The best school in Enfield is...

It's almost time to go back to school and many of Enfield's

students will be starting at a new school for the first time next Friday. So

how do you know if the school you're sending your kids to is any good?

According to last year's league tables (this year's won't be available until

January 2011) the best school in the area for GCSE level students is Palmers

Green High, with 100% of GCSE results being of a C grade or higher – impossible

to criticise. Latymer follows closely behind with 99% and St John's comes in

third at 91%. But these are all either independent or selective. Of the

comprehensives the best performer is girls school Enfield County with 67%, then

Southgate with 64%, Highlands with 63% and boys school Enfield Grammar with 60%.

These figures are perhaps an argument for educating girls separately, but not

for boys, who appear to do better in mixed schools.

At A level the Latymer is top (Palmers Green High does not

cater for over 16s) with an average A level, AS and level 3 key skills student

score of 980.3. This is head and shoulders above any other school in the area,

with Southgate coming in second with 680.5, just ahead of Enfield County with

680.4. Enfield Grammar comes in 13th with 553.2 – more evidence for

girls outpacing boys.

But is it the results that really matter? When you send your

child off at 11 to secondary school are you already thinking five, or even

seven, years ahead? Do you think that how your child’s school performed last

year will be the same or similar by the time your child comes to leave? What is

the best school in the area in your opinion?