As the secondary school open day season begins, Steffan Griffiths, usher at Magdalen College School explains how to get the best out of a visit.

It is a somewhat disappointing fact of school life that, just as families are settling into the school routine after a long blissful summer holiday, many have to be thinking about the next academic year and a change of schools.

There are decisions to be made, journeys to be calculated and, in some cases, selection hurdles to pass. Not what you need when you are all still getting used to the alarm again.

So what sorts of things are important to look for?

Do the research: get the literature; visit the website; ask around; try to get a feel for the way the school sees itself and the way it is seen by others.

Keep it in perspective and be wary of too much gloss, but be conscious that this is the public face of the school and a good deal of thought has gone into the decisions which give you, the prospective pupil and parent, this particular view of the school.

So note the items prioritised in welcome messages and keep an eye on the news section of a website or newsletter. They will give you a helpful sense of what is going on day by day.

Check if there are any major initiatives in the school. The introduction of IGCSE, the IB, extended sixth form projects, a co-educational sixth form are all major decisions for a school.

You need to be happy that they are being implemented from a position of strength and will enhance your child’s experience rather than being introduced to plug gaps.

Visit the school — find out the dates of any upcoming open days and take time to look around the school. An open day will inevitably be a marketing occasion to some extent, but it can still give insight into the day-to-day life of the school: make sure you talk to the pupils; keep an eye on the noticeboards and the quality of pupils’ work; listen to what the headmaster or headmistress says in his or her speech.

Also, find out if the school welcomes visits during normal working days. This will give more of a warts-and-all experience and, in combination with an open day, will provide a valuable insight into how a school really runs.

Finally, and most importantly, talk to your child and make sure the school fits!

Ultimately, schools are about people and human processes. In the spirit of due diligence, all the above is both sensible and reassuring, but the decision, in the end, comes down to what you and your child feel is the best fit. Academic, extra-curricular and pastoral profiles of the school are all very well but, if it is right, the most important thing is that you feel confident that your child will be both happy and fulfilled.