Schooling for elite young athletes?

[ArsenalMum]

My son is in year 5 and has always been in independent education until now as I feel that it is failing him. He is an exceptionally talented young athlete, strong and focused and is signed to a Premier League Youth Academy. However, I seem to be in a constant battle with his school when it comes to training, homework, and them exploiting his talents for their own accolades. They are totally unflexible and are definitely not putting the welfare of my son first insisting that he must do all 8 hours of PE in a school week even though he already trains for 8 hours a week at the academy. I had suggested my son has a couple of hours out of PE to catch up on homework he may have been unable to complete due to training. The headmaster told me absolutely NO. The manager of the academy has written to the school to ask them to work with him and reduce the amount of PE he does but has had no reply. There is no gifted and talented program either and I really feel that a state education is the way forward for him. Does anybody know if there are schools out there who are sympathetic to the needs of elite young athletes who struggle to juggle their education with their demanding sports schedules. I have no idea who to turn to for advice. I want to find a school suitable for his needs for his final year in Primary school. Any advice would be most gratefully received. Thanks

[spudqueen]

Why not have a word with the people at the Youth Academy. They must come across this situation all the time and may have some advice for you they can pass on. If you know any parents of slightly older children at the academy then it may also be worth talking to them.

[cassa333]

From a purely non professional side I think the school has an obligation to the curriculum not a nine year olds outside activities.

I could tell the school until I am blue in the face that my little Jimmy has 2 hrs of sport a night but they don't have to take this as part of his formal education.

I am sure there are schools out there that cater for athletic children but at nine I would be more interested in cultivating his academic abilities than over extending his sporting timetable. Is he going to be a thick jock?

[ArsenalMum]

Thanks spudqueen! We live 45 mins from the academy and they are unable to give me information relevant to my own area! Cassa333, having struggled to pay a lot of money for what should be a superior education for my children then obviously my childs schooling is a top priority to me. If you read what I had written properly you would see that I am not wanting to compromise his education and merely wanted time out of his 8 hours of PE sessions at school as I feel they are slightly excessive. And no he won't become a "thick jock" as he isn't thick and works very hard at school. There must be thousands of parents with talented children who want to give their child every opportunity to develop their to talent and become Britains top athletes of the future and this doesn't have to compromise their education. I'm looking for a balance thats all.

[cassa333]

I had read your post and still think you want the school to compromise (from the schools point of view) his education. Regardless of what you want now they haven't (I assume) changed there policy!

""I am not wanting to compromise his education "" from the schools point of view you are.

""having struggled to pay a lot of money for what should be a superior education for my children"" So does paying a lot of money for your children's education mean that you can dictate how they spend there time at school?

I think it unfare of you to expect the school to change it's policy just for you. Perhaps you need to put him in state education where they aren't that interested in sport that way you can send him to football practice as often as you like and still have some money left for a private tutor when his education starts to slip.

I do understand that you want the best for your child however I also think it unrealistic of you to expect the school to change.

If they are so interested in your son for their own sports teams then perhaps they will be mug enough to bend the rules to keep him if you were inclined to move him. It would show you how much they value him!!!

[Lil O'lady]

Ladies! Please!
Arsenal mum, your private school is unfortunately lagging behind national developments, in that the new national curriculum the whole life of the child and school is emphasised: http://curriculum.qca.org.uk/
This is slowly but steadily replacing the narrow interpretation of the subject-based national curriculum. In your son's school's case, I am guessing not many children are following a similar course of excellence so they are doing the good old jobsworth thing of ignoring it till it goes away. If he had been signed on to a rugby union club I expect their reaction might be different but sadly soccer is seens as rather infra-dig by the ruling classes.
There are definitely secondary schools and academies with specialist status for sport, all over London and the whole country, but you will be moving away from a possibly sheltered, small-scale environment into a larger scale one where individual care may not be of the same intensity - then again, might be excellent. Get yourself down to a range of seconary schools (include faith schools) in a commutable area and see how they strike you as a prospective family. Good luck to you and the budding champ!