Qualifying (pates) scores for grammar schools

[gloucestermum]

Hi Mother of3,
When did you get this letter-no other letters for Tommies have given the scores just if you have reached the qualifying standard???

[proud mum x 2]

hi everyone what a fab forum!!!! only just found it, have been interested in eleven plus exams, in fact i'm interested in anything to do with education.My son is in year 11 at Pates and we are still coming down from the excitement of finding out that my daughter has got in the 120 at Pates too !!! She had worked hard to practise before the test, and is even more thrilled than us to be joining her brother.great to read all the posts on here,much more interesting than the tele !!

[gloucestermum]

Welcome-and congratulations!!! What an enviable situation to be in-one of certainty!!

[Guest]

thanks for the welcome, we are lucky, and i really feel for those still uncertain. We all want the best for our kids, and i feel sort of guilty,as i know so many people and,especially,children,don't know yet their fate. an unfair,almost cruel system,and although we are happy,i can appreciate others' pain. hope and wish you all get your dreams,and with fantastic parents like you lot: the kids will thrive wherever they go.

[capers123]

... i feel sort of guilty,as i know so many people and,especially,children,don't know yet their fate. an unfair,almost cruel system ...

But then it was introduced to improve on the old system, where if you put down a grammar as 1st choice and didn't get it, you got sent to the bottom of the pile - which was unfair. The thing is that it's trying to work out what the most appropriate school & education is for each child.

What is slightly 'off' to me is that people can apply for every grammar in the county, so if you've done that and get into the top 120 at Pates, you'll also be in the top 120 for the others, thus blocking a place at each of them until the offers go out - potentially 3 other children kept in uncertainty! But I can't think of a way round it.

[proud mum x 2]

Hi capers, i did register at denmark road, and appreciate, that now my daughter, without intending to, is blocking a potential place there for another girl. but, like you said,what is the alternative? perhaps they could allocate "first places" quickly, thus freeing up "blocked places." It is a very difficult situation for all involved, there has to be a way to improve it. Most people apply for more than one grammar, as they are unaware of the outcome of the test.

[magwich]

It seems fairly obvious to me that the way round it is for parents to be a bit less selfish and use a bit more intelligence and send in their form to the education authority AFTER the 11+ results. We know that our daughter is in the 120 for pates so we have now only applied for that school.
There were a number of people earlier in this forum saying we were selfish for applying to pates at all when we did not live locally but at least we have not blocked places all over the county!

[guest07]

Surely this is what will happen as the cut off date for choices is tomorrow. Everyone knows which schools they have or have not qualified for so they will have amended the on line application accordingly. I only applied for Crypt and local comp and as my son passed I can leave mine as it is. If he had not reached the qualifying mark then I would have removed Crypt. The only difference is at Pates you were given your rank so you know you definately have a place. Not all schools did this so even though they 'passed' there's no guarantee of a place. That is why some people put down more than one grammar school because they simply don't know if their childs pass mark will be enough to guarantee a place at their first choice.

Shame they didn't all do the same as Pates.

[gloucestermum]

There seems to be an awful lot of Crypt passes..................7 in DS school alone.Long time until March

[capers123]

It seems fairly obvious to me that the way round it is for parents to be a bit less selfish and use a bit more intelligence and send in their form to the education authority AFTER the 11+ results. We know that our daughter is in the 120 for pates so we have now only applied for that school.

That's fine come March, as you will only be allocated one school, but it's on the initial 11+ application form that putting down all the grammars causes this current anguish.

Take an absolutely worst case scenario:

4 grammars, 120 places available in each.
500 pupils take 11+ and all have said they want to be considered for all the schools. 480 pass, 20 don't pass.
The top 120 pupils will be told that they are in the top 120 by each of the schools.
360 will be told that they've passed, but are not in the top 120 for any school.
Come March, the top 120 will be given a place at whichever school they put 1st on the preference form due in by tomorrow.
360 will also given a place at whichever school they have put 1st (or which ever grammar there is space at) BUT they've had 4 months of worrying!

OK, it won't be quite that bad, but it's not far off. And most sensible parents will be hedging their bets and have put down all the sensible schools on their list.

We won't be putting down Pates next year. Not because we wouldn't want DD to go there, but our local grammar is within 1/2 mile walk from our house, whereas Pates is a real hike with no sensible public transport. The Gloucester schools we'll look at next year, but even that seems a little far - but who knows...