HABS girls and HABS boys current parents please

[Danila12]

Hi there,
I would love to hear back from current parents of Habs girls and Habs boys. Please do feel free to PM me if more convenient.
In essence, our DD has been offered a place at Habs girls and if she goes in we can potentially also look to for our son to start there soon so both on same site and sharing coaches.
However, I keep hearing / reading bad reviews about Habs girls: mainly it being focused purely on achievement and not effort, change of Head at the moment also not great, new leadership at the girls school, both lower school and senior school raises concerns and uncertainty, girls getting good grades at the expense of actually enjoying their experience at school etc).
I would really really appreciate honest and balanced feedback on Habs girls from current parents as it is a big decision for us involving a move.

Habs Boys parents - the reviews and hearsay from research and school visit is much more aligned and consistent - most parents seem very happy with it but again, would welcome your feedback please for the good / bad points - please feel free to DM me if easier.

Thank you so much in advance.

Sorry, I am sure somebody with personal Habs experience will come along soon to answer your questions. I was just wondering if you have other offers on your plate?

@Herewegoagain78 , thank you. Yes, we have STAHS and NLCS but Habs is appealing as it offers same site for both genders.

GD is in yr 6 and very happy there and doing very well. They give praise where it is due. I know someone who was a locus teacher there and he said the pastoral care was second to none. Have to say we agree. Loads of opportunities to develop their interests. GD does cross country, swimming, water polo, orchestra, flute, singing and just won an art scholarship. Parents are delighted she is going through to the senior school and wouldn’t dream of moving her. She is definitely enjoying the whole school experience.

As I say, I don’t have personal experience of Habs and clearly the PP has a happy one. Sadly, a few of my friends are not so pleased. I just wanted to perhaps suggest that the site point might not be so important. The bus stops for Habs and NLCS are the same, only a couple of minutes apart. The kids’ timetable is likely going to be very different so there will be few opportunities to pick both up in one scoop. My girls are at NLCS so I am clearly biased but I just wanted to offer a different point of view, in case you had dismissed it based on location. Most of the NLCS girls’ brothers go to Habs btw :)
Indeed, if your heart is set on Habs girls fo for it and I am sure your daughter will thrive, but I wouldn’t feel like you HAVE to choose it either as I am not sure the convenience will really materialise. Good luck!

@mdh2020 Thank you - that is very helpful. Good to see a positive experience.

Habs girls' parent here. DD has been there since junior school...
Very happy, lovely friends, lots of amazing co-curricular. Now heading towards 6th form where they do at least one A-level co-ed which we think this is a great balance.
Last HT wasn't great, not terrible but nobody will be particularly sad to see her go. The appointment of Gus Lock as exec-head will be a very good thing and will provide stability whilst new Heads of School are recruited under him. He is very popular and his focus is as much on happiness as results.
I wouldn't say the school is obsessively focused on results, or certainly not until the exam years which i think is normal.
Teachers are warm, passionate about their subjects and very supportive. It is competitive, but no more so than NLCS or any other academic girls' school.
DD has been happy at the school from day one. The covid years weren't much fun and it did feel like the joy had been sucked out of the school but i feel that's probably not entirely their fault. The fun stuff is now firmly back in place. It's been a great school and i would make the same decision if i had my time again! Hope that helps, good luck with your decision.

DD moved to Habs at Yr 7 and is absolutely thriving, as is her lovely circle of school friends. We struggled to choose between Habs and NLCS, but we went with gut instinct in the end, which I think is the best approach, and know we made the right choice for DD. For us it felt more grounded, stable and all-rounded. It feels a Hertfordshire school, whereas NLCS feels a London school - if that is something influencing your view. We’ve raised a pastoral concern once, that was dealt with efficiently within the day by the Head of Year. With a school with over 1100 kids, you’re inevitably going to get a range of views, and no doubt the odd bad experience, but everyone we know is pleased with their choice of school. Everything runs very smoothly and efficiently, our dd loves going to school and is engaged in her learning, has extension tasks where needed/interested. We’re in awe at the range of skills, interests and achievements of so many of her classmates. We think the closer relationship with the boys’ school is a great thing, so no complaints here. I’ve noticed on this forum Habs does seem the sort of school people throw random third-hand comments about but have no direct experience themselves (see up the thread!) - but the criticisms I’ve read third hand don’t match anything me or DD recognise.

@Teaandchocolatebiscuit my comments aren’t “random”, they are thoughtful and balanced. I’d like to think I have been able to provide something helpful to the OP (privately and publicly). Stick to your feedback on the school, no need to comment on others.

Two daughters at Habs so first hand experience (not hearsay like others)! Absolutely thriving at school. Academically there is no more pressure than other schools like NLCS. In addition, the pastoral care has been outstanding. Every single teacher has put in so much effort every year. Quite recently there is increased collaboration with boys school for a well rounded experience. For example, boys from primary school came to girls school for few lessons and playtime. A really good mix of single sex education with experience of working with opposite sex. This also sets the school apart.

@Changeitplease , @Teaandchocolatebiscuit and @ificould Thank you all very much for your balanced views on the school. It is greatly appreciated.

Another current Habs parent. DD joined in Y7 and is now in sixth form. Agree with the comments of other Habs parents that have already fedback. DD joined in Y7 and did her GCSEs last year. I have always found the teachers supportive and accessible. The only pressure that DD has felt is from being with other bright and capable girls, and, dare I say, what we as parents may place on them 😳.

I do not recognise the comment about getting good grades at the expense of enjoying school experience. I have found the opposite. I have to hold back my DD from overextending herself with extracurriculars. The sixth form extracurricular programe is excellent.

@nizzy123 Thank you so much for adding your experience! Greatly appreciate it.

I also have 2 DDs at Habs Girls, both joined at 11+
Both extremely happy and thriving in different ways. They both have a wonderful group of friends.
We haven't noticed academic pressure from the school - there are a lot of tests, as in most secondary schools, but no school-imposed pressure.

The appointment of Gus Locke as exec head is a very exciting step forward for the school.
Again, as others have said, don['t rely on hearsay. Ultimately you will have a feel for which school is a better fit for your daughter and you should go with your/her instinct, but don't discount Habs on the basis of a a few negative reviews.

Current parent. Mrs Hardy has been a disaster and should have gone sooner. Lots of the good teachers have left. One chemistry and one geography teacher had to be sacked as they couldn't teach and school has had to put in remedial lessons for the girls taught by those teachers. Parent body in years 7 - 10 are extremely unhappy, huge numbers of complaints. Loads of negative comments put in to ISI which seem to have been ignored - general feeling that recent ISI was a whitewash. Hopefully Gus Lock (who has a daughter at the girls school) can whip the school into shape and they'll get a better head next time but it's so sad what has happened to what was a superb school.

(name changed for obvious reasons)

GD is in yr 6 and looking forward to moving through the school. We are all delighted with her progress. The school has an excellent pastoral system. One teacher told me that if he had known he would have sent his own DD there and not to NLCS.

As far as I know the problems are all in the senior school, junior parents are largely happy.

@tissuepaper Huge thanks for the honest feedback. It is greatly appreciated!

On the plus side, the NLCS parents seem very sad to lose Dr Bagworth-Mann (just announced as the new head of Habs girls) so hopefully things will look up with the change of head.