Need advise moving to Berryfields in Aylesbury

[raytopme]

Hi Everyone,
I hoping to move to Berryfields in Aylesbury, and wish to find out about the area. It's a new area but also wierd that there so many houses on sale, and a little high crime rate as well. So want to seek for advise on how this area is raising kids and if the secondary schools (Aylesbury Vale Academy) in the area is good. I will really appreciate any advise.

Why are you looking to move there? My friend has lived there 10 years from the early stages of the development and it’s nothing like it was.

I think it’s a bit rough to be honest!

Wanting to move there so we can be in grammar school/ Waddesdon CofE catchment, are there other nice living areas of Aylesbury and secondary schools (grammar and non grammar) that you would suggest?

I’d probably look more at surrounding villages - Aylesbury itself isn’t that nice! What about Waddesdon? I think it would be better to drive around and get a feel for the areas as Berryfields just feels like a massive run down car park, there are areas much nicer and still in catchment for good schools.

I haven't been there since before Covid, but everyone at school who lived in those villages was bored out of their skull. I would rather have lived in Aylesbury, as long as it wasn't in the really rough parts.

@raytopme Have a look at Wendover. Much nicer place to be and John Colet School is good. I have friends with children there and all are very happy.

Berryfields is literally an enormous new housing estate in the middle of nowhere. Literally nothing to do.

I used to live in Berryfields, it’s nice in someways and some areas have a decent community feel, but it is very large and suffers from some antisocial behaviour.

Green Ridge is an excellent, very oversubscribed primary school, AVA primary is ok. AVA secondary is…well it’s not many people’s first choice lets put if that way… If I were moving back to Aylesbury (which I totally would) then I would love to live in Fairford Leys. It would be worth a smaller house for the nicer area, and closer to town too which is good for teenagers and young people.

Hey- I’ve lived on Berryfields for 8 years now. Here’s my opinion.

Whilst my son is only 6months I can’t personally comment on the schools but green ridge is highly rated by my friends.
The estate itself- yes it’s big, but it was always planned to be big. There’s 3500 homes here but unless you’re the postman it doesn’t feel like it!

I go on a 5km walk every morning with the pram which the developers designed on the perimeter of the estate. (You can make it 8km but I stick to my side of the main road). It’s 100% pram and wheelchair friendly and is a lovely quiet and relaxing walk.
Rarely see any dog muck as there’s plenty of bins and owners respect where they live.

We have a Sainsbury’s local, a coffee shop, domino’s, a chippy, a pharmacy, a tanning place and an estate agents. Over by the train station and miller and Carter- inside Lucas furniture is another coffee shop. On the new business ‘park’ behind that there is a hair dressers (I’ve been going to Ed since he converted his garage), a gym and other businesses. There’s also a community hall used for many things and tennis courts to rent. Then a Starbucks on the main road. Not to mention a huge new surgery with a private dentist inside. Then a retirement home behind and 2 nurseries. All this is walking distance wherever you are on the estate.

Unfortunately there is crime wherever you go. The issues over the years have mainly been keyless car thefts but that happens everywhere. A few rowdy teenagers but the Facebook page usually calls them out with parents apologising- but again find a place with no teenagers!

The community spirit here is great, only yesterday we had a huge garage sale across the entire estate. 100’s of people out and about, it was lovely.
Oh and parks- we have 13 parks!

Halloween is a big thing here. If you decorate get ready to buy sweets in bulk- we shifted 350 packs in 90mins last year.
Christmas lights again are a big thing with competitions.

Sorry for war and peace but I really like it here 😊

Please don't move to Berryfields with the hope of getting into Waddesdon secondary school. It's true there have been some years when the admissions have come this far out, but the year before last, they didn't even admit all the Christians (which are in the category above distance), so nobody from Berryfields got in.

AVA secondary has a good reputation - considering it's a Secondary Modern - the vast majority of bright kids are stripped out and go to the grammar schools. It's - I believe - one of the better Secondary Moderns, but the age-old problems of behaviour and SEN without adequate resources are definitely there. This is a problem throughout Bucks though, and not unique to Berryfields.

Berryfields is lovely. Any crime tends to be low-level teenagers messing around. There's definitely a family vibe - and because it's a new-build, everyone's keen to make friends and put down roots. Echo a PP who says Halloween is massive, and the garage sale was cool!

Can't speak highly enough of Green Ridge Primary Academy; there's a new headteacher (replacing the previous, also excellent headteacher) this year, and she seems to be making some really positive changes. However, its catchment is very small - aim to live no more than 0.2 miles from the school if you want to be assured a spot.

I would also add that grammar competition is fierce. Approximately 5 children out of 30 will pass the 11+ in Aylesbury Vale (higher pass rates in the villages), and they are all tutored extensively.

I wish it was more the case that bright PPG children passed, but sadly they are the absolute exception, not the rule. At DD's grammar school there are 2 PPG children in the whole year of 180.

Make sure you're happy with your catchment secondary modern, as unless you can afford private, it's where the vast majority of children will go.

That isn't necessarily the case. My son went to AGS and wasn't tutored, I was a single mum and on benefits at the time. We lived in a Quarrendon 2.

My DD is at AHS, her primary - Elmhurst - was put into special measures whilst she was there. She has NO tutoring either, I would not say either were exceptionally bright.

So it's possible to come from crap areas in Aylesbury, have no tutoring and still go to grammar schools.

Absolutely - and a huge well done to your children! They are though, sadly, the exception rather than the rule. Some grammar schools hold back a handful of places for bright PPG children who don't quite score the magic 121, but even so, the proportion of PPG children at primary school is in no way equal to the proportion of PPG children at grammar schools.

In DD's class of 30, 5 children passed the 11+. None were PPG, all were tutored. 4 children who were tutored didn't pass. One got through at selection review.

I was just trying to make the point to OP that don't move to the area with the expectation your children will definitely go to grammar - and make sure you're happy with your plan B school - because there's very limited choice in Aylesbury other than your catchment (unless you are Catholic/Christian).

You are right, there is very limited choice for good secondaries in the town.

I have quite a few friends children who attend St Michael's in Aylesbury, it seems that is far worse than AVA. My best friend actually cried when her DS didn't get into St Michael's, but he's flourishing in AVA, those with children in St Michael's want to move their children...it sounds almost as bad as Mandeville!