HORRIBLE SCHOOL my child hates it there ine some good teachers they don't care about mental health and they takes things way to seriously and some teacher do not get noticed and get the regegnition they deserve as human beings and teaches
I went to this school in the 90s it was a terrible experience one sports teacher abused me so bad making me show my body by making me have showers after pe sometimes I get flash back I remember it like yesterday please don’t send your children to this school the bullying is awful too but the pe teacher is not a good lady she did touch me and I’ve had to live with depression from this all my life !!!!
This school makes me want to kill myself everyday the maths teachers are the worst they always shout and give detentions u can’t even go to the support teachers for help since all they care about is their representation and don’t want students bad mouthing teachers and say just deal with it but I thought our school was supposed to be a ‘telling’ school if I ever commit suicide it’s because of this school and most people are snarky and the lunch is nasty and unhygienic the lunch ladies pick up the food if it falls on the counter with there bare hands.
Don't let your child near this school.
The new headteacher does not care about students at all. They say they're a telling school but when you tell them anything they just act like they care. only 2 or 3 good teachers. im currently entering my third year at this school and I've never been more annoyed. They only care about you if you're academic smart not any other type. They're trying too hard to be a good school but it'll never happen. Students are so rude for no reason. The lunchtime is very awkward. we have to stay in one tiny lunch hall and we have to ask if we want to sit on another table. they gave us a lecture on not to eat in the toilets because they found someone eating in the toilets. They didn't even care enough to ask why. That person may have been going through hell (I'm not surprised with most the people there) with other students. did they care? not at all. all they want to do is make money. to the headteacher we are a paycheck. he's the third headteacher I've had over the 2 years I've done at that school. the only reason im still there is because if I wanted to leave I'd have to explain to my parents that im being straight up bullied. then they would call the school. the school would talk to the bullying children, which would make the situation much much worse. You have no idea how excited I am to leave that disgusting place. even if I failed, I'll still be over the moon because I won't have to go there. Headteacher says no phones but uses his phone all the time and he's not even doing anything work related. School ruining my mental health, most of my social anxiety didn't exist until I came to this school. And that is due to both the students and teachers. It's getting ridiculous with the amount of teachers being replaced/ hired. It's like we'll have to learn a whole poem of their names. The headteacher is trying to make the school seem like an American private school, it's failing miserably.
worst school. my father went here in the 90s and he hated it, I'm going there now and it's still a terrible school. Teachers don't take any sort of bullying seriously. Other students are rude and immature. It's an absolute joke. They don't teach things properly so you have to ask them to explain twice, which can be a horrible thing for a person with anxiety. The headteacher doesn't seem like he cares about students having any sort of fun without it costing an arm and a leg. it's almost as horrendous as the new PE kit.
Absoloutly horrible school some students get shouted at for there skirt while others dont get shouted at. This school days there a telling school but they dont do much. They said they would help me with my mental health but they havent. I wouldnt come to this school
Im going into my 4th year here it is absoloutly horrible they said they would help with my mental health but they havent. Its getting to the point i dont want to go to this school because they cant support me. Some teachers here are lovely but others are not. I got shouted at for my skirt but other girls have there skirts higher but dont get shouted at this is just unfair and the lack of respect to some parents is terrible. I wouldnt send your child/children here
Such a joke of a school!
Nothing but regret for sending my child here. Every day she comes home with a new issue that they have with her. Currently looking at changing her schools. Don’t send your child here it’ll be nothing but regret!!
Ruined my mental health they don’t care about anyone but themselves forced me to bite off my acrylic nails if I wanted to leave isolation. Teachers are rude and say if they didn’t see something it didn’t happen. Worst school in Wolverhampton don’t come here unless you hate yourself x
PS : this is from recent experience and they never changed or improved from the time they started
Overall a terrible experience. I went there from 2017 - 2022 and it was horrible. In my time there we had atleast 5 different head teachers and about 100 different members of staff. The staff have no control over students and when a new head teacher comes in they try to change the school around with harsh discipline that gets overulled by the students leading then to leave. Most of my year just about scraped passes in our GCSE's with many failing core subjects like maths and English. Most of the teachers are good at there jobs it is the leadership that needs sorting out.
I am a student at Smestow, entering my 4th year and on our 10th headmaster, since 2019 we've had 3 different uniforms and a number of staff come and go, since joining the newest Academy (Matrix) I can say things have changed for the worse. For example-
- Children can't go outside during their lunch, you remain inside cramped in the lunch hall
- at lunch the headteacher will raise his hand to get peoples attention which when you finally see your friends after two hours all you want to do it chat and just raising your hand doesn't really get our attention easily so every day were complained at for not seeing him, this happens again after the 30 min lunch
- Smestow is now a 'telling school' meaning they want us as students to raise our concerns with them (bulling etc) though when students do normally aren't helped to the extent they'd won't/need and this also stands for how they really want us to tell them about our mental health during school
- Many new teachers treat us like were still in primary, you could say this is one, because they're new, two, because were younger than them but it feels very much like every time we speak we get spoken down to
- Phones are banned at school, children are advised not to bring their phones at all, though if brought to school It must be turned off and in the bottom of our bags which is fair enough, but it feels a little wrong to say that to us when the HeadTeacher walks around on the phone to his wife and texting her all the time during walking around school or our lunch, we understand he's our superior but if he was going to use his phone it really should be for school reason and he could talk to his wife in his office if need be
- Attendance has become the new craze at Smestow as they have been quite low with the amount of student not attending, but- this is from experience- people have been given letters saying they are under 'close watch' and are to be fined if they don't come to school, my attendance was 94.78% but on the letter they put it lower and told me next time I'm off I'll need a doctors note and or proof though since sept i've been of 5 times (its now 1st march 2023)
- uniform again has recently changed, students have been given new ties and blazers and told to no long wear grey skirt/ trousers which many were annoyed by as at the beginning of the year (sept 2022) mostly girls were told their skirts were not appropriate for school as they were 'stretchy material' and had to get them changed into different grey ones, parents spent loads of money buying new skirts for then some girls beginning to wear black ones which again were the stretchy material and the school have no issue.
- Piercing have been a big issue to at school, students who had nose piercing, or more than one piercing on their ear were told they were fine then told only one stud in each ear and a stud in their nose, then again it changed and no nose piercings were allowed (even though in our planners it says 'facial piercings are allowed')
so all in all, I recommend not sending your child here, its a bad school, take it from a student!
It feels like the school has more rights to our children than we ourselves. It's more like they go to prison instead of school. And since when do hair color, shaved head, nails or jewelry hinder education? They motivate by preparing them for the future. For what? Absurd. The school only cares about attendance and child control. I don't see any freedom for children and their self-expression. In the Russian-occupied countries, it was better than now in this school. My child will definitely not attend this school next school year, because the rules are simply absurd and have nothing to do with education at all.
Turnover of staff is very high, how are children meant to settle and follow routine when they get substitute teachers all the time and they don't follow on with work from previous lessons.
Way too many young teaching staff who have the same 'attitude' as a 15 year old. There won't ever be respect given or earned when this is the case.
Safeguarding does not exist.
No one is qualified enough in mental health.
The bullies remain in the school as every child has a 'right to an education' why does the victim have to move school? Where is their 'right to an education'?
The lack of respect teachers have towards parents is absolutely disgusting.
Can't use the toilet, can't go out for lunch, these kids are being stripped of basic human rights.
Way too many teachers are intimidating towards children, too many teachers disclose their personal life to children during a lesson, children are there to learn and have no need to be told about a teachers private life.
Some teachers do lessons with children that they are not even qualified for, so again the children miss out on valuable learning.
This school always, always focusing on the negatives of children, never any positives.
This school does not empower children at all.
Didn’t go to this school, but the students are completely troubled. I live down the road from the school and loads of old people and loads of members of the community have been harassed and insulted and my garden has been littered with rubbish and students leave when they want. Do not go to this dump at all costs
This school is a joke! It is the worse school in Wolverhampton! The rules are pathetic, this school has seen many head teachers, each set new pathetic rules. How are the children meant to settle and just get on with a normal school day, when rules keep changing! All this school does is mess with mental health! Now this prison of a school won't let children out at lunch time to get some fresh air and stretch their legs! Sounds like abuse to me.
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