Oundle school, sevenoaks school Kent, Christs Hospital surr

[Warks mum]

Did anyone see Fiona Bruce's "Who do you think you are?" on television earlier this week? One of her relatives went to Christ's Hospital because his father had been killed in the Great War. It showed the school in a very positive light!

[Snowdrops]

Well, it showed the school.

It didn't really portray the school positively or negatively as the piece was about what papers they hold on Fiona's great granddad.

The school looked lovely - full of history (and children ).

[shewe]

I have found all the above opinnions about CH both interesting and confusing. My ds sat the residential entrance and is still awaiting the results which should be out by the end of this week. DS seems to have fallen in love with the school after attending the residential exam. Prior to that thou he was complaining about the uniform and could not imagine him putting on the Tudor wear. He has been offered admission in two other indie schoold but we are waiting to see if he will pass CH before we decide. I recently spoke to another parent whose DS passed the CH exams a year ago but did not take up the offer mainly becos she said the students looked so scruffy and unkept when she visited the school during the open day. The issue of most children coming from unstable homes also gives me concern and i begin to wonder if they have cases of bullying and behavioural problems having said that i note that some parents amidst this still have some very good reports about CH. I would wait and see if me son gets a place at CH first before worrying about accepting the place or not. Good luck to other parenst who are also awaiting the CH results.

[KES Parent]

Three children who were at prep school with my DD went to CH, and they were all lovely, hardworking and delightful. One of them was felt to have a boarding need because he was much younger than his siblings and his father had died when he was very young, but I'm not sure why the other two went there except that they had parents on quite a low income who had struggled greatly to pay for them to have a good primary education, so I guess they would have benefitted at secondary level from CH's fee structure. However the general perception I find is that when you mention that someone is at CH people wonder what is wrong with them, as though it was some kind of reform school! I'm not sure whether I would want that label for a child if I wanted a boarding education but had alternatives open to me.

[Guest55]

KES parent - not sure who has given you this view of the school. The children I know who have gone there have been lovely - with none of the 'false poshness' of some Private schools.

[KES Parent]

It was just the prevailing view when we lived in the vicinity of CH. It's not my opinion particularly, as I have never visited it or known any children who went there apart from the three I mentioned, who were all very nice well-educated children. However I think the local perception was that they took a lot of children with troubled home lives, which is of course to their credit if they can transform their lives in a positive way. The prep school DD went to was always pleased to announce entries to CH along with the scholarships and entrances to Brighton College, Roedean, etc, so they obviously viewed it as a good school that it was an achievement to get into.

[Loopyloulou]

I also think it is a good school and it is an acheivement to get into it.

The only child I know who went there was a lovely boy from a very poor and unfortunate family; so I'm no expert on the school, so don't rely too much on my comments

[T.i.p.s.y]

I think the decision with some is nothing to do with the fact that CH is a great school, but will it suit your family. If your DC has won a scholarship based on academic merit at another school then that school may be the best option because CH is not that academically selective. Children have to pass an exam but it is not as selective as other independents as their selection process is also based on a number of different criteria. So if a child is very academic and wins a scholarship at a more academic school then that may be a better environment for your child.

[P's mum]

CH is not that academically selective. Children have to pass an exam but it is not as selective as other independents as their selection process is also based on a number of different criteria.

I'm not sure that this is completely correct. Of couse it depends where you are comparing CH with its not Winchester or Cheltenham Ladies, whose vast majority of entrants have been very slectively prepped, but it's very definitely academically selective. I think that I would be correct in saying that that the entrance exam is based more on the assumption that a child has followed the national curriculum rather that been educated in a prep school. It certainly does better than say some of the GDST schools. If you look at at who some of the alumni are and what they have acheived I would have thought that many parents would be very pleased if their own children where part of that group. My daughter is undoubtedly 'clever' and 'academic' but I without following the right cuirriculum I doubted that she would do well enough to get a none subsidised place. A friend of mine tells me that friend of hers, an Oxford don, was triumphant when his child got a place.

[T.i.p.s.y]

P's mum,

I was specifically talking about members on here whose DC have won academic scholarships to schools that are more selective which may mean if you have a very able child they are likely to find peers of a similar ability at that school. That doesn't take anything away from CH being a great school.

Inspection report on CH:

Standardised tests show that most pupils are of above average ability on entry and just over a quarter are of high ability, while a significant proportion are average. Thus, in comparison with national norms, the school is placed well above all maintained schools but below maintained selective (grammar) schools.