Parkstone 2008 admissions

[scarymary]

Any idea how many passed the entrance exam for 2008 admission? Did your child find it hard? How many from your child's school got in?
Is anybody out there is gearing up for an appeal? There seems to be very little info out there about Parkstone admissions. I'd love to hear from anybody with any news to share - it seems a very lonely neck of the (forum) woods does this part of Dorset!

[Wimborne Mum]

Hi scarymary, sorry I don't have any more info but am interested to find out if 11+ practise papers are worthwhile for this school as entry is 12+ for us. Any ideas?


WM

[scarymary]

Any idea how many passed the entrance exam for 2008 admission? Did your child find it hard? How many from your child's school got in?
Is anybody out there is gearing up for an appeal? There seems to be very little info out there about Parkstone admissions. I'd love to hear from anybody with any news to share - it seems a very lonely neck of the (forum) woods does this part of Dorset!

Just thought I'd bump this to the top in the hope of finding any small crumb of information...anyone...?

[paula]

Sorry no idea. All I can say is the Admission department at the school are very helpful.It does seem a little quiet on this board. I shall be moving back to Poole at the end of this month and DD will be sitting test in Nov so I shall be lurking around over the coming months

[scarymary]

I think part of the problem may be that Parkstone comes under the Borough of Poole authority rather than Dorset, and also the fact that Poole grammar schools are all 12+ admissions rather than 11+ (though I know that will be changing in a couple of years), but I posted here because I couldn't find a Poole or a 12+ section to post in!
I have spoken to Parkstone last week about admissions, and although very nice, they won't give much away. I do know that about 30% of girls from out of catchment area got a place though. I did ask what sort of level my daughter should be achieving in practice papers for me to assume she'd have a chance of passing selection, but they wouldn't tell me, just said that "I would know" if I thought she was up to the mark. Sigh.

[paula]

I do know that as a minimum Parkstone expect that girls who sit the test will have already achieved three level 5s in their SATs. (If we ever get those results that is!) Hope this helps.

[scarymary]

Well my daughter (year 5) has achieved a level 5 in literacy and science in her optional SATs this year but only a 4a in maths. She might just scrape a 5 with a fair wind behind her next year! I didn't realise the SAT results were of any importance for the 12+, I'm sure I heard somewhere that SATs and VR/NVR tests had little in common - not related in any way - but please correct me if I'm wrong!
Nice to hear from someone else with something to say on this thread!

[paula]

Your daughter should have no prob with her maths. Children are expected to progress 2 sub levels in a year. If she is a 4A now then by next she should be 5B. You are right that nvr/vr tests are nothing like SATS but the 3 fives rule is a guide to the overall level a girl should be at in order to suceed with not only the entrance tests but with the workload once they have a place.
Are you a resident of Poole? I am agonising over where to send my daughter after our move to Poole. Girls who don't attend a Poole middle school have to score more highly in the tests in order to be offered a place. What will be our local Poole Middle School is full.

[scarymary]

IUnfortunately I don't live in Poole - I'm in Purbeck - so have no information about the Poole middle schools.
Of the middle schools in our area, I would say that Sandford is slightly ahead academically of the other two (Wareham middle and Swanage middle). There's no real difference at the moment between the Wareham and Swanage schools, although Swanage has recently appointed a new headmaster of whom great things are expected.

[scarymary]

Well my daughter (year 5) has achieved a level 5 in literacy and science in her optional SATs this year but only a 4a in maths.

Whoops, got that a bit wrong - she's actually a 4c in maths!