Holland Park school. Any updates?

[malfrale]

Hi,

I went to the open evening at HP and actually the new headteacher made a positive impression on me. He is aware of the problems of the school and did not try to play down what happened last year. He briefly explained what being part of UL involves (not much difference to the freedom of the school, apparently) and explained how they are addressing the issues pointed out in the ofsted report.

Having said this, obviously open evenings are some kind of show so I would welcome some insider information to understand better how are things these days in the school, how many kids or teachers have left, etc.

My child would start in September 2023.

Many thanks

Could any one direct me to info regarding the new head's departure? There's nothing mentioned on their website or online. Can someone DM me the communication that was sent to parents.?
If this tread could be kept updated with any news for the coming months I am sure it would help many parents ... Greatly appreciated!

@LondonCityMum77 the head (Steve Parsons) quit but recently announced he is staying on as a deputy head and Dame Sally Coates from United Learning is running the school. Why Mr Parsons stayed on at a demoted level I do not know. Why are you interested in Holland Park? It is dreadful at the moment - will take 3-5 years to sort. There are better options in the area - we moving our Y8 daughter this Sept

I would never send my children to a United Learning school.

My DS will be starting secondary in September 2024 and I have two United Learning schools within our area. What is wrong with these schools?

My DS is clever but super lazy and really needs military style education to kick him into the man I want him to be.

My daughter is at an amazing United Learning school in SE London but as it was outstanding when it joined they left it fairly much to itself. As a grammar it also operates more on the independent side than the state side despite being a state school as the only other selective schools in its grouping were in the independent sector. Never seem to have an issue with recruiting staff and DD hasn’t suffered shortages of key staff like her friends at the local comp.

So my child is in his 3rd week as a year 7 at Holland park school and I have niggling doubts and sleepless nights already over whether I've done the right thing sending him here.

The school seems to cut no lack for the new yr 7s, doling out detentions in the first full week for everything and anything.
I wouldnt mind so much if the school was super efficient which sets an example to students but its admin is still
shockingly bad ie contrary information given to parents.and students (resulting in the child being given a detention of course) and my emails not being acknowledged nor issues being resolved.

My child loves learning and has always been a polite child but he has shared examples of beimg ignored when trying to ask questions ,being scowled at or given sarcastic responses from teachers who obviously need more training.There are only a couple of teachers he calls "nice"
The lunch servers have been rude to a number of.students,some going wihtout a meal. I consider its not an easy job serving so many students but there has to be some professionalism within their roles. Older kids will push in front of the yr 7s in the lunch queue and no one seems to be monitering this. They have only half.an hour lunch break so its important they arent pushed to the back by bullies

The homework load is ridiculous ,with some teachers setting a 48 hour deadline for completion. I feel there's still alot of pressure on HPS students. Dame Sally Coates gave a speech mentioning how they encourage kindness between students.Well I am of the opinion that the some of the teachers need to learn to be kinder also to set an example

I do pray that things will get better and dont want to magnify their failures to my son, resulting in his disrespect of Hp as a school. I will be complaining if issues are recurring. We all want our kids to thrive to the best of their abilities not be broken by a school that wants robots.

It was a much happier place in the decades before colin hall but his.legacy still haunts/taints the school somewhat

Holland Park School is part of United Learning Academy and they are well known for all of their schools being tough. They get good results and their belief is is because they instil a lot of discipline. I am ok with this approach because my son is lazy and I'm looking at strong disciplined schools but not all parents want this.

So you have to think about what you want and what approach works best. Will your child be ok with tough love (and potentially get better academic results) or do you feel you want a more nurturing school with average results and where there may be more disruptive children in the class?

My son is now in year 10 and not lazy at all but we still like the high academic approach and yes, maybe a little less caring - although he has wonderful teachers who do care and are lovely and reply immediately to emails - there’s always some they don’t like but that’s life.
My other son (sadly) didn’t go to Holland Park (we live further away and he went with friends) and his school - rated good - is nice and caring but academically he’s quite bored.
And the lunch problem is the same at all schools, it will get better though.
I think they are especially tough with year 7 to set the behavior level quite high and don’t tolerate a lot but we‘ve been trough the Colin Hall and later stages and I am so relieved at where the school is now and would highly recommend it for academic children.

I totally agree. One has to find the right school for their child. I am ok with discipline and academic ambitions but I understand some children may not like it. Also, I attended an open day with Colin Hall years ago and now listened to a presentation by Dame Sally and they are worlds apart. She ticked all the right boxes for me, he didn’t get one. Still early days but happy so far.

You see, having attended HPS myself and working in a school now I know that a nurturing school and good results aren't mutually exclusive if there are good teachers. A tough school doesnt always get good results as CH era had shown my eldest. It's not a choice to be made its a balance that schools should strive for.

My child is academic and also creative and thats why he was offered a place there and we accepted in the hope its changed for the better.I still have this hope.He loves learning in all subjects but a bad,sarcastic or dismissive teacher could easily change this.

Also, obsessing over grades can be detrimental to actual learning and really absorbing knowledge on a topic.
Overloading them with homework is unlikely to improve grades on the whole and can contribute to stress and in turn health issues.

Im dont hate HPS, the jury is still out ,suffice to say our first impression was not a good one . Kids at school should be safe,happy and learning ,respectively

Hi, thanks for this - do you know when the outstanding rating will be announced? I couldn’t see it online… thanks

@recca3000 sorry I am confused; Has the school been awarded with “Outstanding” rating after the “Inadequate” rating in April 2022 inspection?

ah there was a note from @PettsWoodParadise in Jan saying the school had another inspection recently and got an outstanding again…

No that was for a different school also from United Learning. Sorry for any confusion.

Wondering if I can push this thread up again - thinking about options for DC for this September 2024 and would be good to hear thoughts from those at HP currently?

Hello. My child is currently in year 10 and we are very happy. But we have a very academic child and I think they are supported more. (Band a or b)
We will have it as first choice for A levels too.

hello dear , just wondered if all is good with the school? I am between Teddington school and Holland Park and we actually got an acceptance for Y9 in SEptember 2024. so very confused ..

what do you suggest?

HELLO, can someone help urgently. Basically, is HPS school still strong academically but improved pastorally... my daughter is due to start HPS in Sept for A levels but we are nervous. She is currently at Kew House School but the fees are brutal, especially for a non academic private school. Our daughter is bright (7s and 8s mainly at GCSE) and will do well at A levels with better teaching and structure (she wants to be a lawyer so results matter)
BUT she is also low-support autistic, so she does need to be in a moderately accommodating environment.