St John’s Leatherhead info

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we were thinking of St John’s for DD3, but I’ve just read that the head has left suddenly. Do any current parents know why? And what is the new head like? Is she permanent (website says she is acting head)?

Hi - the Head left quite suddenly before the beginning of term and there are lot of rumours about why. The Deputy Head is acting in the role however I understand that the school is actively searching for someone to take the role on a permanent basis. Happy to share more information about the school if helpful - my children have just left (not related to the Head leaving though!).

On another thread a poster said that other senior staff left suddenly too. Are they all related or were those ones planned? It's such a shame Mrs Cole left she seemed to be quite inspirational and so friendly. Still you never know what's going on really.

Is St John's owned by anyone? Have there been changes on the board of governors? I wonder what is going on. I heard she left on compassionate leave - so I wondered if she might come back. But from what I read here it appears to be final.

It would be good to know why and who will come next.

Would love general views on the school? Pros and cons. Thanks.

As I say, both my children were happy there and only left because they wanted to explore options St Johns did not offer.

Pros:
Walking distance from home, active parents association so plenty of opportunity to meet other parents, pastoral care support (depending on the house mistress / master).
Strong sports / music and some excellent teachers depending on subject matter.
Good Learning Development support.

Cons:
Not all teachers are brilliant and there are some that spoke the pupils really disrespectfully, communication not great (especially during Covid) and in fact messages from the Head only came beginning / end of term.

It depends on what you are looking for from a school.
Happy to share more via PM if helpful.

Hello, my Child has just started at St Johns, choosing it over 2 others.

It is a loss to lose Mrs Cole, but respect her privacy in the matter. the acting head has been there for some time and seems lovely. They are actively recruiting for a new head. The parents are being kept informed and involved.

We are 5 weeks in and my son is very happy so far, but appreciate very early days.

We picked the school as we wanted
strong pastoral care ( no hot house) but expected children to do their best and help them to do so. So far this is happening.

We also wanted a school that had lots of extra curricular options. Sport, music, drama, art….This is also being offered and taken up.

We also liked the longer day, with them doing their homework at school. It’s optional, but popular.

Our child loves sport, and there is lots of sport and it is well run.

I think the best thing is to go and see the schools, you then know if it is a good fit for your child or not.

Good luck with it all. It’s quite a stressful time.

@Louise78100 Where else did you apply and get offers?

@wifeywish1 Why did your children leave the school? What was the school lacking?

Does anyone know why the head and others have left the school?

How does it rank academically? Are there people from other ethnicities at St John's - both staff and children?

My friend has two children, one at Putney High and one at St Johns. She told me that she was shocked by the teaching level at St. John’s, and that it is significantly lower. E.g. the homework of her (y7) St. John’s child was “a big mess”, apparently, compared to what her PH daughter was doing in Y7. But maybe that is to be expected since St. John’s is not a massively academic school.

That all said, her St J child is much happier than her PH child who struggled with friendships and cliques. The st j children that I know all do seem happy with their school in terms of friendships and so on. Perhaps the SJ children are just a more relaxed lot than in some of the more “hot house” type schools? If that’s what you want, it seems like a very happy school, if I can judge the children I know. But like all schools, even the top academic schools, there will be cleverer and less able children, it may just be that my friend’s (“big mess”) y7 child is ultimately one of the “lower set” children.

In terms of how well the children do, I assume you can find leavers destinations and grades on their website.

Re ethnicities, the website was (when we looked) overwhelmingly “white”, and all the children I know who go there are “wealthy white”… funnily enough all are children of lawyers (it is an expensive school!) But this lack of ethnic diversity put me off.

@Academeo thank you for that. I hope others can advise too. Epsom is more expensive/ similar cost but is more ethnically diverse, so I was also surprised by St John’s.

It's surprising that you say the school isn't that academic as the recent GCSE and A level results were very good and better than Epsom I hear.

@Academeo also out of curiosity have checked against Putney High results and they are not worlds apart. Apparently, 58% of St John's pupils got A* (9-8 grades) compared to 61% at PH. St John's also co-ed and girls seem to outperform boys at GCSE so very good results all in all. Like you say, you can't compare based on one child. If children can achieve and be happy with it, that's got to be a bonus.

Thanks for highlighting that! That’s helpful.

PHS at 75% with 8s and 9s www.putneyhigh.gdst.net/gcse-results-2022-a-record-breaking-year/

to St John's 58% www.stjohnsleatherhead.co.uk/academic/academic-achievement/

I agree it's still a very good set of results for St John's but not sure where 61% came for PHS?

PHS 90% (9 to7 )
St J 82% (9 to 7) this figure is v good for St Johns!

There's not much in it, is there?

Took it from this online but apologies may have been a previous year - should have checked! Still good results at both schools.

Putney High School is today celebrating record-breaking GCSE results, with 61% of entries achieving A grades and 93% securing A or A grades. Almost one quarter of the year group achieved nine or more A grades, with 11 students earning 10 A grades. In English Literature, 85% of results were at A while in Maths IGCSE, almost three quarters of entries earned A grades.
Record breaking GCSE results for Putney High School ...
www.gdst.net/news/record-breaking-gcse-results-putney-high-school/

Does anyone have any more information on why the Head left?

Also, anyone living in Wimbledon who can share what the commute is like for their kid?
Thanks!

the commute is very easy -24 mins from Wimbledon i think.
kids are very friendly - i much preferred the atmosphere over other schools when looking.
music is very good.
drama also good.
the sport seems amazing and lots of it. Saturday sports if you're in teams and most are.
long days mostly fee justification in my opinion.
lots of clubs.
it isn't highly pressured but the kids do very well. it isn't highly selective but it is defintely changing from an 'easy to get into' school.
no diversity. white Surrey/London. very wealthy kids on the whole so a bit of a bubble.
my DS very bright but doesn't organise himself well or break too much of a sweat achieved v highly so all in all a good fit for lots of diff kids.
hth.

oh, rumours abound re: the head but i have no idea what actually happened.

@KaliforniaDreamz - can I ask did you DS just finish and how did he travel there?

Did he take the train or bus to school? We are considering it from Wimbledon also but day is very long if you stay for prep - and the school bus doesn't get back to Wimbledon until 6:27pm. it seems like a very long day at 11 years old! And it leaves very early too at 7:15am... Does everyone stay for prep/clubs?

Would the train make it shorter? Looks like a bit of a trek from the station to the school? About 15 minutes walk? With the 24 mins on the train that's 40 mins just one side - not including the walk to the station our side as well.

However I agree that I really liked the less pressured feeling of the school. The results have been brilliant this year which shows you don't need to put everyone in a pressure-cooker. You can still do well with much less angst. I like this approach.

Hi @BleuNoir, lots of people come from Wimbledon.

It is a longer day than other schools, but that is because they do their homework at school and do 6/7 hours of sport, plus their enrichment time every week. They do have an example of their day on the website so it may be worth taking a look.

I would say a large majority of children do prep. They don’t have prep on Friday, so they get the bus around 4.30pm that day. My DS wishes there was prep on Friday, so he wouldn’t have homework over the weekend. Also prep is supervised so they do settle and get their homework done. They have their phones during prep, so u can contact them from end of school till and during, bus time.

The school is very homely, and it is a ‘home away from home’ so they have lounges in their house rooms, and the library is lovely too. They have their tutor time every day to check in, and a matron to look after them. So while the day is long, it is so in a safe, comfortable and homely environment.

You can pick up your children at 4.15 as well though if you want too. Always or on an ad hoc basis.

The flexi boarding is very popular too, with children making friends and then staying the night every so often, to use the facilities and have a lie in and a cooked breakfast before school!

@Berrylina sorry have just seen your question. We applied to Reeds, Halliford and St Johns and chose St Johns as we felt it was a better fit for our son. As it is a personal decision about your child.

I hope this helps. It’s a stressful time.

I think any child lucky enough to go there will have a lovely time. It really is a nice school.
My DS got the train. This does shorten the day as you don't have to wait for the school bus. Walk at other end is aprox 10 mins. There are lots of kids doing this journey so it is safe.
Popular choice is to do school bus for a term then swap to train. you could always collect a couple of eves (if u have that capacity) to shorten the day.
I have experience of a few diff types of school (incl. all boys state, all girls selective) and if i were going myself and had the money i would choose StJ.

Really great to hear such positive reviews on St. John’s, couldn’t agree more. We visited 6 schools and it stood out the above all others. Exceptional grounds and the pastoral care really comes across as very strong. Also happy to hear lots of families come from Wimbledon! Does anyone have any advice/feedback on sixth form online abilities entrance test? Is it CEM/CAT 4/ISEB? Thanks

DD at SJL - generally the Wimbledon bus is earlier in an evening than the time stated on the website. I would say most if not all children are off the bus between 6.05 and 6.20 depending g on where between Coombe lane and Southfields they get off. They should have done all their prep by then so while it’s a long day they can come home and vegetate / chill out. As one PP said there is also flex to leave at 4.15 and get the train / a lift if needed, and Fridays are early home nights.
SJL is unique with its flexi boarding offering - literally you can do 1 night / 2 nights / 3 nights or 4 nights and the adhoc option is amazing.

So Rowena Cole is going to LEH - if any St. John’s parents have and insight into her that they wouldn’t mind sharing (pm if you’d rather) we would love to hear it!!!

Us too!

Me too!

Interesting. I would ask questions if planning to take co-Ed? Wondering what her children would do as has a boy and girl.
Still don't get why she left St Johns with no role to go directly to.