Judd / Skinners 2010 admissions

Guest55 · Post by **Guest55** » Tue Jul 28, 2009 1:57 pm

I don't know why Kent don't adopt the Bucks system ... one qualification score (121) and then distance to decide between applicants. It encourages people to go local - all Bucks residents are guaranteed a place (not neccessarily at their first choice though) and those living near county borders can also access a Grammar if there are spare places.

Just1-2go · Post by **Just1-2go** » Tue Jul 28, 2009 2:47 pm

Guest55. Do the children living in Bucks take precedence over those living outside the county, regardless of the distance they live from the school?

Guest55 · Post by **Guest55** » Tue Jul 28, 2009 3:42 pm

If they are in catchment ... there are a few OOC villages/towns which are in Bucks catchments.

Post by **Etienne** » Tue Jul 28, 2009 4:48 pm

It would be illegal to give precedence to in-county children as such, but catchment areas are permitted under the Rotherham judgement. As Guest55 says, some catchment areas cross county borders.

SSM · Post by **SSM** » Tue Jul 28, 2009 4:53 pm

Most GS's in Kent do decide on candidates on distance. However the problem with boys GS's in West Kent is that 2 out of the 3 have their own over subscription criteria which is based on score.

The other problem with West Kent is that parents in the Sevenoaks area would rather their DC go to school in Tunbridge Wells rather than Dartford or Wilmington, even though the distance is probably the same.

Also, a lot of parents choose Judd or Skinners for prestige, as it shows their boy is 'not just capable of passing the 11+ but also of doing very well in it'

As far as I'm aware, the problem of not enough GS school places is only prevalent in West Kent and it is not a countywide problem. Again this could be because 2 of the 3 boys GS's are very close to the border.

kentish maid · Post by **kentish maid** » Tue Jul 28, 2009 5:38 pm

Transport to Dartford or Wilmington from Sevenoaks is not funded by KCC. Even if you decided to use the freedom pass, their are no public buses that could get dc there in time!! Train isn't much help either. That's why so many from Sevenoaks and the surrounding villages head to Tonbridge and Tunbridge Wells.

SSM · Post by **SSM** » Tue Jul 28, 2009 6:03 pm

There is a school coach that goes through Otford (not sure where it starts from) to Wilmington Boys Grammar.

Travel is only funded from Sevenoaks to TWBGs not to TWGGs or to Skinners.

kentish maid · Post by **kentish maid** » Tue Jul 28, 2009 9:46 pm

True there is a bus that goes through Otford but as Wilmington is not the nearest "appropriate grammar" you would have to pay to use it , thats if there is a space. As KCC are not obliged to transport you there is no guarantee, unless of course you have put Judd and TWBG on your caf and failed to get a place and they have allocated you Wilmington!! Even then you may have to contribute to the cost. I believe there was a boy in kemsing who did put down Wilmington and did not get a place in March but did so on appeal ( one of only 7 who were successful at appeal). His case was highlighted on the national news.

The facts are, that even if you overcome transport hurdles, you have as much chance of getting a place at Dartford or Wilmington, if your from Sevenoaks, as you have at Judd or TWBG. If KCC put on buses or paid for transport to Oakwood Park in Maidstone that might alleviate some of the problem of lack of space in West Kent grammars for boys. Given that so many ended up with Folkestone and Sittingbourne grammars in March is this really an option? Is there space in Maidstone?

SSM · Post by **SSM** » Wed Jul 29, 2009 4:13 pm

I think that the problem is accentuated because a lot of people living around Sevenoaks seem to have set ideas about what areas to travel to for services and it isn't just schools. Most people I know would gladly travel all the way to TW to go bowling but would think it totally alien to go bowling in Bexleyheath, which is probably just as quick. So even if transport was laid on to the Dartford or Maidstone schools a lot of people would still not choose to go there.

Don't get me started on the subsidised travel to school. KCC will not pay for a boy from Sevenoaks to travel to Skinners if they put the school as first choice but will if it wasn't first choice, they will also pay for a boy to travel to TWBGS (where ever it was put on the CAF) even though it is the same route.

It would be interesting to know how many families put TWBGS first on the CAF, in order to get the subsidised travel.

kentish maid · Post by **kentish maid** » Wed Jul 29, 2009 6:30 pm

I think you may be right about set ideas for the direction of travel. These are of course reinforced and perpetrated by KCC's transport provision. It is difficult to get to some grammars, even if you were prepared to pay, as the transport is not there.

However, reading posts from Bexley and North West Kent, it isn't just boys from Sevenoaks who struggle to access their "local Grammars". There are no undersubscribed grammars in west or north kent. The Bexley Grammars would be just as competitive as the super selectives if you were applying out of county so to speak. It does not matter what direction you go in. If you are a boy living in the north of Sevenoaks or in places like Otford, Kemsing, Shorham and Knockholt etc if you pass but do not get a superselective score, than you have to rely on success via the waiting list or appeal to get a grammar school place you could realisticallly travel to. This year that also applied to the girls. A lot from these villages do finally then get in but it seems this is at the expense of Weald and TWBG putting on extra classes. The worry is for how long can they continue to do this.