Nottingham Forest; Spring Forest Middle School (Houston, Bellaire: crime, house, neighborhood)

[73hornet]

We are considering a move to the Memorial area from Bellaire. It's a toss-up between Wilchester (Wilchester/Memorial/Stratford schools) and Nottingham Forest (Meadow Wood/Spring Forest/Stratford). Does anyone have experience with any of these schools? Is Memorial Middle that much better than Spring Forest Middle? Any crime to speak of in these areas?

[EasilyAmused]

Wilchester. And yes, Memorial Middle is better and the property values in Wilchester are historically better. Nottingham Forest is lovely, but it's schools are not as desired. Many attend private
I'm next door in Yorkshire.

Little to no crime on the south side of Memorial. North side has it's share of car break-ins. But no real crime, ie. robberies, follow homes etc. It's pretty tame around here and the constables are always around and on the job.

[pehou]

I suggest you visit both schools and make a decision. We did and chose a neighborhood zoned to MMS instead of Spring Forest, though I loved the NF neighborhood. Of course if your really sold on NF then Westchester Academy or Cornerstone or options for middle schools if you don't want to enroll in Spring Forest.

There is no more crime here than other upper middle class areas of Houston. My only real complaint with the area is
lack of good restaurants. There's a few options, but not many.

[katjs]

SFMS is actually a great school, with just the right amount of diversity. The PTA is very involved, and many people from NF and Yorkshire who could certainly afford private send their kids there because it is so good. Many people who live in Wilchester and further east have a bias against SFMS because yes, you do see some diversity. Most people with children there, however, see this as a positive. THe elementary school is much, much smaller than Wilchester, and the parent involvement is consistently #1 for the district, even with the size being much smaller. It is a great school, and the neighborhood is idyllic.

[anabel]

Katjs, I am struggling with the decision about whether to sacrifice house size/amenities and go with MMS and Wilchester/Rummel Creek or go with a house in Thornwood that we LOVE and goes to Nottingham Elem and SFM. Can you tell me anything more to help me in my decision? I have gotten mixed reactions from people. I have visited both schools and still am undecided. I currently have/have had for 7 years my older kids at Bunker Hill Elem and MMS. Thanks!

[EasilyAmused]

I think you're children will be fine at both personally.

As to Yorkshire kids going to SFMS: There're barely any kids in my neighborhood. And with the exception of two families, all the ones that live here are enrolled in private. Most of the "kids" here are teens, and most do go to Stratford, having gone private before that.

Nottingham Forest does seem to have huge group that go to Meadowood and SFMS. They seem to very involved parents, thus the school should be a good one. I really don't know anything about Nottingham Elem and can't help you on that one.

[beegirls]

Anabel - I can't answer about SFM, but I can say that we're really happy at Nottingham Elementary. I have one child attending first grade and one child receiving early intervention speech therapy on campus, and as a result I spend a lot of time there. I often see parent volunteers on campus and the staff members are wonderful - they really get to know the parents and seem to know all the kids.

We just received the accountability ratings for the last school year last week, and the campus is again Recognized. Not bad, but certainly not Exemplary. But I can't say enough good things about the quality of education and the school environment... We would recommend the school to anyone.

[EasilyAmused]

I would think that Recognized would be more desired. Then one would know that they are teaching, not teaching for the TAKS.

I remember Briargrove Elem's principal stands behind that theory as well. The hoops that have to be jumped to get that gold star hurts true education process. Writing skills get throw out the window for bubble filling.

[katjs]

To help people out with the school rating system (I am a former SBISD teacher), whether a school is recognized or exemplary depends greatly on the breakdown of demographic groups. Because many SBISD schools don't even HAVE demographic breakdowns, they are exemplary by virtue of the fact that all the kids are the same ethnicity, socioeconomic group, etc, and performing well on TAKS. If you look at schools like Meadow Wood and Nottingham, they do have demographic groups, and because some of the lower SES groups don't perform as well, they are downgraded. The curriculum is the same in all SBISD schools, you just have to determine your comfort level with the population. Meadow Wood and Nottingham kids are exposed to a greater diversity than Wilchester, Rummel Creek, & Bunker Hill. I see this as a positive, as there is still a very large population of upper income kids with supportive parents at both Meadow Wood and Nottingham. Students at these schools get all the benefits of being at a great school in a great community with lots of parental support, but they also most certainly learn that everyone is not just like them. Hope this helps!

[katjs]

Hey, Anabel,

I don't know much about Nottingham, but I do know a few parents who love it. I would suggest a tour of both Nottingham E. and SFMS, but also know that if you are uncomfortable with SF, there are other options. You can apply to Cornerstone Academy or Westchester Academy. Both are close in proximity to Thornwood.