A question for parents

[Pho3nix]

Quick question,
Moving to the big school stage and have to decide around 2 maybe 3 schools.

School 1 : Best in the area albeit it's a 20-30min drive in the mornings.
School 2: In the top 5 schools in the area but 5 min drive in the morning.
School 3: In the top 10 schools I would say but around 10 minutes drive in the mornings but a bit newer and smaller than the other 2. Especially in regards to sports and extra murals.

Why this is a bit difficult, with the new Grade R - Grade 1 story a bit unsure wtf the GDE will decide and it seems Grade R makes or breaks the Primary schools decision a bit. High school we want the minion to go to is a school affiliated with School 1 also.

Might be making a mountain about a mole hill but wondering if there are any other factors I should take into account.

Ratings are from the Highschool in the area and parents who's children have attended the schools.

 

[Speedster]

Primary school, closest is best.

 

[Sideshow Bob]

I was in same situation some years ago. "5 min drive in the morning" factor decided it for me and very happy with that decision.

 

[Fulcrum29]

I can't speak to that. For primary school, I picked what was closest. For high school, I applied to three schools. Two turned us down, providing a letter saying that we aren't in the catchment area. My kid got into the high school that was closest, even though that school was my second choice.

I have three neighbours who got into high school #1, and they have no history with that school, so I call BS on catchment. Schools claim they have no part in placement and that the department handles it. I can call 101% BS on that; sure, the department has a role, but I know how it really works.

This is applicable to the Western Cape. Regardless, the placement worked out, though with some caveats.