Lucknow has hundreds of CBSE schools, and most of them look the same on a website. This checklist covers what to verify, what to ask and what to see on a campus visit before you choose.
Lucknow has more CBSE schools than most parents can visit in a year. Many brochures promise the same things: smart classrooms, experienced teachers, all-round development. So how do you tell one CBSE school in Lucknow from another? Not from the brochure. You tell them apart by checking a few facts and asking a few direct questions.
This checklist is what we would tell a friend who asked us. It works for any school, including ours.
Every genuine CBSE school has an affiliation number, and you can look it up in two minutes. Go to the CBSE SARAS portal (saras.cbse.gov.in), search the school's name or number, and read what comes up: the affiliation status, the classes it is affiliated up to, the period of affiliation and the society that runs it.
Siddhartha Global School, Malihabad is affiliated to CBSE under affiliation number 2133939, at the senior secondary level (up to Class 12). Ask every school you shortlist for its number and check it the same way. A school that is vague about its affiliation is telling you something.
CBSE requires every affiliated school to publish a Mandatory Public Disclosure on its website. It lists the school's documents, its teaching staff, its results and its infrastructure. If a school's disclosure page is missing, years out of date or full of blank rows, treat that as a warning sign. You will find ours on the Mandatory Disclosure page of this website.
"100% result" tells you very little. Ask better questions instead. How many students sat the Class 10 and Class 12 board exams? How many scored above 90%, and how many above 75%? Which subjects do students struggle with, and what does the school do about it? A good school answers these calmly, because it already tracks them.
Ask about the teachers in your child's classes, not the most senior name on the staff list. How long have they been at the school? How many students are in a section? Is extra help built into the timetable, or left to private tuition? In Lucknow many families end up paying for coaching on top of school fees. Ask openly whether the school expects that.
A campus open day shows you the school at its best. A normal Tuesday shows you the school as it is. Walk the corridors during a class. Look at the science and computer labs: are they used, or locked and spotless? Visit the library and the playground, and look at the toilets and drinking water. Watch how teachers speak to children in passing.
Space matters more than people expect. Many city schools in Lucknow sit on small plots with one shared ground. Siddhartha Global School is on a 14-acre campus on the Mohan–Malihabad Road, with open lawns, separate play areas for the youngest children and room for a cricket academy. Our point isn't that bigger is always better. Check whether the children you are watching actually have room to run.
This is the question most parents skip. A day school suits families who live close and can manage homework and travel. Day boarding keeps a child at school for supervised study and games after classes, then sends them home in the evening. A residential CBSE school in Lucknow, sometimes simply called a boarding school in Lucknow, gives the child a structured routine all week, with evening study supervised by teachers.
Siddhartha Global School offers all three: day scholar, day boarding and hostel. That gives families from across Lucknow and nearby districts of Uttar Pradesh a choice that fits their working lives. If you are considering the hostel, our article on questions to ask a boarding school is a good next read.
Ask how the gate is managed and whether visitors are logged. Ask who handles a child who falls ill: is there a nurse on campus? Is a doctor on call? If your child will use school transport, ask about the route, the travel time, and whether an attendant rides on the bus. A school that has thought this through will have clear answers.
Ask for the complete fee structure in writing: tuition, admission, annual charges, transport, uniform, books, and hostel if you need it. Ask what is refundable. Comparing only the tuition figure between two schools can mislead you badly.
Five minutes with a current parent at the school gate tells you more than an hour with any counsellor. Ask what they would change about the school. Their answer tells you more than their praise.
Affiliation number checked on CBSE SARAS. Mandatory disclosure is up to date. Class 10 and 12 results explained with numbers. Section size and teacher experience. Labs, library and play space seen in use. Day, day boarding or hostel options. Gate, health and transport arrangements. Full fee structure in writing. A conversation with a current parent.
Search the school's name or affiliation number on the CBSE SARAS portal at saras.cbse.gov.in. It shows the affiliation status, the level (secondary or senior secondary) and the period of affiliation.
Yes. It is a co-educational CBSE school affiliated up to Class 12 (affiliation number 2133939), located on Mohan–Malihabad Road, Jugyana, Malihabad, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh 226102.
Yes. The school has a residential hostel and also offers day boarding and day scholar admissions, so families can choose the arrangement that suits them.
Most CBSE schools in Lucknow start their new session in April. Many begin admission enquiries in the autumn before that. Start visiting schools four to six months before the session so you are not rushed into a decision.
If you are shortlisting CBSE schools in Lucknow, come and see the Malihabad campus on a working day. Siddhartha Global School, Mohan–Malihabad Road, Jugyana, Malihabad, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh 226102. Call 076071 60659, Monday to Saturday, 8 am to 5 pm, or send an enquiry from the Admission page.
Nursery to Class XI, day scholars and boarders. The office is open Monday to Saturday, 8:00 am – 5:00 pm.
