State schools in Nottinghamshire UK
State schools are government-funded and provide free education to pupils in the UK. There are various types of state schools, such as local authority controlled maintained schools, academies with their own curriculum, selective grammar schools and religion focused faith schools. The starting point for parents is to view the latest Ofsted report.
Ofsted is the Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills. They inspect services which provide education and skills for learners of all ages. The report will give an independent view of the quality of education at a school. The four grades: Outstanding, Good, Requires improvement and inadequate are a key factor in assessing if this is the right school to even begin to consider as a parent or carer.
At any point in time approximately 8%-10% of schools are judged to be Outstanding, 40% are judged to be Good, 40% are judged to Requiring improvement and 8-10% are judged to be inadequate. I recommend that you look at schools that are good or outstanding. Schools with an outstanding judgement may not be any better than a good school. It is worth looking at the date of the latest Ofsted report. Many outstanding schools received an Ofsted judgement many years ago. Unless a school has a new Ofsted inspection the latest judgement stands. For some schools their latest judgement is over 10 years ago.
I recommend that you look for schools with stable leadership. It is important to know how long the current head teacher has been at the school. The Ofsted report places a lot of importance on good leadership and management. A head teacher who has been leading the same school for at least 3-5 years is a positive indicator.
Catchment area
In the UK each postcode or address has an allocated state school at which, baring any other eventuality, your child will be offered a place. This is called the catchment area. This creates communities who's children know each other, families who's children all go to the same school, and an environment where children can walk to school together or parents can share lifts if it is further away in rural areas.
For most state schools, if your child lives in the school’s catchment area they will be likely to be guaranteed a school place at that school, unless it is oversubscribed which happens in areas where the good school/s attract more families than they can cope with.
West Bridgford Primary Schools are almost all oversubscribed as are some years of the senior schools which usually means that your child will be offered a place in a school which is out of catchment. This is because they are deemed to be excellent schools but this may or may not be a good thing for your child as the school which has available places is by definition less attractive and further away. Timing can be your friend in this circumstance if you get it right.
You should get in touch if catchment areas and the appeals process are of interest to you.
There is an appeals process which you can go through in order to appeal against a judgment that your child has not been given a place in the local school, this process is easier to navigate if you are in touch with us before the original application. If you have a definite view on the school which you wish your child to attend and it is in West Bridgford you may well come up against this. Please get in touch if you need help with this process, we have lawyers who do this job specifically and whilst they do not guarantee success they have not failed any of our clients over the years.
House prices are likely to be higher in outstanding school’s catchment areas. Although not an indicator of the quality of teaching, choosing a school based on a school’s catchment area is a sensible approach if you want to consider your child’s peer group. In affluent areas the children that attend are more likely to be from professional families with mid to high income jobs. In catchment areas where the house prices are very low, the likelihood is the children attending the school will be from low income jobs or not in employment. The social implications of this are important in terms of the general aspirations of a community and the social influences that will be evident on a daily basis within that school catchment.
Compare UK School Performance
Ofsted is the Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills. They inspect services which provide education and skills for learners of all ages. The report will give an independent view of the quality of education at a school. The four grades: Outstanding, Good, Requires improvement and inadequate are a key factor in assessing if this is the right school to even begin to consider as a parent or carer.
At any point in time approximately 8%-10% of schools are judged to be Outstanding, 40% are judged to be Good, 40% are judged to Requiring improvement and 8-10% are judged to be inadequate. I recommend that you look at schools that are good or outstanding. Schools with an outstanding judgement may not be any better than a good school. It is worth looking at the date of the latest Ofsted report. Many outstanding schools received an Ofsted judgement many years ago. Unless a school has a new Ofsted inspection the latest judgement stands. For some schools their latest judgement is over 10 years ago.
I recommend that you look for schools with stable leadership. It is important to know how long the current head teacher has been at the school. The Ofsted report places a lot of importance on good leadership and management. A head teacher who has been leading the same school for at least 3-5 years is a positive indicator.
Catchment area
In the UK each postcode or address has an allocated state school at which, baring any other eventuality, your child will be offered a place. This is called the catchment area. This creates communities who's children know each other, families who's children all go to the same school, and an environment where children can walk to school together or parents can share lifts if it is further away in rural areas.
For most state schools, if your child lives in the school’s catchment area they will be likely to be guaranteed a school place at that school, unless it is oversubscribed which happens in areas where the good school/s attract more families than they can cope with.
West Bridgford Primary Schools are almost all oversubscribed as are some years of the senior schools which usually means that your child will be offered a place in a school which is out of catchment. This is because they are deemed to be excellent schools but this may or may not be a good thing for your child as the school which has available places is by definition less attractive and further away. Timing can be your friend in this circumstance if you get it right.
You should get in touch if catchment areas and the appeals process are of interest to you.
There is an appeals process which you can go through in order to appeal against a judgment that your child has not been given a place in the local school, this process is easier to navigate if you are in touch with us before the original application. If you have a definite view on the school which you wish your child to attend and it is in West Bridgford you may well come up against this. Please get in touch if you need help with this process, we have lawyers who do this job specifically and whilst they do not guarantee success they have not failed any of our clients over the years.
House prices are likely to be higher in outstanding school’s catchment areas. Although not an indicator of the quality of teaching, choosing a school based on a school’s catchment area is a sensible approach if you want to consider your child’s peer group. In affluent areas the children that attend are more likely to be from professional families with mid to high income jobs. In catchment areas where the house prices are very low, the likelihood is the children attending the school will be from low income jobs or not in employment. The social implications of this are important in terms of the general aspirations of a community and the social influences that will be evident on a daily basis within that school catchment.
Compare UK School Performance
Primary & Secondary Education In Nottingham
Primary and Secondary
The vast majority of schools in the UK will provide education to children aged between 3 and 11 (Primary schools) or 11 to 16 (Secondary schools). Most secondary schools will offer two final years of education in Years 12 and 13 which is commonly known a ‘sixth form’ (students aged between 16 and 18). The sequence of year groups is as follows (youngest to oldest)
Foundation stage (F1) Aged 3-4 (also known as EYFS-Early Years Foundation Stage)
Foundation stage (F2) Aged 4-5 (also known as EYFS) Transiation Year
Year 1 Aged 5-6 (also known as Key Stage 1)
Year 2 Aged 6-7 (also known as Key Stage 1)Transiation Year
Year 3 Aged 7-8 (also known as Key Stage 2)
Year 4 Aged 8-9 (also known as Key Stage 2)
Year 5 Aged 9-10 (also known as Key Stage 2)
Year 6 Aged 10-11 (also known as Key Stage 2)Transiation Year
Year 7 Aged 11-12 (also known as Key Stage 3)
Year 8 Aged 12-13 (also known as Key Stage 3)
Year 9 Aged 13-14 (also known as Key Stage 3)
Year 10 Aged 14-15 2 year GCSE Course starts (also known as Key stage 4)
Year 11 Aged 15-16 VERY Few children are allowed to enter in year 11 ( half way through GCSE course) (also known as Key Stage 4)
Year 12 Aged 16-17 (also known as Key Stage 5 / sixth form)
Year 13 Aged 17-18 (also known as Key Stage 5 / sixth form)
The year groups in bold text are key transition points for a child when they move to the next phase of their education. This is likely to mean they go to a different building or even different school site even if they do not change catchment areas. A minority of schools are all on one site and these will provide education for all children aged 3-18.
Some schools will be known by a previous label that dates back before the latest use of key stages. This still relates to the age of the children that attend the school. These are sometimes used today but are just alternative ways of recognising the age of the children in that part of the school.
Early Years ( aged 3-5) Infants (aged 5-7) Juniors (aged 7-11) Senior (aged 11-16)
Some primary schools will have two separate sites split between Infants and Juniors and the school name will include these words.
Many parents like to send their children to state primary schools because they will get to meet all the other children that live in the same neighbourhood. This makes for strong and secure social friendships which can be easily accessed on a weekly basis. It also allows parents to support one another with childcare before and after school, as well as transport in a shared and informal way. A significant number of state primary schools that are in a good catchment areas are seen as a good option for a child until they reach the age of 11 even if the fee paying school are within your budget.
At the end of Year 6 children the vast majority move schools to a new secondary school. The primary schools will be the feeder school for a Secondary schools that is geographically close. If parents choose to continue with state education then their child will go to the same school as most of their classmates unless they choose a different secondary school to apply to. However catchment children in the feeder primary school will always be given priority over out of catchment children, so choosing an alternative does not come with any guarantee. Each local education authority (city or county council) will determine admissions criteria which will ensure set rules are adhered to.
As a result the most common transition point for parents to consider alternative fee paying schools is at the age of 11. Rather than send their child to a state secondary school they opt to send their child to a fee paying private or independent school.
The vast majority of schools in the UK will provide education to children aged between 3 and 11 (Primary schools) or 11 to 16 (Secondary schools). Most secondary schools will offer two final years of education in Years 12 and 13 which is commonly known a ‘sixth form’ (students aged between 16 and 18). The sequence of year groups is as follows (youngest to oldest)
Foundation stage (F1) Aged 3-4 (also known as EYFS-Early Years Foundation Stage)
Foundation stage (F2) Aged 4-5 (also known as EYFS) Transiation Year
Year 1 Aged 5-6 (also known as Key Stage 1)
Year 2 Aged 6-7 (also known as Key Stage 1)Transiation Year
Year 3 Aged 7-8 (also known as Key Stage 2)
Year 4 Aged 8-9 (also known as Key Stage 2)
Year 5 Aged 9-10 (also known as Key Stage 2)
Year 6 Aged 10-11 (also known as Key Stage 2)Transiation Year
Year 7 Aged 11-12 (also known as Key Stage 3)
Year 8 Aged 12-13 (also known as Key Stage 3)
Year 9 Aged 13-14 (also known as Key Stage 3)
Year 10 Aged 14-15 2 year GCSE Course starts (also known as Key stage 4)
Year 11 Aged 15-16 VERY Few children are allowed to enter in year 11 ( half way through GCSE course) (also known as Key Stage 4)
Year 12 Aged 16-17 (also known as Key Stage 5 / sixth form)
Year 13 Aged 17-18 (also known as Key Stage 5 / sixth form)
The year groups in bold text are key transition points for a child when they move to the next phase of their education. This is likely to mean they go to a different building or even different school site even if they do not change catchment areas. A minority of schools are all on one site and these will provide education for all children aged 3-18.
Some schools will be known by a previous label that dates back before the latest use of key stages. This still relates to the age of the children that attend the school. These are sometimes used today but are just alternative ways of recognising the age of the children in that part of the school.
Early Years ( aged 3-5) Infants (aged 5-7) Juniors (aged 7-11) Senior (aged 11-16)
Some primary schools will have two separate sites split between Infants and Juniors and the school name will include these words.
Many parents like to send their children to state primary schools because they will get to meet all the other children that live in the same neighbourhood. This makes for strong and secure social friendships which can be easily accessed on a weekly basis. It also allows parents to support one another with childcare before and after school, as well as transport in a shared and informal way. A significant number of state primary schools that are in a good catchment areas are seen as a good option for a child until they reach the age of 11 even if the fee paying school are within your budget.
At the end of Year 6 children the vast majority move schools to a new secondary school. The primary schools will be the feeder school for a Secondary schools that is geographically close. If parents choose to continue with state education then their child will go to the same school as most of their classmates unless they choose a different secondary school to apply to. However catchment children in the feeder primary school will always be given priority over out of catchment children, so choosing an alternative does not come with any guarantee. Each local education authority (city or county council) will determine admissions criteria which will ensure set rules are adhered to.
As a result the most common transition point for parents to consider alternative fee paying schools is at the age of 11. Rather than send their child to a state secondary school they opt to send their child to a fee paying private or independent school.