St Marylebone or Greycoat for secondary, which to put first choice?

[BeautifulTrees1234]

Considering these two for my daughter, applying this October, any insights into which is better to aim for as 1st place? I haven't visited either yet but will visit during the open days? I've seen a lot of people write about St M here but i see less about Greycoat.

We should quality for both based on church attendance though of course will have back ups.

Both are excellent schools. We put St M first and Greycoat second, as we felt St M’s slightly more relaxed atmosphere and emphasis on the arts were a better fit for our DD. We have been offered a place at St M. I did also like Greycoat, but it felt a bit more regimented and I didn’t warm to the headteacher as much as I did to St M’s. However Greycoat gets slightly better results and gets more people into Oxbridge, if that’s important to you.

It really depends on your DD’s personality and interests as to which you put first.

Thank you that's useful. I think more relaxed would fit our DD well too, so looking forward to the open days to see if i sense that too.

We have only considered Greycoat and my daughter will start in September - logistically GC is easier to reach for us and we value the language focus which is also a plus. We were not terribly impressed by the facilities but we loved the vibe, it is strict yes but not in a way that seems unreasonable. My daughter did not feel intimidated by the speech, rather empowered, so felt was the right choice for her. Time will tell, for now she is extremely happy she got her first choice, and so are we!

It’s so important to visit the schools to get a feel for the school and how it fits with your values and expectations. You can’t read about that stuff. And if possible visit during the school day as well as during the open evenings.

Hello!

helpful information.

I heard the head is leaving St Marylebone- is that true?

We have a place at St Marylebone for DD in September. I haven’t heard anything about the Head leaving. There is a new parents’ information evening in June so I guess we will find out then if she is.

Where did you hear this please? DD is currently at St M and we haven’t heard this!

A girl who attends the school told daughter (no idea why they were talking about this!).

Thanks @Nkmama15 , my DD knows nothing about it - which isn’t to say anything as she could be oblivious!

I would think if was true it would be known to all students tbh. For me this would be big news. I did query my daughter when said but she was adamant . Again , not really sure why they would be talking about it as seems so random!