Hello from Michigan - and HELP!

Hello,

My family and I (wife and 2 young sons) currently reside in the Detroit suburbs in Michigan.  We have been asked to consider a 2-3 year assignment in the North East part of England (Peterlee) and went over for an initial visit last week.

The UK is great and we don't have any concerns regarding the culture, home sizes, etc.  Right now our biggest anxiety is finding a school since we learned our 4 year old son will need to start Reception (Kindergarten) this Fall instead of 1 year later if we stay in the US.  Has anyone else had experience moving to the UK with a child this age and entering the education system?  How did your child adjust? 

When we visited, we looked primarily at state schools but quickly found the good ones are already full for next year.  As such, my company has allowed us to now  consider independent schools now as well.  Does anyone have experience with independent schools in the UK?  Any advice or pros/cons that you could share?  We are trying to determine if we can schedule another visit to go back and look at independent schools this time.  We, again, will be looking at our options within 30 minutes of Peterlee (there appears to be schools in Durham, Darlington, Yarm, Eaglescliffe, Norton, and Sunderland) and hope to find a good school in a nice, family-friendly community.

Thank you for any help you can offer.  As you can probably tell, we are feeling anxious about this topic!   

I apologize if I have posted this in the wrong place.  Please feel free to direct me to the proper place and I can re-post these questions.

Thanks,
Brandon

No experience myself, but didn't want your post to go unanswered.

As your move would be temporary, have you considered looking into an American school?  It would help your son transition back into the US school system at the end of your assignment.  If that's not an option, he is young enough to adapt without too much fuss.

We have several teachers on the board here.  Hopefully someone will come along soon and give you some better guidance.

We have several teachers on the board here.  Hopefully someone will come along soon and give you some better guidance.

I'm one of those! I'm pretty sure the American Schools are London based... but it wouldn't hurt to look!

I work at an Indy, though in secondary education. The quality of one-to-one that your child would probably get is a lot higher than they would receive at a state school and class sizes would be smaller. Essentially, reception is mostly guided play (not that I am trying to belittle their work - I know I couldn't teach the little rascals!). I suspect that American children like play as much as British children. Look at Indies, a lot are pretty good!

It is a pain...and a huge issue here. People do all sorts of things to finagle a spot in the school of their choice. Actual property values took a drop here in Cambridge when a local primary school was downgraded from the top rating. Siblings are split up between schools, leading to very intricate morning drop off routines. "Good" schools fill up fast.

As Physics says, if you get the opportunity to go independent, it will remove a lot of the administrative hassle. For instance, to get a placement in a public school, you have to have a firm address....a signed lease or deed. They do this as people would concoct all sorts of schemes to get into the school of choice.

I like the reception year system. Again as stated above, it isn't hard core - but it is surprising how much they "sneak in"....plus all the socialization stuff. Too at 4, kids are pretty open. I think a lot of foreign kids can catch a rough time later on....but at 4, the meanness hasn't really formed yet.

Thank you everyone for the feedback!  We decided to accept the assignment and will be arriving in the UK in mid June.  From there we will get to work on visiting the Independent Schools and selecting a place to live!

Just to add, your son does not legally have to start school until he is 5 years old.

Everyone does tend to start in the September after they're 4 though, so he's be the odd one out, but it's not compulsory.

Hi I'm from Toledo Ohio and have lived in the UK for over 10 years. My 4 year old is starting school this September.  She will possibly attend a local private school. I think kids adjust well at a young age. Best of luck