• Westfield is caring, globally minded and quietly ambitious and aims to combine personal attention with broader horizons.

• Will suit families wanting a smaller North East school with strong community feel, provided they are comfortable with a period of change.

Admissions at Westfield should appeal to families seeking a smaller Newcastle school where children are known well and community still feels personal. It should suit parents who like the idea of an all-through setting with a broad ethos but who also value the confidence that can come from joining a school at a moment of strategic development.

Scholarships are not the main message here. The stronger attraction is the school's smaller scale, outward-looking ethos and the potential opportunities that could come from its next phase of development.

The current picture is unusually live and transitional, with Westfield describing itself positively while also moving towards becoming part of the RGS Newcastle Group. Parents should therefore visit and ask practical questions about timing, structure and future identity, because the direction of travel may matter as much as the current feel of the school.