Shrewsbury School, Haileybury, St Edward’s,Oxford & Cheltenham College

[Dyau]

Does anyone have any experience or comments of these schools? My boy will go Y9 2024. Thx

Hoping you get responses OP as there are a couple there that I'm weighing up too.

My son is at Haileybury, we are all extremely happy.

If you go to their social media within the past few days you can read the Good Schools Guide 2023 review - it's glowing.

Bump up

The current head of Cheltenham was previously at Haileybury.

CC seems to have nice kids but not wildly academic. Girls' sports sound good.

We have visited 3 out 4 schools mentioned. Loved Shrewsbury and Haileybury. We were looking for a Sixth Form school. In Haileybury my DD would have had to take Maths and English to enter, whist for Shrewsbury she had to only take a test in potential A level subjects. Shrewsbury music is amazing, the new music head is young, energetic and enthusiastic. Sport offer is extensive and they support you if you want to pursue it more "professionally". They also offer rowing as sport and former students secured scholarships at US unis with rowing. Shrewsbury is a more "northern" school with much fewer London showing off and temptations. I think it is also more traditional and quirky. It also is in town which I see as a benefit. Haileybury offers IB, so you have quite a good share of European students. My DD has chosen a completely different school in the end, but her second choice was Shrewsbury and then Haileybury. On the topic of Teddies in Oxford, we were utterly unlucky with the experience. The admissions lady was very snobbish, arrogant and cold. So it was a straight no for us unfortunately. But a lot of others comment on this school as friendly and open.

Teddies has a bit of a reputation for taking kids who failed out of more academic London day schools (DD has 3 friends there now who left NHES, G&L and Wimbledon high respectively- 2 are lovely girls if a bit daffy, one was very challenging in terms of behaviour.) It seems to do a good job keeping everyone in check and I know their predicted grades are good and their parents are happy (and relieved!)

In fairness the more behaviourally challenged girl was horribly under-parented at home and has really benefited from the structure and boarding.

Our experience of St Edward’s Oxford was a truly terrible one.

@Cooksgardener i have it on my list. Pls do explain what concerned you and what to look out for when I visit

Shrewsbury School is very good. Excellent facilities and education. Also lovely area to be schooled in. No experience of the others so cant comment

Slightly quirky nephew went to St Edwards and loved it, (left 5 or 6 years ago). Very happy socially, academically and with sports and extra curricular.
Friends v focused, high achieving son more recently at Shrewsbury. Also v happy and did very well academically and in sports.
HTH

Cheltenham College often gets dipped with "not wildly academic" but I disagree. My daughter is there and they push a value add for all children. The difference is that they do not heavily academically select.. so the cohort will not get the A* end result as much as say CLC which selects on a "wildly academic" basis. It is impossible to compare those schools with a different entrance criteria. In CC children are placed in sets for subjects and those on for a 9-7 are pushed to get a 9-7, but equally if the child is a 4-6 they are not asked to leave as they can't keep up but are supported to get that 6 when elsewhere the support for that may not be so great (and will muck the school league tables up). I have so many positives to say about CC, they really get the best out of the kids and frankly I'm glad it isn't so selective that my daughter will never have school friends who are anything other than an A. Life just isn't like that and neither are friendships. It is selective though, but just not looking for all the 9s.