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Francis Holland NW1

Posted: Tue Apr 20, 2010 10:19 am
by mm3
What do people think about Francis Holland, Clarence Gate ? Does anyone have their children there and would care to share their opinions ? or know anything about it.

It is one of the schools we are considering, but I would be interested in knowing a bit more about it - what the girls are like, how pastoral issues are dealt with, academic standards, girls attitude etc.

Thank you.

Posted: Tue Apr 20, 2010 10:45 am
by mad?
Sorry no personal relevant experience but there was a thread in this section a year or 2 ago comparing it with more house I think...I cannot post the link becasue I am an idiot but if you search on the school it may well come up.

Posted: Tue Apr 20, 2010 11:13 am
by mm3
I know - I contributed to that discussion! For various reasons we didn't send our daughter there at the time, in the end, but are now considering it again.

Posted: Tue Apr 20, 2010 11:14 pm
by hopeforthebest
[quote

Posted: Wed Apr 21, 2010 2:29 pm
by another mother
mm3 - have pm'd you.

Posted: Mon May 24, 2010 10:35 am
by picasso
Hi mm3.

I did post the original post on here regarding Francis Holland CG and More House. In the end we chose Francis Holland. My daughter is in Yr 8 now and I have to say she has been transformed at the school. She went into the school as a very average student probably well below average if I am honest (how she got into FH in the first place is nothing short of a miracle) and is now an above average student and will probably get in the top 90% across all of her exams this summer.

My daughter loves it there and has blossomed. We did have a problem in terms of bullying in Yr 7 but the school dealt with it very well and it was nipped in the bud within a few days. They seem to be well rounded girls and there seems to be a nice mixture of girls- a few coming from state schools. They do seem to get a lot of homework compared to some of the other independents and are pushed. The school is very strong in terms of their music. The one complaint I would have is that they do tend to push very much on the more academic subjects- and I do not feel that they do any favours to those girls who are a little more artistic ( in fact looking at their leavers destinations very few go on to art colleges) . My daughter is very artistic and I have felt that this is pushed to the side a little in favour of the more academic subjects, but am hoping that this will change as she does her GCSE's. Usual sports although they don't tend to win very much but they do try. Lots of xtra curricular clubs and all in all a great school. it was definitely the right choice for us.

Teachers are friendly enough and the school is very efficient in communicating with parents. Apart from the usual parent teacher evenings there is not much interaction with other parents...(but this may just be me and the fact that my daughter would rather I not appear at school matches etc) It is a very busy school with lots of things going on for the girls. There has been some movement with some girls leaving and some coming in...but I guess this is the same for all schools.

The headmistress is lovely although some parents complain about the way she comes across, especially speaking in public. I know a few parents who have been put off applying to the school on the basis of her speech at open days. My daughter tells me that this is because she has a terrible phobia about speaking in public (don't know how true this is!) I like her though and she is tremendously supportive of the girls she has in her school and knows each one personally. She does not buy into this league table business and I think she is right. It is after all very easy for school such as NLCS and St Pauls to do very well when they are taking the top 2% of girls. The measure of a schools success in my opinion is how well they do with girls that are just bordering on the average as well as supporting the very able girls to be the very best that they can be.

Having said all of this, rumour has it that Francis Holland have now become much more selective. I notice that they have introduced two interviews now, one general and one academic. I don't really know much about the academic interview but I am guessing it is to filter the more able girls. Am due to go through the whole 11+ process again with my youngest daughter and feel she won't get a look in- especially as they do not have a sibling policy.

Please PM me if you need more info.

Re: Francis Holland NW1

Posted: Fri Jun 18, 2010 5:54 pm
by Sassie'sDad
I used to live in London several decades ago and then this school was somewhat trendy, though quite good. If it is more selective now then I find that quite surprising, though (entirely personal view) desireable. Please remember that it is always horses for courses. One sibling can Love the school and thrive; another can hate it and mark time. There is no substitute for personal vetting and perhaps only a parent can take a view of how suitable "any" school might be for a particular individual.