Anonymous
02/16/2025 14:45
Subject: Moving to the London area - how to find schools
+ medical coverage… you’ll be wanting to be seen in private surgeries, not the NHS
Please also be aware that there already might not be places available for your children. Many independent schools have waiting lists already. There will be testing, school visits plus shadowing which may be unfamiliar to you
https://www.goodschoolsguide.co.uk/
I would also suggest that you look at ofsted ratings for state-supported schools and center your housing search on those reports.
https://www.timeout.com/london/news/londons-best-state-secondary-schools-based-on-2024-gcse-and-a-level-results-101924
Also, can be challenging going from US to UK systems…that’s why you should check out ACS et al. first
Will be easier on your younger child, obviously.
Please also be aware that there already might not be places available for your children. Many independent schools have waiting lists already. There will be testing, school visits plus shadowing which may be unfamiliar to you
https://www.goodschoolsguide.co.uk/
I would also suggest that you look at ofsted ratings for state-supported schools and center your housing search on those reports.
https://www.timeout.com/london/news/londons-best-state-secondary-schools-based-on-2024-gcse-and-a-level-results-101924
Also, can be challenging going from US to UK systems…that’s why you should check out ACS et al. first
Will be easier on your younger child, obviously.
Anonymous
02/16/2025 13:52
Subject: Moving to the London area - how to find schools
Anonymous wrote:If you can afford it, the American school in St. John’s wood is the way to go. People like it and then you can live in St. John Wood, Swiss cottage, maida Vale, etc. Nice neighborhoods with traditional American population. Not that you need to surround yourself with Americans, but it’s nice to have some. I think the American school might be more expensive than some of the other independent school choices however. I think the British independent schools are sometimes cheaper, but I’m not sure.
+1
You want to make sure you have an expat package, they are helping with schools, housing and taxes.
Anonymous
02/16/2025 13:45
Subject: Moving to the London area - how to find schools
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:OP - holy smokes, this is complicated! Thank you for all of this! We had thought state school would be the way to go, but I didn't understand that it would be this complex. I appreciate this heads up. But it also looks like the independent schools and IB schools are normal price tags (£7k instead of $42k). We might be a bit late to the game on figuring this all out!
Look at that again very carefully. £7k may be the per-term fee, not the yearly fee, so you'd need to triple it. American School in London, for example, is £39,300 per year for grades 5-8, which is more than $42,000. The posted fees may also not be currently accurate as independent schools lost their VAT exemption on Jan. 1 and fees went up across the board.
The irony of the lost VAT exemption is that in many parts of England and Wales the state schools simply do not have enough places available.
Anonymous
02/16/2025 12:40
Subject: Moving to the London area - how to find schools
Anonymous wrote:OP - holy smokes, this is complicated! Thank you for all of this! We had thought state school would be the way to go, but I didn't understand that it would be this complex. I appreciate this heads up. But it also looks like the independent schools and IB schools are normal price tags (£7k instead of $42k). We might be a bit late to the game on figuring this all out!
Look at that again very carefully. £7k may be the per-term fee, not the yearly fee, so you'd need to triple it. American School in London, for example, is £39,300 per year for grades 5-8, which is more than $42,000. The posted fees may also not be currently accurate as independent schools lost their VAT exemption on Jan. 1 and fees went up across the board.
Anonymous
02/16/2025 11:40
Subject: Moving to the London area - how to find schools
(and I thought the ads were annoying on here, Mumsnet is all ads 
)
)
Anonymous
02/16/2025 11:34
Subject: Moving to the London area - how to find schools
If you can afford it, the American school in St. John’s wood is the way to go. People like it and then you can live in St. John Wood, Swiss cottage, maida Vale, etc. Nice neighborhoods with traditional American population. Not that you need to surround yourself with Americans, but it’s nice to have some. I think the American school might be more expensive than some of the other independent school choices however. I think the British independent schools are sometimes cheaper, but I’m not sure.
Anonymous
02/16/2025 11:28
Subject: Moving to the London area - how to find schools
OP - holy smokes, this is complicated! Thank you for all of this! We had thought state school would be the way to go, but I didn't understand that it would be this complex. I appreciate this heads up. But it also looks like the independent schools and IB schools are normal price tags (£7k instead of $42k). We might be a bit late to the game on figuring this all out!
Anonymous
02/16/2025 04:22
Subject: Moving to the London area - how to find schools
Anonymous wrote:I lived for several years in the UK with my school aged child, including a year in London. The trick y thing about the state (what Americans call public) schools is that they have school choice. The year before kids start primary (aged4) and secondary ( aged 11), parents fill out preference forms and submit them to the local council. They are assigned to schools of their choice based on proximity. So you can choose a school outside of your catchment, but you only get a spot at your first choice if there is space after everyone who lives closer to the school than you gets in. The British do not over enroll schools.
This means that all of the desirable schools tend to be full. If you arrive after age 4 or age 11, you can't just attend your catchment school if it is full. You will have to attend a school that has places, and it might be miles away. Schools tend to have places because no one wants to go there., although declining birth rates can mean that an area has surplus spots.
You sort of have to triangulate. Figure out an area you might like to live. Email the local schools and ask if they have places in your child's year. The answers you get will then guide your house search. You can't enroll the kids until you have a lease .
Your younger child will be in Year 6 (fifth grade). It's the last year of primary school. Your older one will be in Year 9 (8th grade).
We found UK primary school to be accelerated compared to the US. For secondary school, the US college preparatory track would be ahead. This is because during the middle school years in the UK, kids are enrolled 16 subjects (literally). They simply can't progress in English and math, which they only have 3x per week, as quickly as American kids who have those classes every day.
It's a lot more complex than just proximity to the school. You have to look at the admissions arrangements for each local authority and how they rank their oversubscription categories (how places are allocated if there are more applications than spots, which is true for most London secondaries that are even vaguely desirable). It's some combination of social/emotional/medical need, sibling priority, distance from the school in/out of catchment, and then you get into stuff like faith status for some schools. But this only applies to Year 7 anyway; OP's kids are going to be in-year applications, which will be that much harder as all the places will be full and she'll either need to find undersubscribed schools or go on waiting lists and appeal. And waiting list places are not static, either--you can be #1 on the waiting list and then someone else applies with a higher priority status than you and bumps you down.
Like I said, OP, it's complex. Go to Mumsnet. If you're moving in July, international school may be the least painful way to manage this.
Anonymous
02/16/2025 00:09
Subject: Moving to the London area - how to find schools
Agree with a prior poster to go on mumsnet. England version of dcurbanmom. If you aren’t going to stay in the UK and coming back to the US you should do American schools ($$) - American School in London (actually in London- St John’s Wood), ACS schools or TASIS.
Anonymous
02/15/2025 23:55
Subject: Moving to the London area - how to find schools
I forgot to mention that you can compare schools with this website.
https://www.gov.uk/school-performance-tables
https://www.gov.uk/school-performance-tables
Anonymous
02/15/2025 23:39
Subject: Moving to the London area - how to find schools
I lived for several years in the UK with my school aged child, including a year in London. The trick y thing about the state (what Americans call public) schools is that they have school choice. The year before kids start primary (aged4) and secondary ( aged 11), parents fill out preference forms and submit them to the local council. They are assigned to schools of their choice based on proximity. So you can choose a school outside of your catchment, but you only get a spot at your first choice if there is space after everyone who lives closer to the school than you gets in. The British do not over enroll schools.
This means that all of the desirable schools tend to be full. If you arrive after age 4 or age 11, you can't just attend your catchment school if it is full. You will have to attend a school that has places, and it might be miles away. Schools tend to have places because no one wants to go there., although declining birth rates can mean that an area has surplus spots.
You sort of have to triangulate. Figure out an area you might like to live. Email the local schools and ask if they have places in your child's year. The answers you get will then guide your house search. You can't enroll the kids until you have a lease .
Your younger child will be in Year 6 (fifth grade). It's the last year of primary school. Your older one will be in Year 9 (8th grade).
We found UK primary school to be accelerated compared to the US. For secondary school, the US college preparatory track would be ahead. This is because during the middle school years in the UK, kids are enrolled 16 subjects (literally). They simply can't progress in English and math, which they only have 3x per week, as quickly as American kids who have those classes every day.
This means that all of the desirable schools tend to be full. If you arrive after age 4 or age 11, you can't just attend your catchment school if it is full. You will have to attend a school that has places, and it might be miles away. Schools tend to have places because no one wants to go there., although declining birth rates can mean that an area has surplus spots.
You sort of have to triangulate. Figure out an area you might like to live. Email the local schools and ask if they have places in your child's year. The answers you get will then guide your house search. You can't enroll the kids until you have a lease .
Your younger child will be in Year 6 (fifth grade). It's the last year of primary school. Your older one will be in Year 9 (8th grade).
We found UK primary school to be accelerated compared to the US. For secondary school, the US college preparatory track would be ahead. This is because during the middle school years in the UK, kids are enrolled 16 subjects (literally). They simply can't progress in English and math, which they only have 3x per week, as quickly as American kids who have those classes every day.
Anonymous
02/15/2025 23:39
Subject: Moving to the London area - how to find schools
I agree on heading to Mumsnet. All the info you need is there.
But you will have trouble getting a place at a good private school for next fall as schools in London all do entrance exams the previous fall and give out places by February (right around now, actually). You may have no choice but to go to a non-competitive state school at least for the first year there.
But you will have trouble getting a place at a good private school for next fall as schools in London all do entrance exams the previous fall and give out places by February (right around now, actually). You may have no choice but to go to a non-competitive state school at least for the first year there.
Anonymous
02/15/2025 23:26
Subject: Moving to the London area - how to find schools
Get thee over to Mumsnet and ask there on their Education subforum. School places in London are very complicated. There is no automatic right to go to a school based on your address, like there is here.
Anonymous
02/15/2025 20:30
Subject: Moving to the London area - how to find schools
Are you planning on staying there until the kids go to university? If not, I’d put them in private schools. I like there is a TASIS in Surrey.
Anonymous
02/15/2025 19:03
Subject: Moving to the London area - how to find schools
My husband is being transferred to London, and while we are all excited about this, I'm feeling overwhelmed figuring out the school situation. We have a 13 year old (7th grade) and a 9 year old (4th grade). Ideally we wouldn't have to take them out of school this year and can wait to move officially at the beginning of July.
We are going to rent for a while, and want to be within an hour's train ride or less to downtown London. Beyond that, those are the parameters for where explore living. We are looking at Surrey, but I have only been to London as a vacationer, so I definitely don't have a great knowledge of which neighborhoods are family friendly. Ideally it would be something like Brookland/16th Street Heights/CCDC, Park Slope NYC, etc. We aren't Knightsbridge/Mayfair money people.
I would love any advice on how to find good schools for the kids. Guessing we'd go with state schools over public (their word for private schools?). Or if you have done this, do you have good recommendations for resources, even people that assist with this (apart from Google). Thank you so much!!
We are going to rent for a while, and want to be within an hour's train ride or less to downtown London. Beyond that, those are the parameters for where explore living. We are looking at Surrey, but I have only been to London as a vacationer, so I definitely don't have a great knowledge of which neighborhoods are family friendly. Ideally it would be something like Brookland/16th Street Heights/CCDC, Park Slope NYC, etc. We aren't Knightsbridge/Mayfair money people.
I would love any advice on how to find good schools for the kids. Guessing we'd go with state schools over public (their word for private schools?). Or if you have done this, do you have good recommendations for resources, even people that assist with this (apart from Google). Thank you so much!!