Should i move schools based on this?

[Karenm1]

Hi,

Please can i have some advice?

My son started secondary school year 7 last september 2025.

We chose a school out of catchment as our catchment school has a bad name. Its a small school with circa 400 pupils. It was rated inadequate by Ofsted in 2024 and has since become an academy. The new head started about 18 months ago and is making great changes and is very well spoke of.

Im concerned after seeing their 2025 results. 23% achieved a grade 5 or higher in maths and english as opposed to the national average of circa 44%. Im really worried by this.

My son is bright and i dont want to put him somehwere that is not meeting the standard. My son seems fine at this school, we havent had any complaints really and im worried that moving him may not be right. I dont think hes made lots of new friends but it was the same at his primary school.

Hes been placed in top set for maths and science.

We have another secondary school which is 10 mins the other side of town (a lot closer than his current rural one) which has excellent results. At the time of writing this I think they are full.

What shall i do as im having sleepless nights over this?

Thank you.

You could go on the waiting lists and decide if/when a place comes up. However it sounds as if your ds will be in the 23% and often higher performers are treated well and valued in schools with lower than average results.

The 2025 results will have been from kids who have experienced an inadequate school for 4-5 years - there’s only so much a new Head can do in 18 months for that cohort. If your son is happy, and you think he’s progressing well, lesson disruption is dealt with, there are enough teachers etc etc, then the results will probably improve over time. Losing sleep over it seems a bit over the top

Thank you both of you :)

you have to remember that it is possible for your son to do better at a school where the results are worse if it's the right learning environment for him and he is happy.

I am confused - is the Inadequate school the local one or the one you selected?
If you’re not happy with the results then move him, I’m sure he would settle again quickly.

Why was it rated inadequate?
What are the outcomes for more able pupils?
Do they get some top results, showing that the teachers are able to push the ablest pupils?
Have you asked the school about how they challenge the stronger pupils?
What is the intake like? If they've mainly got pupils who didn't reach the expected standard in primary school, it's not surprising if the GCSE results are poor. Has there been a change in intake over the years? Was the last set of results from a particularly weak year group for some reason?

23% is pretty low, and in a school that size there are presumably only about 3 classes per year. If they're running 3 maths sets, there are likely to be about 30-40% of the year in the top set - so you might be looking at outcomes of 5-9 from the same set. With the best will in the world, that's hard to teach. I've done it, in the days when it meant a mix of higher/intermediate tier entries; we had an extra lesson after school for the higher tier candidates.

Do talk to the school about your concerns. They'll be keen to keep your son. There may be changes, whether in what they are doing, or in the intake, which will help allay your fears.

Is your son being stretched? DS never had to work hard in Primary School, always top. But we sent him to a Private secondary school where he was always stretched and competing to keep up with the other boys. It’s hard to teach bright children if they are the only one or two in a class. Will he get enough depth in the subjects?

Very good advice.