Woodford County High School for Girls'

So, I am in Year 9 currently and the past 2-3 years of my life at woodford have not been great. Firstly, before i came to woodford i was a very confident, person however since joining woodford i have changed so, so, much. I have become socially awkward, i have social anxiety and i get panic attacks when trying to ask to use the toilet. I cannot put my hand up in class because I'm so scared of the criticism from classmates and being wrong. I have become very shy and introverted because of the hostile atmosphere at woodford and I wish I could go back to the person I was before. The amount of confidence I have lost from teachers (won't name any just In case) degrading me has affected my personal life massively. Secondly, the teaching at woodford is NON EXISTENT. In fact, in some classes, teachers leave you with the powerpoint and work and leave the classroom for the whole lesson. Teachers are also NEVER IN and we have cover lessons where we sit down and copy notes from textbooks at least 2-3 times a week. The teachers do NOT know how to teach, all they have to do is pull out a powerpoint from 2010 and tell us to copy down stuff from the board. Thirdly, school life is very dull and boring. There isn't a wide range of extra curricular available here and the range of sports we play isn't very exciting. We don't have drama lessons, which i think is a big problem. Instead, there is FAR too much emphasis on the core subjects and exams. We are told that we need to perform well because we are a GrAMMaR sCHOOL but infact all they care about is league tables. People in my class who are actually smart are HEAVILY tutored. Lastly, i'd like to talk about the lunches. the lunches at this school are A T R O C I O U S. i remember once the canteen was selling a small pot of 5 minature carrot sticks (yes i counted) for A POUND! A small square sized cut of a cake, brownie or flapjack is £1.10. A SMALL SQUARE. EVERYTHING, i tell you is overpriced and students like me have been complaining about this for a-g-e-s. The hot lunches are SO bad, they run out of food by 3rd bell and we usually have raw pasta with watery pasta sauce 4 days a week, and we are still charged an abominable price. I don't think we have ever had anything new for lunch in all my years at Woodford.In short, don't let the words 'grammar school' fool you. Don't send your child here please. Teachers will knock all the self-confidence and self-esteem you have. You will be bombarded with essays and algebra from foreign teachers who are unable to speak english, and young interns who will probably get fired in a few months. i swear to god this school hires people they find in Aldi.

Unfortunately this type of school is favored by parents who live in the past. The entrance exam is no indication of ability as outside lessons, extra tuition is undertaken just to pass the exam. On getting in the extra lessons are required just to keep up with the demands placed on the young people. Always more is needed " to show improvement. The girls are placed today with a mountain to climb as other schools go past them."

Georgina Peachley's review, coming from a former student, appears very honest and brave. It is very damaging for the school. The view is not unique as I have heard exactly the same view expressed by other students. It is time the school does something about it, if it cares about the feelings of its students.

I would ask past and present pupils and parents to please continue to post reviews on this school. I have a clever year 5 daughter and I am considering sending her here. Georgina's post has made me think twice. Very eloquently expressed G! Also ATPU555: I have heard the same thing from a parent and I cannot afford a tutor and do not see why I should have to get one if my daughter passes the test. The schools prospectus states the school offers extra help to struggling students and talks a lot about encouraging personal development and pastoral care which I think is very important. However I would like to hear from the girls themselves!

I have attended several Country Dances at the school and the facilities have been just what we needed

I'm in university now and with even the little contact hours and the focus on an independent study that universities encourage. I look back at my experience at this school, and I realise how truly terrible it was. The lack of support is unbelievable; the teachers are terrible, constantly encouraging independent study but to the extent where it's just an excuse not to do their jobs. I remember my chemistry teacher every so often would pull up the a-level specification and read out all the topics we would have to teach ourselves the next day, mind you these topics would never be revisited in class only in the tests we were given.The pressure they put on the students is just terrible; the only reason that this school is even capable of producing any good results because everyone, and mean EVERYONE who is doing well goes to tuition religiously. The culture here is unlike any I've ever seen; the teachers' lack of effort and care go unquestioned, while students are pressured and under stress to compensate for the lack of support, and maintain the school's place on the league table.I could recount so many stories to communicate how terrible this school was, but I remember being so excited to go here because of its good reputation. You might be thinking this is just an individual's experience and it will not dictate yours, because a few years ago I was warned by someone who went here, because all the sixth formers, know (or will eventually) that getting good grades has been made more difficult merely by attending Woodford county. On top of that their mental health is paying the price, and trust me even if you're able to get the grades and leave DESPITE going there, your approach education and confidence will be damaged. Because you've learnt no matter how many hours you put in revising you might not get the grades (because you were never taught or never learnt how to approach the a-levels effectively), which is very demoralising.Additionally, because I couldn't resist attached here is part of an email that biology head of department sent to all the year 13 biology students at the time. To give you some context for the Jan mocks all the y13 did exceptionally poorly, and as a result, everyone was blamed for not studying enough (all the student then had at LEAST a B in biology GSCEs and had worked extremely hard to be accepted into the school and many had continued to work hard at a-level). Anyway, after jan mocks, many students had to go to intervention or were told to do ore exam questions (you can do all the exam questions you like if you don't know what your doing your not going to do well), but because the teachers couldn't be bothered this intervention" was 15 minutes every two weeks. What a joke. I regret going here

Incredibly inconsiderate of students' well-beings especially during a time like this, we're in the middle of a pandemic and teachers are hassling students for work and keeping their expectations higher than they would if students were still in school, while giving them barely any guidance whatsoever. I understand this is an unusual situation and everyone is stressed but can you imagine how the students feel?

I passed the exam and I am going to Woodford County this September. I was looking through the reviews to see what it is like and I am terrified. My excitement of going there has died down but it is too late now. Can someone that actually went to this school please give an honest review about how it is like?

I had to remove my daughter from this school; she self harmed. The place is so toxic that they might as well put a Radio Active sign on the entrance gate. Will not recommend, mental health and well-being should come first before any misguided sense of excellence.

Excellent school, a lot caring staff and dedicated to the girls and subjects they teach. A lot of extra curricular activities too.