St Michael’s Catholic grammar for girls vs St Marylebone CoE for girls

[Frogusha]

For the local authority form would you put St Marylebone ahead? I liked St Marylebone 100% better - headmistress, the girl guides, location, facilities (not much to talk about there but the general feeling is better that St Michael’s). However, I know St Michael’s is much better academically. DD1 is very musical and enjoys drama, and there was nothing mentioned about that, and although I saw one practice room music doesn’t seem to be an integral part of St Michael’s.
I do not want my DD to become a musician but I do want her to develop on all fronts, not just academics. is crazy to put St Marylebone’s first?

When you say 'better academically', do you mean re results or teaching? Not from your area, so not personally familiar with the schools - is St. Marylebone also fully academically selective? If not, presumably that would go some way to explaining why it might appear to be 'academically inferior' to St.Michaels, if it is results you are comparing? You need to compare like with like - how do the girls entering St.Marylebone as higher achievers at KS2 do, in comparison with St.Michaels students?

That being said, if my feeling about School A was that I liked it '100%' more than I liked School B (and my DD had the possibility of getting a place at either), it would not occur to me to place School B higher on my CAF, if I named it at all.

What school does your daughter prefer and would the journey to St Michaels be a lot longer for her, as you seem to have a preference for the location of St Marylebone.

Journey time by public transport is super easy to St Marylebone and less easy to St Michael’s but doable - there are a number of buses and only 1 bus to take for about 30 mins. Would prob go down private transfer route though if get to St Michael’s, in which case it’d be only 20-25 mins.

St Marylebone is only partially selective and whilst I understand it means results would never be as good as in a fully selective cohort, St Michael’s only takes catholics in, so has about x10 less applicant than the other grammar in our area. Academically it is a better school, it appears.

A lot of people rave about the headteacher of St Marylebone. I have seen a lot of comments about how impressive she is....
What is really impressive about her/what makes her stand out? Is she very passionate or something?

Academically it will be a better school because St Michael's is a fully selective grammar. St Marylebone isn't i don't think?

Go for the school you like, plus location is a huge factor. Sounds to me like the Marylebone one is for you.

@sammyvine, she’s eloquent and can speak, not read. She’s as good or better than the best private schools’ HTs I’ve seen speak, e.g. Habs, St Albans, NLCS. St Michael’s HT read. Literally read from a paper, never taking eves off for more than a couple of words. He read a passage from Ofsted report, read that there’s a lot of hw, and that parents are the most generous he’s ever encountered in his career (it’s a voluntary aided school). He didn’t take any questions and then passed on to 3 select girls who also read prepared text that went like this: “I arrived as a shy 11 y o and now I’m a confident young woman”. I didn’t think HT was as important before; until I went to that open evening.

So she is friendly and approachable? I have a niece who will be going to secondary school next year and St M is definitely one of the schools my sister is looking at and would like her to go.

I think she read English at Cambridge, not to sound elitist, but not surprised how good she is with words/articulating herself.

@sammyvine, yes, she seemed approachable, genuine and friendly. Walked around the auditorium answering last minute questions. Prob the HT I most enjoyed hearing from / meeting amongst 10+ open days attended.

Hi
Is anyone with her daughter studying in Marylebone? i had an offer and I am just worried it is not too much of teenager- tik tok-ish mood there?
How are bullying and behavior pls?