Surge in Blanchelande pupil numbers as families relocate
BLANCHELANDE COLLEGE’S pupil numbers have risen by 50% in the last five years, with the school expecting another 60 students to join Year 7 this September.
The popularity of the college has increased in recent years, with numbers going from 305 in 2016 to more than 450 currently, with eight new students joining this month bringing the total up to 458.
‘Every family will have its own reasons for choosing Blanchelande, but our outstanding results, strong vision and values, the quality of relationships, our beautiful estate, ever-developing facilities, and the fact that we can offer co-education up to sixth form are all major factors,’ said Blanchelande College principal Robert O’Brien.
With more than 40 children already in Year 6, there were more external applications submitted
for Year 7 than places open, he
said.
‘We have found that the phones have been particularly busy with applications for Year 7 in September 2022.
‘We are always sad to not be able to offer a place to a family seeking a Blanchelande education, but at the same time we are obviously pleased to be a popular choice for so many families.’
Despite infant numbers being low in the past, with some single-figure class sizes, all 20 places in Reception are now full, and Mr O’Brien said Years 1 and 2 were also on the verge of waiting lists.
The school has changed in recent years. It started accepting boys in the primary school in 2003 and in the secondary school from 2015. It suspended its sixth form in 2011, but it was reinstated in 2020.
‘Since reopening our sixth form we have seen a spike in our infant numbers,’ Mr O’Brien said.
‘Junior numbers are also at a historic high, with Year 4 and Year 6 completely full, and we opened a second form in Year 5 this year to meet the demand, and that second form is filling up now, too.’
Some of the primary reasons for this surge in numbers were pandemic-related, and although the stability of private education may be appealing for some, Mr O’Brien said this did not come up very frequently.
‘Although there is obviously a lot going on in the island’s education system, it’s not something that comes up regularly as the reason for moving here, or something I would comment on,’ he said.
‘In fact, as well as some transfers from other schools, one of the biggest drivers for us is the influx of families into Guernsey during the pandemic, many of them looking for the stability that the island offers during uncertain times.’
He said that for families leaving urban areas, the college offered a change in environment.
