goosemum

A huge thank you to the thousands of people who turned up today to share the sun and join in with Goose Green Primary School's Carnival and Summer Fair. We estimate that over two thousand people joined with us to celebrate the fantastic achievements of this local primary school. Thank you to all the mums, dads, carers, teachers and children who helped make this the biggest and best Carnival Parade and Fair ever! And a special thank you to the London Fire Brigade for coming and showering us all with cool water in the midday sun.

Congratulations to all the staff and pupils at Goose Green Primary and Nursery School for coming out of Special Measures. The news is unofficial until OFSTED publish their report, but this is excellent news and I am sure the school would like to thank everyone in the local community who continues to support this wonderful local school.

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Just wanted to remind any parents who have been allocated Goose Green that this is a great opportunity to chat to parents who are already at the school. I know that last year some people found talking to parents with children at the school invaluable. Feel free to bring your children too. It's pretty relaxed, and there are biscuits....

Probably not a popular thing to say, but it might be useful to rethink the definition of the term 'local'. We walk from Nunhead to Goose Green - it takes 20 mins and is a lovely walk past Peckham Rye and then Goose Green Common. I consider this to be one of our local schools, which is why I put it on my list. If we lived in out in the sticks it would probably be considered 'on your doorstep'!

Goose Green Primary and Nursery school has a wonderful (state) nursery which is part time from age 3 and full time from age 4 (or thereabouts). My daughter started at Christmas and is having a wonderful time! It is great preparation for Primary School - especially if you choose the attached Goose Green Primary School, as children who attend both are familiar with the surroundings, children and teachers, so starting at 'big school' is a breeze. You do need to register for a place as soon as possible after they turn 2 as it is a very popular nursery.

Fuschia, I agree with Mrs Lotte regarding GG school - it is a shame if readers of this forum read the out of date negative points raised by Ofsted on your post. If you have personal experience of the school, then fair enough, but if not, please think before you type. I know you were replying to James Barber, but it was quite a big 'cut and paste'! I'd urge anyone who is worried about any local school to visit in person and form your own opinion. Ofsted reports are useful, but are only part of the picture. And local hearsay can sometimes be very unhelpful......

We chose state schools over private so that our children could learn alongside the children they meet in the local community. Our view is that learning social skills at primary level is equally if not more important than academic skills (at this young age). It's a different point of view and I don't believe that either is right or wrong!

I had both of mine at Kings and they were absolutely fantastic. Both were complicated births (one C section/premature, one natural) but if you are a worrier like me, then the best thing you can do is know that you are surrounded by the best doctors, midwives and equipment in the country. A friend gave me some good advice which I will pass on as I found it invaluable - don't expect the midwives to be there all the time to hold your hand - take a partner and/or friend to do this bit. When you need them (medically) they will be there. I found the midwives to be completely professional and polite and when the time came, I really didn't care whether or not I knew their names!

Absolutely - although being a Victorian school there are lots of stairs, so make sure they have a good breakfast!

I agree with Mrs Lotte - visit the schools and follow your heart. Results and reports are only part of the picture. It really does help to meet the Headteacher in person - they can make or break a school. My personal experience was to follow my own instincts and ignore reports and reputation by hear-say. I have never regretted my decision and my son is thriving in a class of 21 pupils at Goose Green Primary. Good luck, Chantelle.

Bump

Then choose a good school where the teachers look at each child's individual needs and where they truly care about the social development of the children in their care. I saw a couple of children who struggled with social skills and they had fantastic support from specialised staff which meant that by the time they reached the end of Y1 they were happy, sociable, settled children.

I have a son who was born in mid August. He had a January start date and settled in well from day one. He is very happy at school and is progressing well academically. And he has a best friend who is 11 1/2 months older than him! All children are different, but my advice is that if you are relaxed about it, then your child will be too.

I've heard that the letters regarding nursery places are going out this week - so you should hear soon whether or not your child has a place in January.

bump again

Take a look at St John's OFSTED and it's broadly similar. I think it shows that all of the Primary Schools in the area are pretty similar and the best way to judge is by experience. My experience of Goose Green continues to be really positive and I'm sure many of you have positive experiences of DKH and St John's. OFSTED reports are just one piece of the jigsaw.

Here's a view from the inside. We chose to send our children to Goose Green because it is a good school with old fashioned values and good discipline. Our children learn to live and work and play within a mixed community. They are happy and are thriving. They have no concept of how race, religion and class can divide society as they are taught to respect one another on an equal basis. You may think I am wrong, but I think that these core values are more important than reaching government targets (at least at Primary School level). If more of the 'middle class' parents who take advantage of the excellent nursery facilities had the guts to stay with the school, then academic standards would probably rise. For those who visit Goose Green on a daily basis, the OFSTED report simply does not reflect the culture of the school and the dedicated staff who work there deserve the support of the local community. If you don't believe me, go and have a look around the school for yourselves. That's what we did, and we have never regretted our decision to send our children to Goose Green.