How do you choose the right school?
Choosing a school is a quest many parents invest a lot of time and energy in. But what makes a school the “best” and what makes it “best” for your child?
“Most parents would like their children to go to one of the best performing schools, but how do you define best”, says Les Webb, founder of Education Advisers, a specialist private education consultancy.
“My company runs 12 different websites on private school choice and five of them carry league tables.
“There are statistics on every stage of education and every type of curriculum offered at UK schools, colleges and universities.
“For senior schools the league tables are ranked by exam performance – by Highers and Advanced Highers, GCSE, A Levels, and IBDP.
“For English preparatory schools, they are ranked by leaver destinations – that is how good the senior schools are which pupils succeed in joining,” says Webb, adding that Scottish data will come soon.
“School rankings in Scotland change very little over a say five-year period – so that you can judge consistently good performance in the tables with confidence,” says Webb. “Some schools claim they are not higher because they have a non selective approach to recruitment, but this factor is not that important.
“We find most Scottish schools have a much more flexible admissions policy than those in England.”
However academic performance will never be the only factor for parents. “Plainly, all children are not going to thrive in an academic hothouse and it is important we advise parents on the most suitable school for their child,” says Webb, whose company also offers bespoke advice to clients from all over the world seeking placements in independent schools.
The philosophy of Education Advisers has always been to provide a huge amount of up-todate relevant information about independent schools, including full and accurate league tables, plus the provision of expert and impartial consultancy services.
“We totally accept that not every child is suited to an academic hothouse and we steer at least half of inquiries to lower ranked schools more suitable for the child.
“There are numerous factors which influence the right school choice and we treat every inquiry impartially and ethically,” says Webb.
Education Advisers offers diagnostic pupil assessment to assist with school placement and admissions test preparation.
The tables for the academic performance of Scottish schools published here reflect only part of the strengths of the independent education sector which supports children with a wide range of educational requirements. “it does get very challenging at the opposite end of the spectrum with children who have special educational needs (SEN),”
“Scotland is not well served for SEN children, with less than 15 specialist private schools, whereas England has more than 200,” adds Webb.
“The league tables are a good starting point for parents and once you explore our websites you will find yourself starting to understand what ‘best’ really does mean for your own child.”