Heads You Win

Angela Daley - Cranbrook School

I'd be looking for a school where children are relaxed and happy. I wouldn't want to see teachers shouting nor students looking harassed and anxious. I'd want to see classrooms with students engaged in learning, looking active and busy. The occasional silent classroom is OK but too many would make me wonder how much was going on.

We can be a bit thrown by how beautiful a building is. It's more important that you can see that time and money is spent on the upkeep of the campus – I wouldn't want to see graffiti or litter. I'd watch the students as they move around the school: do they treat each other and the building with respect? Are they lurking or moving on quickly to the next lesson?

It's important to look at the school website to check out exam statistics with results appropriate for the type of school it is. It's not fair to expect a comprehensive to achieve top GSCE results but if the school is selective, then it is. Any school should fulfil the potential of the students they take in at the beginning. I'd talk to the head and ask what areas they are pleased with and what areas they are improving on. Any head who said nothing needed improving would worry me. I'd also be interested in the range of extra-curricular activities. I don't want to see a school that is outstanding in sport if it means they don't do any music or drama. I'd want a school to be open minded about children's interests.

Boarding is the one area where I think the buildings are more important. I would expect them to be fresh and modern and I'd take a good look at the bathrooms and loos. There should be sufficient quiet areas for the students to work and relax in, plus I like to see a mixture of shared rooms for the younger students as well as individual rooms for the sixth-formers. Weekend activities should be structured for the younger ones but at the same time I think it is important to recognise that lying under a duvet is what teenagers are good at. You can't organise every minute of the day for them and a bit of creative boredom is good for them. They need some time to slob.

Cranbrook School is a co-educational, voluntary aided, non-denominational grammar school, with boarding facilities, for 13-18 year olds. www.cranbrookschool.co.uk