My DIL rang today to ask my advice about choosing a school for DGC next year. It's a choice of 2 senior schools where they live
School 1 is huge, with state of the art facilities including recording studio, new kitchens for cooking with latest ovens etc, huge IT center, languages labs, music suite with pianos for everyone to have one each, large science labs with very modern equipment and a full size swimming pool. However, there's a high turnover of staff, and head teachers, constant supply teachers, currently 5 staff vacancies and the children experience very strict discipline including putting in an exclusion room for forgetting even a pencil. The children looked worried when they saw the head.
This is the nearest school.
School 2 is older, facilities are adequate but worn, no pool, a few pianos, but the children look happy and smiling, staff have been there years, as has the head. They check if children have the right equipment once a month and give team points to those who have everything.
DGC is well behaved but is slightly behind in maths and English. Also learning the piano and an excellent swimmer excelling in all sports including football and gymnastics. DGC won't ask if they don't understand anything, and is seeing a tutor to catch up with maths and English. Its a bit further away.
Both schools have a good ofsted rating.
