| Northgate or Kesgrave 12:00 - Oct 21 with 1817 views | Quagmire |
Good people of TWTD. Your experiences please.
I didn’t go to school in Ipswich myself so have no first hand knowledge. The time has come to select high school for my son (and daughter in a couple of years time).
We have a reasonably good chance of getting in either Northgate or Kesgrave, both of which are good reputationally and are struggling to choose between the two.
It would seem that Northgate is Better academically (league table wise) but anecdotally you hear tales of bullying etc. Whilst Kesgrave seems much better from a pastoral point of view but the results are not as good.
Both my kids are reasonably bright, well behaved, and (to date) have not had issues at school.
So, any of you kind people with children at either of the above that can share experiences or even TWTD members who have recently left (or maybe are still at) either, would appreciate any input on what they’re really like - pros and cons etc. Etc.
Many thanks in advance.
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| Northgate or Kesgrave on 12:02 - Oct 21 with 1802 views | Reuser_is_God |
If your kids are bright & good people then I don’t think it really matters between your 2 choices.
Where are the majority of their mates going out of the 2 options? That’s where I’d send them. |  |
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| Northgate or Kesgrave on 12:05 - Oct 21 with 1787 views | thebooks |
My experience of Northgate is they're pretty poor on the pastoral side of things. My son hasn't enjoyed his time there. As you say, the results are good, though.
I only hear good things from the parents of kids at Kesgrave. If I had a choice, I would have sent him there, I think.
I'm surprised to hear you'll get the choice. Both are oversubscribed. |  | | |
| Northgate or Kesgrave on 12:28 - Oct 21 with 1726 views | RoyKeanesDog |
Northgate is the better choice. |  |
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| Northgate or Kesgrave on 13:24 - Oct 21 with 1685 views | Geminiblue |
As you say either would be a good option, but my eldest is at Kesgrave and other family also go there and I can’t fault it. Been really impressed with their sense of community as a school, as well as academic and sporting areas. I’ve heard similar positive things around pastoral support and not such good things in that area at NGate. If you’re looking at 2020 admission then this time next year the schools will have open evenings which definitely recommend you attend to get a feel for the schools. Yes both are oversubscribed so also check admission policies next year as that may have a bearing on your choice. Good luck! | | | |
| Northgate or Kesgrave on 13:31 - Oct 21 with 1666 views | hype313 |
Both myself and Phil are ex Kesgrave.
So Northgate it is then. |  |
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| Northgate or Kesgrave on 14:06 - Oct 21 with 1629 views | WickhamsLeftBoot |
I've seen both.
Northgate is pretty good and usually fairs well with teaching standards and Ofsted. However, my Dad teaches at Kesgrave, and during my GCSE years, I built the majority of my design technology project at Kesgrave because they had better facilities. This obviously didn't go down well with my teachers, but as long as I was able to prove I built it, they couldn't do anything.
One parents evening, my Dad was looking around the technology department having a look at what students had built and asked if the students were allowed to build what they wanted, the reply he got may just swing your decision 'no we don't let them build what they want, we follow a strict programme'. The grounds of Northgate are much bigger, but the teaching at Kesgrave is of a higher standard. I can now see why he was so keen for me to study at Kesgrave when I left primary school.
Hope that helps! |  | | |
| Northgate or Kesgrave on 14:35 - Oct 21 with 1585 views | Guthrum |
My father went to Northgate. But that was in the 1940s, so may not be very relevant any more. |  |
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| Northgate or Kesgrave on 14:41 - Oct 21 with 1578 views | Vic |
If your children have an aptitude to learn then I think they’ll do fine at whichever they go to. There isn’t a significant difference between the two.
My three children have all been through Kesgrave and we found the pastoral support to be excellent, and the encouragement to express themselves in sport, tech or art (it was different for each of ours) was always there, with teachers ready to go the extra mile to help.
Just our experience. |  |
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| Northgate or Kesgrave on 18:50 - Oct 21 with 1476 views | baxterbasics |
As has been said, what matters more for a child is home life and the parents.
That said, Kesgrave is the best state school in the area. All my kids are either there now or ex-Kesgrave.
I went to Copleston. Best avoided these days I understand. |  |
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| Northgate or Kesgrave on 19:11 - Oct 21 with 1436 views | Quagmire |
Thanks all. We’re joint catchment so have a good chance (but no guarantee of either). They will both have friends at both so that doesn’t come too much into play. We did the open evenings and found them both very impressive. I think Kesgrave is clearly the nicer school from a pastoral side but the apparent results gap between them and Northgate is very concerning | | | |
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