What are the best schools in the area?

It's official: GCSE results in Greenwich are better than they were last

year. Woohoo! 49.8% of pupils in the area received 5 A*-C grades. That's

up by 6% whereas Lewisham is up by 1% with their total at 48%. It's a

record for the borough, and that's pretty exciting. The official results

for the rest of the UK haven't all been confirmed, so I can't say where

we're at in comparison, but I think the fact that we're up on last year

is a good thing.

The schools that did the best? St Matthew's Academy in Blackheath had

the best improvement. The pass rate jumped from 21% to 44%. That's HUGE!

Well done them. Thomas Tallis had a 99% pass rate. Nearby Colfe School

and Bonus Pastor achieved 100% pass rates. All very impressive grades.

All commendable and every school and pupil should be proud of the grades

and the improvement.

But is that how you judge the local schools?

Sure, it's a pretty good place to start, but is it the be all and end

all? Now, I don't have kids so it's not a choice I have to make. But I'd

much rather send my (hypothetical) kids to a school where they would be

happy. GCSEs are such a pressured time for a kid. I think the schools

where the kids have extra curricular activities, and other opportunities

deserve consideration too. We're lucky that so much is being done to

support the schools in the area, but I do think we put too much emphasis

on the results that come out at the end of the year.

After all, you're in secondary school for four years. GCSEs are what you

lead up to, sure. But let's not forget that the rest of the time should

be enjoyable, and encourage kids as well.

Am I being idealistic? What factors are important to you when you're

thinking about schools in your area? Would you pick based on GCSE

results, or will you take other factors into account?

Flickr image from Conspirator's photostream.