You are sidetracking like mad. The parents you are talking about are the ruthless, pushy, unprincipled buggers who will do almost anything to get their kids into a school that they think has the good local reputation. They don't care whether their kids are indoctrinated or not. It's not even particularly about results. It's about snobbery and the desire not to be tainted by the bog standard comprehensive down the road. It's so hard to go to your dinner parties and show that off.   Their priority is to get any advantage they can for their kids regardless of the effect on other schools in the area. And the school they apply to connives in all this, as long as the kid has ability and the parents seem respectable. In a funny way you can't blame the parents. But don't pretend this doesn't happen and don't imagine for one minute that all this is done with the highest principles in mind. Let's get real about this, shall we?