year 8 at Eltham (he also had offers at Colfes and Whitgift). It was an easy choice for us at the time and we have no regrets though clearly it has not been a normal two years!

Whilst the school is strong academically I don't recognise the sink or swim referred to above. I think Eltham put a lot into their pastoral care and my son settled in quickly despite knowing no one when he joined.

I really like the size of the school which feels just right for us. Big enough that there are lots of opportunities for things like decent sports teams but small enough not to feel like you are a number.

Trips and co curricular normally really good too but clearly not much going on there at the moment.

Lastly pupils tend to come from a reasonably small radius so great for friends. Lovely grounds too. Hope that helps!

Eltham if your child is academic/very musical/into drama - they are strong at sports but do not do football for example (Alleyns is the South East London football school). What is the journey like and what are your child's interests? I have friends with children at both schools and have spoken to them at length about both schools when we were choosing for one DC. @MiddlesexSchool - according to my friends Eltham has changed a lot in the last few years. Lots of very academic types in the lower years now. It is suddenly much more competitive and sought after in South East London. Difficult to tell though what is real and what is perception. However, I would send an academic child to Eltham, if the journeys were similar. I think that is what the Blackheath crowd are doing now (vast generalisation, I am sure... )

Also OP if you are not sure have you spoken to the headmasters at both schools directly? (assuming here they are both male) I think one can tell a lot from how much time one is given by them - the key question is always how a school would deal with any problems and the attention you would be given by leadership and how much you can relate to them can be important (I know this does change as they can leave, but still important as essentially in a private school setting vs state you are paying for that extra attention). Perhaps you could try that if you have not done so already.

Thank you all for the insight, very useful. We are leaning more towards Colfes as we feel our DS will thrive in a nurturing environment. Although he is bright, I would say not too academic and he may feel under too much pressure at Eltham.

@Dipali if your DS is bright he would be fine at Eltham, he would not have been offered a place otherwise. Lots of the boys coming up from the junior school bright and sporty and not necessarily all that academic. I think it is more current hype and perception. Also Eltham give sibling priority so not all would pass 11 plus for local grammars. The school is quite nurturing too (my friends say lots of emphasis on wellbeing).

@Musicaldilemma Interesting perspective - we are not looking at Eltham purely because of football (the lack of). What are the football schools in London?

Sorry to hijack OP!

I really wonder which you prefered as I am in the similar situation - between Blackheath High and Eltham College. I need to decide by tommorrow🤦🏻‍♀️