Buying a home next to a school

tulipz

Dear all,
As some of you know, we've just started putting offers on a couple of properties that we liked... one of those is right next to a school....would this command a premium or get us a reduction??? .its a semi detached property, the side that is not attached shares a wall with the school entrance. the school is behind the garden.......
This is a huge primary school, but we have no interest in sending our son there since Ofsted ratings are not very good.

I would think its quite safe and nice to be around a school, since both of us work, we'll be away most of the time when the school is open. ...do they still ring those loud bells in schools? If I take a day off when sick or have my second child in a few years, would the school bell drive me mad?

Please share your thoughts....

Yorkie1

Sorry but I don't think you're going to get the certainty in answers which you seek.

Some schools ring bells, some don't. You'll need to listen at this school to see what it does.

Who can tell whether it will drive you bonkers? Only you can answer that.

Premium or problem? Depends on its ratings and reputation - good or bad kids, who behave themselves or hang around on street corners after school?

Bogof_Babe

I'd be more worried about the shrieking little voices than the bells!

elsien

I'd be running for the hills, mainly because I hate the sound of kid enjoying themselves.

I'd hazard a guess that the biggest issue is likely to be parking. A friend who lives by a school regularly has her drive blocked by idiots picking their kids up. Plus the noise at breaktimes, if that's the sort of thing that's likely to get to you.

[Deleted User]

I would be more concerned with parking and litter. But if you have a nice school then it could outweigh the concerning points.

tanith

I don't live that close but within a very short distance of a large Academy, the traffic is terrible , the noise is loud but its only for 20mins max morning and evening.. of course you'll get noise at playtimes/outdoor sports and our school has a electronic ding dong thing that denotes breaks and lesson changes while the school is open (include evenings/weekends if they rent out the sports facilities) but it wouldn't put me off . Not sure how much louder it would be if it were just the other side of the fence though.

Bogof_Babe

Go back in term time at lunch time (or "dinner time" as schools call it) and see whether you would find the noise intrusive. I know I would.

flora48

You need to go and survey the area, at the start of school and the end of school, playtime and lunchtime, then see if the noise/behaviour of the children is acceptable to you.

On a positive note, my daughter lives 2 doors down from the school and there in minmal noise, most of the children are escorted by pleasant parents. Yes, there is a traffic issue for about 15 mins morning and afternoon. It depends whether you would need to be coming in and out of your house at these times.

Sugared-frog

My sister has just moved in next to her child's school - it's a lovely quiet road apart from twice a day when the children are dropped off and picked up. You also get some noise from children playing at break and lunch time (I can hear my son's school sometimes and I'm a little way from it), but I don't mind the noise of happy children.

As for this particular school ... I would visit the property at the end of the school day to see what the roads, children and noise from the school would be like, then you will be better able to judge for yourself.

thegirlintheattic

Primary school is much better than secondary.

If not very good in ofstead there will be no premium.

Parking issues should be less than secondary and will only be at certain times of the day - will this affect you.

Most primary's do not have bells but will have yelling children outside most of the day.

Go check out the house during lunch hour and again between 3 and 3:30.

gemmalouanna

I have always said I will never buy a house near a school, mainly because of the ignorant way in which some parents park when collecting their kids - eg. Blocking drives and when asked to move saying "I will only be 5 mins"

Also I know litter is a massive problem in a local secondary school and this blows into the neighbouring gardens, plus at lunch the kids hide in the bushes to smoke and these bushes back onto the neighbours gardens.