Renting near a good school

schoolsandofsted

My sister in law is returning to England with their 3 kids, the eldest one due to start school in Sep 2021. I've been tasked with finding them a property to rent within a catchment area of a "good school".

The instructions I've got from her are that the Ofsted rating needs to be "outstanding". Unfortunately, based on other criteria it boils down to a choice of 2 schools one of which was rated Outstanding at their last inspection in 2013 and the other was rated Good much more recently, in 2017. From conversations with a couple of locals both schools appear to be good.

I don't have kids myself so don't know much about schools. Practically speaking, is there any significant difference between the above? Personally, I would place a higher reliance on the more recent rating but that's just my view.

secla

the school my kids go to went from outstanding to in need of improvement within the space of 1 ofsted report. Also being in the catchment area doesn't guarantee entry if the school is oversubscribed

schoolsandofsted

Good to know! That's what I thought as well.

Sorry I used the wrong term, by catchment area I meant the radius at which the last distance admission was done last year (from the council website). It's around 0.2 miles for the 2013 one and 0.45 miles for the 2017 one.

strawb_shortcake

Having seen our local school go from good to special measures to outstanding in a space of less than 18 months; yet see no real change to the teaching I think it's all rubbish.

My cynical head says it was put in special measures to ensure it became an academy, and there are other schools in the county where other people say the exact same about.

Go by reputation, and what the parents have to say about the schools.

jackieblack

schoolsandofsted wrote: »

Sorry I used the wrong term, by catchment area I meant the radius at which the last distance admission was done last year (from the council website). It's around 0.2 miles for the 2013 one and 0.45 miles for the 2017 one.

Obviously there’s no guarantee that would be the same in 2021.
If, for example, siblings rank higher in the admissions policy, that can vary significantly from one year to the next.

kathrynha

Agree with others, Ofsted ratings aren't always a true reflection of a school.


When choosing secondary schools for my daughter we had a choice of 2 'good' schools. Went to look round and one seemed good whilst the other seemed to just assume everyone would pick there as first choice, as it has been the better school of the 2 recently.


Went on my instinct, despite most of her friends picking the other school and picked the first school. Both schools were Ofsted'ed in her first year at secondary. The school we picked was rated good with outstanding features, where as the other school was rated as needs improvement as management had rested on their laurels and let things slip.

AdrianC

schoolsandofsted wrote: »

Practically speaking, is there any significant difference between the above? Personally, I would place a higher reliance on the more recent rating but that's just my view.

Give her the choice.

Davesnave

She ought to visit both schools herself during a working day and use her own judgement.


Like a buildings survey or a MOT, the inspections are for a particular time and do not guarantee performance in the future. They are also subject to significant human error.

lookstraightahead

Have you seen how hotels get their official ratings? Sometimes they get an extra star for things like having ironing boards in the rooms etc.

Ofsted reports change like the wind. If you have an outstanding report, you are likely to get ofsteded more often. I take absolutely no notice of them whatsoever.

Davesnave

lookstraightahead wrote: »

Have you seen how hotels get their official ratings? Sometimes they get an extra star for things like having ironing boards in the rooms etc.

Ofsted reports change like the wind. If you have an outstanding report, you are likely to get ofsteded more often. I take absolutely no notice of them whatsoever.

I'm not sure where your information is coming from, but the situation regarding the sentence in blue has been the exact opposite, though there are now plans in place to ensure the outstanding schools are seen more frequently.

As someone else mentioned, the award of 'outstanding' status has sometimes resulted in a school relaxing it's standards and coasting.

elsien

How far abroad is she living at present? If she's close enough she'd be better of booking some holiday, coming over, and checking out the schools and areas herself. What suits one child isn't going to suit another, regardless of ofsted ratings.