Comparing the Herts Consortium schools?

[Hera]

I will be appling for my DS for school entry in 2013. Does anyone have any first hand or local knowledge about the following schools as I am fairly new to the area? I have looked at results and ofsted reports but they don't tell the whole story and I haven't visited any of the schools and by the time the next set of open days come up I will be in the process of applying. I am closest to Rickmansworth School, then Watford Boys, Clement Dane and furthest from Parmiters. My DS will take the exams, but it is the order I would put the schools down on the form. Particularly say Rickmansworth which is pretty much walking distance and Watford boys which is a bus ride away. Thanks.

[Daogroupie]

Hello, If you look at the WP sticky you will see that some of the schools require a far higher mark in the exam to win a place so I would recommend that you take that into account when choosing your rankings. There is no point putting a school that requires a higher pass mark below one that you can get into with a lower pass mark. If your dc result is not higher enough for rank one it will not be enough for rank two either. DG

[Hera]

Thanks, I see what you mean. However I guess a higher score in the exams doesn't necceesarily mean it is a better school or does it?

[Daogroupie]

No, not at all. It just means that more people who sat the exam want to go there so the pass mark to get a place goes up. Just because more people apply this does not make it a better school. Look at my post titled Top Ten Secondary Schools in Hertfordshire by application to see the truth of that. It may be that more ten and eleven year olds live near the school, the housing mix may be different for each school and older people holding onto the houses and not moving out to bring in more young children makes a difference year by year as well. DG

[WP]

Thanks, I see what you mean. However I guess a higher score in the exams doesn't necceesarily mean it is a better school or does it?

You're quite right. I wouldn't advocate ranking schools by how hard they are to get into, but the differences do mean that if you prefer school A to school B, and school B routinely requires a higher score, then there's not much point in listing school B on your form.

[Hera]

Thanks for that. I agree with what you are saying about there being little point ranking a school that historically required a lower pass mark above one that needs a higher one. However my issue is also that I want to put the school that will be "best" first regardless of the exam marks. I don't know which will be best and by the time I can visit it will only be a week or so before the forms go in. I just wondered if anyone out there that knows the schools could give me an idea of what they are like as reports and results, although they tell you a lot don't give you the full picture

[WP]

Thanks for that. I agree with what you are saying about there being little point ranking a school that historically required a lower pass mark above one that needs a higher one. However my issue is also that I want to put the school that will be "best" first regardless of the exam marks.

That's not quite what I meant: if you genuinely prefer the first school, there's little point in ranking the second one at all; you'd be better off using that slot on the form for a backup plan. Though there will be less of a squeeze on preferences if the number goes up to 4.