ChCHS or ColCHS?

[First-timer]

DD is currently in Y5 and fell in love with ChCHS at its open evening. She (and I) can't view ColCHS until she is in Y6. It would suit me better to have her based in Colchester but either is possible logistically. I know both are excellent schools and that Chelmsford is a bit more difficult to get into. My question is if the schools suit different sorts of girls. DD is bright and keen but not obviously studious. Arty more than sporty but pretty confident socially. It's so frustrating not being able to compare the two properly until next year when the deadline for deciding will be so close. Any thoughts?

[crgsmum]

Can you really not go and see Chelmsford CH? We could manage either Chelmsford or Colchester too and went to the open evening at CRGS which was just open to anyone who wanted to attend, and then called KEGS asking for a place on one of their open days. We were told only year 6 so, even though year 5, put our names down and went.

I am so glad we did, we fell in love with CRGS but desperately wanted to make sure we gave KEGS a good chance given its amazing reputation. This meant we could go back for the open days in July of year 5 and again in october of year 6 when we went for our second open evening at CRGS. This is a massive decision to make and, if like us, you have concerns after an open evening/day you need time to understand why.

By going in year 5 we had time to work out what our concerns really were and understand the two schools better. We made a choice based on having the time to understand the two schools, where they differed and how that would impact on our DS.

All these grammars are excellent so you need to find the best match. I'd see if you can get along there now.

[First-timer]

Thanks for your reply. We did go to the open evening at Chelmsford but when I called Colchester to arrange a viewing I was told that I couldn't as DD is in Y5. I agree the best way to decide is to visit the schools. That is what I had intended doing.

The timespan between next year's open days and the submission of the CAF is relatively short and I wanted to have the opportunity for a second visit if we have difficulty in reaching a decision. I suspect it will come down to the intangible factors that can't be researched easily. As I can't access one of the schools in person I wondered if other parents (either with girls at the schools or who have viewed both schools) could offer their opinions as to the more touchy-feely differences between the two.

[Minesatea]

This year, for the first time, Colchester Girls is doing an evening heads talk for parents - 18th October Could you sneek in to this?


http://www.colchestergirls.essex.sch.uk/?_id=705

[First-timer]

Could be worth a try, though I think I remember seeing that it was for parents of girls who had been allowed on the tour of the school. I think DD needs to have seen both. She currently wants to go to Chelmsford and is unlikely to change her mind without seeing Colchester. If I'm honest, I want her to change her mind as it would be easier for me. Perhaps I'll be the one changing my mind after I've seen both - who knows? If Colchester ends up being our preferred option then it potentially frees up a space on the CAF as there is no point in putting Chelmsford second. If I knew that that was the way things were going to pan out, I could get my house in order with the other three options. Pah! In my day we just went to the nearest school. Grumble...