Any opinions on Wren Academy.

[fortune]

I went to the open evening last night and thought it was a lovely school. The children looked really happy and confident. Nice teaching staff. Did any one else attend or have any thoughts about it.

Sorry just saw your previous post, you live in Tottenham. Belmont isn't exactly that local, anyway. Wren will in my and i'm sure many others opinions be a much better school than Latymer. Come and visit the school at the summer fete and your son will get a much better feel for the school and the children attending. It should be advertised soon on the website, if not I will post a reminder nearer the time.

cechina - not for the reasons notapushy1 mentions, but your son will be fine at Wren compared to Belmont.

What child at age 10/11 wouldn't love the visuals and atmosphere of the fabulous site that Belmont exudes? It's our job as parents to see through this and to weigh up pros and cons, costs and benefit. 60% of Belmont fees is still huge and there are considerable hidden costs on top if you really want you DS to have the full experience. Despite the fact that Mill Hill school is moving up the academic ranks, I still can't see the value for money compared to what you could get from a motivated child at somewhere like the Wren.

Regardless, forget Belmont. You have heard from Parents about the Wren. Its all positive, so if you are inclined, go for it and make it happen. If you think your DS will fit in, be motivated and happy then go for it!
Good luck

Hi Cecinha
Hoping you are reassured by all these posts. I'm just wondering, did your son get a place on distance or is he CofE? I understand they offer on both but not sure how far the distance goes.

Cecinha - I have dcs at Belmont and Mill Hill and also have two good friends with
DCs at Wren. One has DCs at both Wren and Mill Hill - and she really rates Wren - she thinks it is a great school in fact she says she would have considered moving her other DCs had they been the right ages. Both Wren parents think that it is great - they especially like the way that the school will grow around the children so they are not too overwhelmed.
I also think Belmont is a lovely school - standards at both Belmont and Mill Hill are rising. If you are really keen it might be worth talking to the school again - Mill Hill certainly has a scheme offering full bursaries (so you would pay no fees).However Mill Hill fees are significantly higher than Belmont's.
Mill Hill also has an intake at 13+ so you could always ask whether your DS would stand a chance of gaining an increased bursary at that point. The new head is keen on attracting high flyers so there might be some flexibility. Also worth mentioning to them if your DS has other talents - they offer assistance to those gifted in sport/music and drama as well.
Also your DS should remember that Mill Hill has compulsory Saturday school that lasts all day (well until 3ish) and the school day starts at 8.15 during the week and ends between 3.30 and 5.30 - so the thought of losing weekends might help change his mind.
HTH

Hi Cecinha

I just posted on another thread that Wren has just been judged 'outstanding' in its first Ofsted report.

That's nice, but I've seen a lot of schools get 'outstanding' and wondered how the hell they managed that!

Anyway, the best thing about Wren is that the teachers and the head are almost insanely committed to turning out nice, thoughtful, well-educated and happy children - whatever their capabilities. It is a lovely, safe environment for learning (the teachers don't tolerate ANY bad behaviour), but they are not afraid to encourage the kids to their limits.

Our DD has blossomed incredibly since going to Wren. She's now in year 8 and it very happy and proud of her school.

Best of luck to your DS anyway, wherever he ends up.

Just anecdotal, but I know that within the borough (LEA) Wren is seen as having a lot of potential, but not 'quite there yet'. Obviously it's very new, so everyone is watching and waiting.

Compton and Mill Hill County are seen as better, particularly Compton. Compton is seen as being a flagship non-selective school that is getting great results (improving year on year) - strikingly so given it's intake comes from a fairly broad socio-economic when compared to the high achieving selective schools in the borough (QE Boys, HB, St Michael's).

Compton is definitely one to watch. I have a feeling it is going to become the 'bun-fight to get into' state school in Barnet.

should have said socio-economic background, sorry

How wonderful to read these comments as my son starts in a couple of weeks and we have up until now had a number of disappointments in the exhausting schools selection process. We can't wait now!

Excellent school, extremely well run.
Our first was in first intake so now y8, delighted our second is going there in September.
Compton's catchment area has expanded due to competition from Wren, Compton is known as a good school so competition will be healthy but not trouble them. Children art Wren coming from Colindale, Hampstead, Harrow, though most are more local.
The new block opened a couple of weeks ago and facilities are great.
By far the most important thing in our opinion is the teachers - they are a great team run by an inspirational and very driven head.
Must echo other comments here - they are control freaks and need to learn to chill a little - Ofsted said so too in their inspection report a few weeks ago.
School fete this Saturday June 12th, run by active PTA - which is relatively rare at secondary level. PTA also run a website at friendsofwrenacademy.wordpress.com/

Hi All,
I was trying to find out what time the fete started tomorrow as my son is starting at Wren in September. Can anyone help?

My Husband and I spent a long time looking at all the school?s in the Borough of Barnet, and even longer sadly talking about nothing else night after night in the hope that one of us would make a decision!! In the end we narrowed it down to three schools and our son chose Wren. After all, it will be him attending the school and it seemed only fair he had a say in which one he felt he would be the most happy, comfortable and able to achieve his goals at. A few of my friend?s children are there already and I have heard fantastic things about Wren. I am really looking forward to my son starting in September, and more importantly...so is he!

Hi MummyDD

Wren catchment area this year was only 0.65 of a mile, I live 0.829 of a mile and got in by appeal - Cechina must have got in by religion, I presume.

Although someone at work advised that schools in Barnet, Enfield, Harrigey etc. have an agreement to have a number of allocated places for cross borough placement - don't know if this is true....

I don't know anything about the academic progress of Wren Academy but I will say this....

I have a son in a Barnet secondary school and recently attended a Borough sports event at Copthall Stadium. It was a very competitive event yet good natured. Wren Academy were not only good at sports, but more importantly were good sportsmen ! My son did not realise they were Wren Academy as their P E Kit was a similar colour !!!! He commented that he thought they were Year 7 and 8 from his own school, they were that friendly. I think that speaks volumes.

My son has now been at Wren for 8 weeks and he loves it!! He is enthusiastic and very happy there. He didn't concentrate at Primary school very well and yet he has just received a letter from his teacher for outstanding hard work in science. It gave him such a boost. Hopefully my daughter will get into the school next September and love it just as much.

My son, who attends a church school in N10, has been offered a place at Wren Academy.

As this thread has been dormant for a while, I just wondered if anyone could offer some more (updated) views?

Thank you

bump

notapushymum - you sound like such a snob! Who cares what people do for a living??

Have heard parents taking their children out of Compton School and putting them into the Wren because the behaviour is much better there. That's all the info I have.

Good luck.

I must say, in total honesty, that the wren academy is a truly amazing school. My child moved there from compton last year and is over the moon with her decision. Yes, I must admit that the head is not exactly a people-person, the academy itself is wonderful, where all children can learn and be enthusiastic about doing so without ridicule. Although the students are mainly middle-class, everyone feels at home which I feel is often a problem for my oldest son who attends a public school. Compton seems very nice from the outside, but when talking to a variety of students they all said it was quite frankly awful, and that Friern Barnet, despite its problems with behaviour and results, was much better.
I am astounded by this award-winning school and thoroughly suggest you to at least have a look around and im sure you will feel as pleased as I am.

Hi All,

I just thought I'd touch-base after my initial emails last year. My boy's been at Wren for over a year now and I think things are going to plan. I agree with LaurenK1197 that there's quite a bit of work to be done when it comes to listening more (to the kids and the parents alike) - this was the main criticism by Ofsted. My son is now in year 8 and fully involved in most of the activities at the school. I only have one niggling concern: they don't seem to be very flexible when it comes to freedom of expression - not mucking about in the classroom but actually constructively making and arguing their point. I believe that food teachers and good Heads are the ones who can unashamedly admit that they are always learning from the children and interacting with them. Once a teacher/Head thinks that they do not need to do it, then there's something symptomatically wrong with them. That's just my humble view, as someone who taught teachers and adults for 12 years.

Sorry, meant to say good teachers!! I taught teachers, children and adults by the way!

We had a Lance Corporal called Jenny his surname was Wren. Nice bloke. This may not be relevant

I am keen to send both my children to the Wren. I have been baffled by a common attitude in our area that a school is better if a child have to do an exam to get in! If bright children can achieve well and are encouraged and stimulated at an outstanding school, which is the case at the Wren form all that I have heard, I do not know what the preference for selective schools is really based on. I have high expectations of my children and want them to be in a very good local school with good values. My research so far points to the Wren. We are churchgoing intellectuals (I think!). I am an Oxford graduate myself and we expect our children to go to very good universities. I do hope that other parents who are equally ambitious for their children will not be thinking of the Wren as as mere second choice but will make a positive choice of the Wren. Thanks for the informative discussion above.

Newbie here, so apologies if this thread is more or less redundant now. We visited the Wren twice in the last week, the second tour with our DC's.

The buildings are new, light, pleasant. A little too functional, sterile and soul-less perhaps? Size and space possibly a little tight when in a year or two the school will have built up all its years.

As parents, we too were impressed by the behaviour we noted of the students, and by our Year 7 guides who were great despite having only arrived there a few weeks ago. We liked the commitment of the teachers, echoed in the comments on this forum.

What we weren't so sure about is a little more difficult to explain: the discpline is good, but could the rules be a little stifling? For example, we heard from one student on the first tour that you weren't allowed to run or play football in the playground. We asked our Year 7 guide the next day about this and she said 'Yes, we are supposed to act like young adults and not run about in the playground area. There is skipping and a few hula hoops.' There a lots of reasons why this policy could be good - less likely for students to injure themselves/others, less such incidents to manage. But we could not help thinking this might be difficult for our two DS's to let off a little steam during the winter months (when they wont have access to the outdoor multi-sports area). Could this be a slightly more girl-friendly policy than boy-friendly? We noticed on both tours that in break times, only boys seemed to be outdoors. There were two table tennis tables also in the playground.

Being able to run in the playground is not of course a 'deal breaker' in the decision process, but it was part of an overall slight sense of unease we had of the school's approach to school life - new academy, striving to get good results in the next year or so in particular - anything wrong in that? well no, I guess not, but I want my DCs to have fun at school and enjoy learning both academic and non-academic 'stuff'. The school may have adopted tough rules ('don't ask what happens if we go the wrong way down the stairs' another guide told us) but whilst the ofsted report was truly outstanding, I still have these niggling doubts.

I basically hate this secondary school decision-making, as I feel there's nothing out there that ticks all the boxes! My nick should be pullingwhatsleftofmyhairout

bump!!!

Ok first post so I hope this works.

Y7 mum so only 6 weeks at Wren but could not be happier.

School at capacity as open (and full) to years 7-11, seems to have enough space.

There is a multi use area (not the playground) so they can let off steam and so far have not found this an issue. Also they only get 35 mins for lunch (excellent food apparently) so not that much time anyway. There are however lots of after school clubs including all the usual sports so they can join them.

They are strict with the rules on time keeping, behaviour, uniform, standard of work (effort and following instructions), but they are clear rules so no issues so far and I like this clarity.

The school are very organised and efficient and they are very well prepared for lessons. The standard of teaching seems very good and they have been set targets which are already being reviewed from recent tests ? so academically it looks promising so far.

The best part DS is very happy and looks forward to school.

Good Luck