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Secondary education

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Solihull School, King's High or North Leamington School

5 replies

depp10201 · 12/03/2025 21:16

We have visited a lot of schools and we liked these but we're unsure about which school would be the best fit for DD. She is a bright child who is creative but not particularly sporty or musical. She would prefer an unpressured environment. DD is a sensitive child but has grown in confidence this year. Location is not an issue as we are looking to move.

We're trying to gauge whether King's is as pressured as Solihull. DD doesn't mind a co-ed or girls school. Which school might be better for a bright but probably middling child in these schools in terms of building confidence and being given opportunities? I've heard that the boys can be quite boisterous in the seniors at Solihull and tend to dominate the lessons. We were very impressed with King's and it felt like a very empowering school for girls. We're just not sure if it's the type of girls school where the girls are supportive of one another or competitive against each other. We are looking for a school that's going to enable DD to thrive and not just survive.

We also like North Leamington School as it seemed like a nurturing and inclusive school. It's also not overly big at eight forms and the children would all be local, which would be great for friendships. Our concerns are that DD has now become used to classes of approx 18 at her current prep school with generally well behaved and motivated children and supportive parents. Would it be too much of a stretch to expect her to fit into a state senior school, particularly as she is not the most resilient or robust of children?

Any advice or insights into these schools would be much appreciated.

OP posts:
justinhawkinsnavalfluff · 13/03/2025 01:25

Kings is known to be quite pushy.

YouveGotAFastCar · 13/03/2025 03:32

Kings isn’t particularly nurturing… it has a local reputation for being quite pushy and pressured.

North Leam is nice, but it’s a decent sized school, and as you’ve said, it may be a big adjustment take her to go to quite a large state school if she’s not resilient or robust.

LoudSnoringDog · 13/03/2025 04:34

Ds1 went to Solihull school. We found it to be very nurturing and supportive in a pastoral sense.
There is a big push on sports but only if you are a sporty person. He had a great time there.

depp10201 · 13/03/2025 19:07

Thanks for your responses. I know that King's used to have a reputation for being pushy and quite academic but I thought that things had changed in recent years. This was the message that was being put across during the recent open evening. The Head Master and other staff were saying that it's a nurturing school and has moved away from its previous reputation. The girls that showed us around were lovely and it felt like a really positive environment for girls but it's hard to know what the school is like on a normal school day.

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depp10201 · 13/03/2025 19:13

LoudSnoringDog - I'm glad your son enjoyed his time at Solihull School. How do you think it would suit a child who would probably be somewhere in the middle academically but not fussed about the sport or music offering? Would a child in the middle get opportunities to shine in other areas of school life?

What are the homework expectations as pupils move up the school? I've been told that pupils are assessed in every subject every half term from Year 7 - does this create added pressure for the pupils?

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