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-   -   Codrington School (https://britishexpats.com/forum/barbados-109/codrington-school-588598/)

Ikon Feb 1st 2009 11:10 pm

Codrington School
 
Does anyone have a rough idea of how long it would take during morning traffic to drive from Sandy Lane to Codrington School?

Ikon Feb 1st 2009 11:12 pm

Re: Codrington School
 
Oh, and what schools do people living on the West Coast send their children to that are an easy commute?

Foxy_fromCanada Feb 1st 2009 11:19 pm

Re: Codrington School
 
Sorry to disrupt (and not answer) your question, but I was just at Codrington this weekend and it is beautiful - gorgeous old building and beautiful view of the Atlantic. A friend of mine mentioned that if you get there early enough in the morning, you'll see the lilies all opened up before they close their petals for the day.

Apologies for the forum detour. There are a few members on here who have great school knowledge and I'm sure they'll help you out.

Sunniebgi Feb 2nd 2009 12:04 am

Re: Codrington School
 
once you learn the back roads to take, and travel through the country, I'd say it's likely no more the 1/2 hours drive and you are going against the flow of traffic, so it's never going to be bad.

private or public / primary or secondary.. is your child younger than 11 or older??

There are no private schools on the west coast and if primary, the "closest" might be Providence, in St. George. St. Gabriel's, St. Winifreds and St. Angelas are all in St. Michael.. Many west coasters come down the west coast road to Spring Garden and then through bridgetown and out the other side to Collymore Rock and from there to either one of those school). There used to be a "school bus" run from Sunset Crest to that area, but not sure if it's still going on.

Wills Primary is on the south coast, Closer to Oistins and with the highway the way it is at the moment it might actually be an easy commute (not sure I'd do it but..).

We live in the middle of St. George and it take us an average of about 30-40 min each morning to drive to St. Gabriel's and St. Ursulas (girls only secondary) which are across the road from each other on Collymore Rock.

Ikon Feb 2nd 2009 12:10 am

Re: Codrington School
 

Originally Posted by Sunniebgi (Post 7237781)
once you learn the back roads to take, and travel through the country, I'd say it's likely no more the 1/2 hours drive and you are going against the flow of traffic, so it's never going to be bad.

private or public / primary or secondary.. is your child younger than 11 or older??

There are no private schools on the west coast and if primary, the "closest" might be Providence, in St. George. St. Gabriel's, St. Winifreds and St. Angelas are all in St. Michael.. Many west coasters come down the west coast road to Spring Garden and then through bridgetown and out the other side to Collymore Rock and from there to either one of those school). There used to be a "school bus" run from Sunset Crest to that area, but not sure if it's still going on.

Wills Primary is on the south coast, Closer to Oistins and with the highway the way it is at the moment it might actually be an easy commute (not sure I'd do it but..).

We live in the middle of St. George and it take us an average of about 30-40 min each morning to drive to St. Gabriel's and St. Ursulas (girls only secondary) which are across the road from each other on Collymore Rock.

Wow, thanks for that! My little boy's only three at the moment, coming up to four - we're looking for a private school within 30 mins of Sandy Lane I think....

Sunniebgi Feb 2nd 2009 1:41 am

Re: Codrington School
 
the govt requires that all children who turn 4 before September 1st, must be enrolled in a primary school.

I would highly recommend that you read through some of the posts on this board about schools.

I'm partial to St. Gabriel's as that is where all of my children have gone (or still are). The grounds are lovely, the teachers emphasis fun as well as learning (it's not all about the grades). and the school has a good mix of familes as well.

All schools in Barbados are subject to the whims of the Ministry of education (which means they must go by the syllabus selected by the ministry). The only one that doesn't is Codrington, and it's an IB school.

Also, 30 min is kind of a realitive amount of time.. you aren't going to go far in 30min on Barbados roads, like you would in a town in England. and based on traffic 30min could turn into and hour based on traffic.

Also, to attend school, your child will need a Student Visa (as long as he is not a Barbados Citizen)

Ikon Feb 2nd 2009 8:55 am

Re: Codrington School
 

Originally Posted by Sunniebgi (Post 7238001)
the govt requires that all children who turn 4 before September 1st, must be enrolled in a primary school.

I would highly recommend that you read through some of the posts on this board about schools.

I'm partial to St. Gabriel's as that is where all of my children have gone (or still are). The grounds are lovely, the teachers emphasis fun as well as learning (it's not all about the grades). and the school has a good mix of familes as well.

All schools in Barbados are subject to the whims of the Ministry of education (which means they must go by the syllabus selected by the ministry). The only one that doesn't is Codrington, and it's an IB school.

Also, 30 min is kind of a realitive amount of time.. you aren't going to go far in 30min on Barbados roads, like you would in a town in England. and based on traffic 30min could turn into and hour based on traffic.

Also, to attend school, your child will need a Student Visa (as long as he is not a Barbados Citizen)

It's our big mission for this week - investigating student visa/schools. He's 4 in July, so does that mean he must start school this September? And does he start in Reception at Codrington if he's 4?

Sunniebgi Feb 2nd 2009 1:02 pm

Re: Codrington School
 
re the govt he would start primary school in september. if he isn't registered or confirmed into a school at this point, you may have issues with placement. (don't get stressed, ask questions and see what happens. some people leave on short notice so a place may open up. )

I'm not familiar with Codringtons program, but I'm guessing it is a reception class.

the private schools generally have 2 classes with maybe 25 children per class at the early stages levels, this is why you might find places are already filled.. but again.. deep breaths and go with the flow.

Ikon Feb 2nd 2009 3:11 pm

Re: Codrington School
 

Originally Posted by Sunniebgi (Post 7239582)
re the govt he would start primary school in september. if he isn't registered or confirmed into a school at this point, you may have issues with placement. (don't get stressed, ask questions and see what happens. some people leave on short notice so a place may open up. )

I'm not familiar with Codringtons program, but I'm guessing it is a reception class.

the private schools generally have 2 classes with maybe 25 children per class at the early stages levels, this is why you might find places are already filled.. but again.. deep breaths and go with the flow.

Thanks for the advice, I thought we were safe till September - phew!! I was aware we'd have a battle on our hands finding a place for September though (much the same as it was in London) but am willing to put whatever efforts necessary in to finding a good school.
I like the St Gabriel's website and understand it's very poplular with ex-pat families though no doubt oversubscribed. Wish us luck!

bimchick Feb 3rd 2009 2:15 pm

Re: Codrington School
 
Codrington starts at 3 years old, and 4 years old is reception. I taught there last year and I had student whose father works as the head chef, and lives at, sandy lane. The last name is McPherson so if you ever run into them they could help you out, and tell you about the school. I suggest you call the school and ask them to put you in touch with a parent or two. A lot of the kids there reside in sunset crest and sandy lane.

Ikon Feb 3rd 2009 2:19 pm

Re: Codrington School
 

Originally Posted by bimchick (Post 7243658)
Codrington starts at 3 years old, and 4 years old is reception. I taught there last year and I had student whose father works as the head chef, and lives at, sandy lane. The last name is McPherson so if you ever run into them they could help you out, and tell you about the school. I suggest you call the school and ask them to put you in touch with a parent or two. A lot of the kids there reside in sunset crest and sandy lane.

Great, thanks - it would be great if the school could put us in touch with parents who are on SL too actually, great idea! I'll call them!

shines Feb 6th 2009 10:23 pm

Re: Codrington School
 
My daughter goes to Codrington.

There are a number of families in the SL area who also go there, most of these send their children on the bus to and from school, the bus goes from Sandy Crest.

Bear in mind the bus is around 1k per term (on top of the school fees)

If your child started in September he would be in PYP2 - the IB equivalent of reception. They also take a pre school year PYP1.

You have to bear in mind also that the IB style of teaching/learning is very different to other styles and if you start down this path you have to be prepared to carry on, as moving a child who is used to this method to another would be hard, as it is also hard to move from a structured learning environment to an IB school.

I would fully research what style of teaching is going to suit you (and your child) best as your child grows and also depending on where you will be living....

The journey to school would take you around 30 mins if you drove it, it is a distance but there is no traffic to deal with.

The journey to schools in St Michael would possibly take longer depending on what time you left home, it is a shorter distance but you have the traffic to deal with. There is a bus but I believe it is full. I do have a number for the guy who runs the bus to St Winifreds and he is happy to run another to St W, St G & St U, if there were enough people interested...

HTH

holly_berry Mar 9th 2009 11:12 am

Re: Codrington School
 
Hi
I am interested to hear how you got on at Codrington School. Did you get a place for September? We are looking at coming over to Barbados later in the year and just looking at the schools right now for next year. Thanks:)


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