Yesterday we went to look round comprehensive which is our designated 'local' school & we all liked it. In fact J liked it a lot. It specialises in Maths & science, if you're good at science you can fast-track & do extra science subjects. It has very good labs & computing facilities. There are after-school science, engineering & technology clubs. It doesn't go over the top in sport. It has a friendly & caring feel about it & J likes the canteen. What more could you ask for? Well, quite a lot actually but what we're wondering is should we ditch the whole grammar school idea & just go for that one (although we do also have to apply for some other schools just in case he doesn't get in & I think we should still seriously consider technology college). I think we'd better wait until we've looked round grammar schools before we decide but part of me is hoping he hates them. The only problem is the journey isn't a very easy one but apparently we would get financial help with it as it's our 'designated' school.
We shall see.