Primary and secondary national offer days, when parents across England will hear whether they have been allocated their first choice state schools, are nearly here.
It’s a time of anxious anticipation, with children and parents alike starting to look forward to starting a new school in September, and hoping for a successful outcome to their applications.
But what happens if you don’t secure your first choice school on offer day? Many secondary school and primary school parents may be looking for alternative options on 1st March 2023 and 16th April 2023 respectively.
Choosing the right school for your child is a potentially life-defining decision. With teaching strikes, squeezed education budgets, and post-Covid student wellbeing seriously affecting state education, many parents are investigating options within the independent sector – many of which do not have application deadlines for 2023 - for their child.
So how do you make the best school choice for your family? The decision-making process when finalising your preferred choice of schools has never been more complex.
What Matters When Choosing a School?
To help understand how to approach this difficult decision, we commissioned YouGov to ask parents what matters to them when choosing a school.
A nationally representative sample of 1,050 UK adults was asked to think about their top reasons for choosing a secondary school for their child. From a list of criteria, they were asked to select the options that were most important to them.
The ‘feel’ of a school was the factor that came out on top, with more than half (54%) of parents rating this as important when choosing a school. Other top reasons for choosing a secondary school included school values and ethos, location, the available facilities, and academic results.
The below table outlines the top 10 factors influencing UK parents’ choice of schools:
|
Importance |
Criteria |
Percentage |
|
1 |
‘Feel’ for the school when visiting |
54% |
|
2 |
Ease of access/location |
54% |
|
3 |
School ethos and values |
53% |
|
4 |
Facilities e.g. sport, art, drama, science, etc. |
50% |
|
5 |
Exam results/academic outcomes |
46% |
|
6 |
Pastoral care/student wellbeing and support |
46% |
|
7 |
Approach to teaching and learning/pedagogy |
43% |
|
8 |
Curriculum/courses available |
43% |
|
9 |
Class size/teacher to student ratio |
41% |
|
10 |
Inspection reports |
40% |
Source: YouGov survey commissioned by Sidcot School, January 2023
Top 10 Reasons for Choosing a Secondary School
At Sidcot, we know how important it is to find a school that’s the right fit for your child. We know that all children are different and will thrive in a diverse environments, so it’s important to spend time doing your research to find the right school where your child will be happiest and most likely to succeed. This will look different for every family, but read on to discover what UK parents listed as their most important reasons for choosing a secondary school.
1. The Feel of a School
Top of the list when choosing a school for their child was the ‘feel’ of a school when visiting, with 54% of survey respondents citing this as the most important factor for them - above exam results or even inspection reports. This suggests that sometimes what draws parents to a school is not necessarily something physical, and demonstrates the impact of schools creating a welcoming, nurturing, encouraging environment.
At Sidcot, we offer regular Open Mornings and Personal Tours of our School for both parents and prospective students, which allow you to get a feel for a typical day, see inside our classrooms and around our excellent facilities, and to meet teaching staff and the Headmaster. Find out more about opportunities to visit Sidcot.
2. Ease of Access/Location
Second on the list of reasons for choosing a secondary school was its ease of access or location, which was also selected by 54% of respondents. It’s to be expected that this factor would be high up the list, influencing many parents’ choice of schools, as parents need to be able to drop children off easily on their way to work, or know they have a safe walking or bus route to and from home.
Sidcot School is extremely well-connected, as we’re located just 15 miles from Bristol, close to both the M5 and the A38. We offer school transport routes across Somerset and the surrounding areas, making it easy for local pupils to access our School, and we’re also close to Bristol International Airport, which means we’re a great boarding location for students from overseas too.
3. School Values and Ethos
School values were also found to have a big impact on parents’ choice of schools, with 53% choosing this as one of the most important factors influencing their decision. A school’s ethos and values will underpin your child’s future thinking, helping to shape them into the person they become, so it’s understandable that this would feature so high on the list.
Our school values are at the centre of everything we do at Sidcot, from our learning approach to the extracurricular activities we offer.
Sidcot School aims to be a pioneering school, a world-class centre of excellence where education is as much about nurturing the spirit as it is about achieving outstanding academic success. This vision is enshrined in the Testimonies of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers). These Testimonies act as a touchstone and a challenge to the Whole School community; those with faith and those without, all of whom are equally welcomed.
Our values are as follows:
- Truth and integrity
- Equality and community
- Peace
- Simplicity
- Sustainability
Come and ask us more about these values in practice.
4. Facilities
The fourth most important factor rated by parents as one of their top reasons for choosing a secondary school was the facilities on offer. We asked our survey participants to think about the importance of sport, art, drama, and science facilities, and 50% said this was one of the key factors for them. After all, a school’s facilities will provide the backdrop to your child’s learning throughout their time at Senior School, and possibly during Sixth Form too.
5. Exam Results and Academic Outcomes
When thinking about how to choose a secondary school, we were surprised to find that less than half (46%) of parents saw exam results and academic outcomes as one of the most important factors in their decision. It’s interesting to see that factors such as the feel of a school and its values are more important to today’s parents than exam results, which suggests they are putting their child’s wellbeing above academic performance. Assessing schools’ ‘value added’ or VA score, allows you to get a sense of how well your individual child will be supported in achieving their personal best academic outcomes.
6. Pastoral Care/Student Wellbeing Support
Provision of pastoral care and student wellbeing support was rated as equally important as exam results to parents, with 46% of respondents also rating this as a key factor behind their choice of schools. Again, this indicates that parents are increasingly aware of the impact of their child’s wellbeing on their performance at school.
At Sidcot, we have a dedicated Wellbeing Hub, Rose Cottage, which is a calming space where students can relax, connect with others, and access wellbeing support. Our student support team includes our Wellbeing Lead, two part-time counsellors, and a Pastoral Support and Attendance Lead.
7. Approach to Teaching and Learning
In seventh place is a school’s approach to teaching and learning, with 43% of parents choosing this as an important factor, far behind the feel of a school and its values.
Arguably though, a school’s values have an important influence on its approach to teaching and learning. The Learning Wheel underpins our approach at Sidcot, encouraging our students to be internationally minded, proactive, and ‘curious enquirers’ in their lessons. Find out more about the Learning Wheel concept.
8. Curriculum/Courses Available
Some 43% of respondents chose the curriculum and courses available at a school as one of their key reasons for choosing a secondary school. This factor may come a little further down the list of priorities initially because it tends to become increasingly important as students move up to examination years. Perhaps it is one that might make you consider a change of school for Sixth Form or post-16 studies?
Sidcot offers students the broadest possible range of subjects, with students able to work towards GCSEs, A Levels, BTECs, and the International Baccalaureate.
9. Class Size
The ninth highest priority for UK parents choosing a school for their child was found to be the size of classes, which 41% selected as an important factor. Teacher-to-student ratio is often thought to be behind many parents’ choice of schools, but perhaps surprisingly, our survey findings show that there are more pressing factors they take into account.
10. Inspection Reports
Rounding off the top 10 most popular reasons for choosing a secondary school was inspection reports, which 40% of respondents voted for, showing that while they are clearly seen as important to many, they are not the primary drivers for the decision-making process.
Other Reasons for Choosing a Secondary School
Outside of the top 10, other common reasons for choosing a secondary school included word of mouth recommendations, which was selected by almost one-third (32%) of respondents, while a school’s prestige or reputation was cited as a priority by 27% of those questioned.
If parents already had a child at the school, this was also a popular reason to choose a particular school, with 23% of survey participants selecting this as a factor. Meanwhile, 22% cited the size of a school as important to them, while 14% valued the presence of wraparound care provision.
Top Reasons for Choosing a Secondary School in the South West
When looking at the data by region, we can see that responses in the South West of England (where Sidcot is based) varied slightly in comparison to the national response. In the South West, school values and ethos was actually rated as the most important factor for parents choosing a school, voted for by 57% of respondents.
This was followed by:
- The feel of the school (55%)
- Ease of access/location (54%)
- Available facilities (52%)
- Exam results (49%)
- Class size (47%)
- Physical environment/availability of outdoor space (44%)
- Approach to teaching/learning (44%)
- Word of mouth/friend recommendations (43%)
- School inspection reports (42%)
It’s interesting to see that availability of outdoor space is particularly important to parents choosing a school in the South West, as our region is blessed with some beautiful rural scenery. Sidcot is located in the heart of the Somerset countryside, and we’re surrounded by wonderful, expansive green spaces that allow our students to enjoy plenty of outdoor pursuits, including Equestrian and the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award. If physical environment is one of your top reasons for choosing a secondary school, Sidcot could be the perfect choice for your child.
Contact Sidcot
If you have any questions about our research findings or about Sidcot School itself, please don’t hesitate to contact us - we look forward to hearing from you.