Dame Alice Owens VS St Albans High School

[avidskier]

I have 2 DDs at STAHS. I don't think they are any more committed or supportive than teachers at other schools as I think it will always depend on the teacher.
One thing I can say though is that my DDs are very happy there. DD1 is now doing A-Levels and has loved all her teachers (bar the odd one!) through the years. The teachers have all taken an individual interest in her and tried to help in any way they could. I am sure you could get this at other schools also if you are lucky enough to be offered somewhere appropriate - we weren't offered a state school that we wanted to accept, so are at the High School. Without fail we have found the teachers to be very caring, enthusiastic and committed...
There is setting in Maths from Y8 but all girls still learn the same material across all 7 sets. DD1 was in the bottom set throughout and loved the camaraderie and support she received. She got an A (narrowly missing an A*) along with most of her set. DD2 is in the top set in Y8 at the moment. Top sets are all expected to take Further Maths GCSE.

You are guaranteed any subject combination at GCSE and A-Level as long as you have returned the options forms on time - and they try to accommodate girls who want to swap subjects as far as they can.
I haven't found there to be any real pressure from the school in terms of home work or performance, but then my DDs just get on with things (I am very lucky in this respect!).
My DD is going to cry her eyes out when it is time to say goodbye to her teachers in the summer..

[tiredmumof3]

We were in this position 2 and 3 years ago so I understand the dilemma. Both schools are excellent. I have two daughters at DAO in years 8 and 9 respectively. After much deliberation and angst we turned down places at St Albans in favour of DAO. We did apply for St Albans for the younger one too as she is young for her age and can be quite a worrier and we wondered if a smaller school would suit her better. I neednt have worried- she is as happy as her sister and thriving. I visited St Albans several times, speaking to the Head and to a lovely sixth former who showed us round. In the end we made the decision for both girls for the following reasons:

1. DAO is much nearer - 15 min bus journey, 7 min drive. This means the girls can get themselves home and staying for the (numerous) after school clubs is therefore not a problem. Friends' daughters st STAHG occasionally play matches after school, miss the coach home and have to be collected from various locations. This would have made my life as a working mum more challenging!

2. Extracurricular activities. We really have been impressed at the variety, inclusivity and standard of available school clubs, all of which are free. At this time of year, there is the gym and dance display (on next Tuesday/Wednesday if you wanted to come to get a flavour) which I think epitomizes the essence of the school in that anyone can take part - a role for all, but also plenty of opportunity for the more talented/interested dancers/gymnasts to have their moment to shine. The music opportunities too are broad- bands, string groups and orchestras and small instrumental groups. Both my girls play/sing and we have thoroughly enjoyed the many evening concerts and music events, most recently soul band last night. In addition to these larger events, the children can participate in informal performance platforms where they perform solos in front of a small audience of parents/friends.
Sport too is excellent. Matches are played after school but also on Saturday mornings- these matches seem to be predominantly against private schools. The netball team tend to lose against St albs! I think the competition to get into the A/B team at STAHG is fiercer as several of the girls are county level players. I suspect my girls would not have had much of a look in at STAHGs and would not be playing as much sport as a result.
Drama-very good department. My eldest goes to drama club at lunch and they recently performed a piece at the Holocaust Memorial Day event hosted for Herts schools at Dame Alice. She received a letter from the Head thanking her for taking part, which I thought was a lovely touch. There is one large school play each term though only the summer one is for years 7/8/9.
There is a plethora of other clubs to suit all tastes.
Duke of Edinburgh, foreign exchanges and other travel opportunities from year 9.
In summary, my conclusion from studying the extracurricular opportunities for my children was that DAO was as good or better for them and more accessible for us due to proximity. They are very fortunate.

3. Academics- we have been very happy with the teaching. Agree with loobylou that neither have enjoyed computer science - though I believe a new teacher has been recruited. It may be simply that neither of my girls is drawn to this subject. Every 1-2 months, they are sent a postcard praising them on a particular piece of work or effort applied. We also receive emails to this effect. Likewise when the elder performed poorly in a geography topic test, we were emailed to inform us that she had not reached her expected level and needed to revise for a retest!
Re tutoring- I don't think many of the children are tutored lower down in the school but clearly some are for gcse and a level exams. I don't think this is unique to the state sector. Indeed during my tour by the sixth former at St Albans 2 years ago I specifically asked her what percentage of girls had been tutored for GCSEs. She estimated at least 25% which I found very surprising!
In short, I think that children who are reasonably engaged with learning and motivated will be able to make the most of the many opportunities afforded to them at DAO and will absolutely fulfill their potential. Perhaps Children whose work ethic has not yet developed or who are easily distracted/ find it difficult to pay attention may benefit from smaller class sizes? I'm still trying to work this one out with my youngest in mind!

Hope that helps. Feel free to PM me if you wanted to ask anything else,
Good luck!

[ale21279]

Which did you choose, Bluemarine?

[scarletthw]

Hello all,

I am in the exact same dilemma with my daughter at the moment, however we are looking at sixth form (I am aware this is an 11+ forum!).

If anyone has any information about the two schools about the sixth form (particularly the admission process, but anything else would be greatly appreciated), I’d love to hear!

Thanks in advance,

Scarlett

[Tinkers]

Hello all,

I am in the exact same dilemma with my daughter at the moment, however we are looking at sixth form (I am aware this is an 11+ forum!).

If anyone has any information about the two schools about the sixth form (particularly the admission process, but anything else would be greatly appreciated), I’d love to hear!

Thanks in advance,

Scarlett

While this is predominately an 11+ forum, we do cover the full range of education from primary to university, so hopefully someone will be able to help you too.

[Loopyloulou]

From all I've heard and observed, I've decided that the difference between most independents and most selective schools is too slim to call: you gain on the sports side in a private school but you lose the social mix.

Losing the "social mix" is, of course, one of the great advantages of a private school!

[Surferfish]

Losing the "social mix" is, of course, one of the great advantages of a private school!

Yes, I can imagine that for a certain kind of social snob it most certainly would be.

[etimini]

Hello, everyone. I am happy to have found this post.

I have a daughter at STAHS. She is currently in year 11.
She has applied to other schools to join 6th form, one includes DAO which she had a meeting and she is very confident it went well.

I am hoping that DAO offers her a place. She will end up doing the same subjects should she stay at STAHS.

But I am really anxious with her moving schools now. On the other hand, not having to pay fees for 2 years means that we can save the money for her university.

Not too sure what to do. Offer should be made by the end of the month and if she decides to move, we need to give notice to STAHS that she will be leaving school by mid April.

Any thoughts about this will help me.

[PerpetualStudent]

Hi etimini,

I think you would be more likely to get feedback posting under 6th form or Hertfordshire. I only know DAO and StAHS by (good) reputation but my DD is in the position of moving for 6th form so perhaps I can comment.
Was your DD the one who suggested moving? How invested is she in this move?
I used to think it made no sense leaving a good school to go to another just for the last two years but for my own DD she has found it inspiring and invigorating to have the prospect of change, particularly after the lows of lockdown and remote learning. She will miss her friends but do her best to stay in touch.
Going from single-sex to co-Ed isn’t a bad change of scene for 6th form.
Will it take your DD longer to get to school or might it be easier?
Perhaps if you ask about the specific A-Level choices some here might be able to reassure you.
Will your DD be able to keep up her extra-curricular interests or even try something new?
There are lots of good things can come out of this move (not only saving fees).

HTH
PS

[Daogroupie]

It sounds from the post that this was your dd's idea as you are anxious about it.

DAO takes girls from STAHS every year and in both my dd's years they fitted in really well and were very popular.

What subjects would she be doing? Dd1 did English, History and Music and dd2 did History, Music and Geography, all excellent departments. History is the second most popular subject after Maths and many go on to read History at University including dd2. She had a very hard choice though, as she enjoyed Music and Geography enormously and has chosen to do optional modules in them as well.

The DAO sixth form is a bigger stage which prepares them very well for University. I don't know of any dropouts in my dd's years. They are also given a lot of mentoring opportunities in the classes of the lower years which both of my dds really enjoyed.

Dd1 did apply for other 6th forms as she wanted to do Latin which is not offered at DAO. She got offers at HBS and HABs but neither school had anyone doing Music that year so she stayed at DAO where 17 in her year did Music.

What was your dd's reason for exploring other options? DG