Tiffin v. Sutton Grammar

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CecilGee
Posts: 4
Joined: Thu Oct 08, 2009 4:09 pm

Tiffin v. Sutton Grammar

Post by CecilGee »

Hi All,
I just registered on this site today and already I am finding it very interesting with lots of experienced parents etc.

Well here goes my story, my son got a pass mark of 351 for Wallington, 175 rank and a "guaranteed place" for Sept. 2010 entry should we choose to put Wallington on the application form. We are pleased however we have a bit of a dilemma - should we choose Tiffin Boys and/or Sutton Grammar over Wallington, now that we are 100% sure he is capable of passing the GS exams for all the three schools? Can anyone please help with advice on the three schools wrt education (not grades - as the three schools appear to be in the same league at GCSE's and A/Levels), extracurricular, all-roundness etc. It is said that you son has to "fit in" to attend Tiffin. We are from a middle income humble background and we do not want our son to feel unwanted and out-of-place. Please help we only have a few days to fill the form and even as this might open a can of worms please be as candid as possible. We live in Ewell and there is a direct bus to all three schools from Worcester Park or A240 hence proximity/ease of travel is about the same for all three schools. Many thanks in advance.
CG
mad?
Posts: 5621
Joined: Thu May 01, 2008 6:27 pm
Location: london

Re: Tiffin v. Sutton Grammar

Post by mad? »

CecilGee wrote:Hi All,
We are pleased however we have a bit of a dilemma - should we choose Tiffin Boys and/or Sutton Grammar over Wallington, now that we are 100% sure he is capable of passing the GS exams for all the three schools?
CG
Congratulations on Wallington. However, in this process you cannot be 100% sure of anything! Which school did you like the most? Which did DS like the most? Are they all really equal in travel terms? I would not worry about fitting in at Tiffin, all the boys I know who go there are pretty normal and from normal backgrounds. At the end of the day you have a good dilemma, enjoy!
mad?
Plum
Posts: 284
Joined: Thu Mar 05, 2009 10:26 am

Post by Plum »

Hi

Don't want to sound negative but I have nephews that sat several school exams but only passed one (that was Wallington, by the way).

My DS still wants to sit Wilson's despite getting a place at WCGS but we're in the same boat - do we put Wilson's first or Wallington???

I just don't know....

Plum
mad?
Posts: 5621
Joined: Thu May 01, 2008 6:27 pm
Location: london

Post by mad? »

decide which school you want the most and put that first...
mad?
partygirl
Posts: 68
Joined: Thu Nov 13, 2008 11:39 pm
Location: Heston

Post by partygirl »

CecilGee,

I can only give advice on Tiffin. We are also from a humble middle income background, our son was offered grammar school places at Herschel, Burnham and Tiffin (under the old application system) and we chose Tiffin. There was no problem in our son fitting in. Yes there are some children at Tiffin who could easily gone to Kingston Grammar without their parents blinking an eye at the cost but most families are exactly from the type of background that you describe yourself.

Certainly consider Tiffin but look at what the other schools offer too.
CecilGee
Posts: 4
Joined: Thu Oct 08, 2009 4:09 pm

Post by CecilGee »

Thanks All. I only mentioned "capable" of passing to all three schools as we believe DS was probably marked down in the Wallington exam because of a slight technical error he made - hence we believe he may be able to pass all three.

Please keep the comments coming, I am for Tiffin and my wife is for Sutton Grammar. However, we will attend the Tiffin open day on Monday and probaly do test the travel time on Wednesday or Thursday and then decide thereafter. Many thanks again to all.
CG
Gilly
Posts: 139
Joined: Tue Sep 16, 2008 8:30 pm

Post by Gilly »

Hi CG,

I can completely understand your dilemma. We were also in your position few years ago when we were looking for a senior school for our elder son. We also live around the same area as you.

That time we couldn't consider Wallington simply because those days Sutton Grammar and Wallington tests were on the same day and you could only choose one of them. So we went for Tiffin, Sutton Grammar and Glyn Technology.

I must admit that we liked Sutton Grammar a lot. The infrastructure, pupils, head teacher, etc. But, after talking to different people, considering the travel to Sutton (not a frequent service from Epsom to Sutton) we decided to put Tiffin as our first preference. I know there is nothing much to choose between Tiffin and Sutton Grammar but I feel it is down to reputation and how the school prepares the boys/girls towards their future life and education, extra activities, etc.

Tiffin has been through some difficult time last year and with the caretaker head teacher last term and with the new head teacher from this term they are marching forward. There is no need to worry about the family background or anything like that. You will see most boys at Tiffin are from middle class and humble families where parents put lots of effort in getting their children the best education.

Our younger son has just started year 7 now at Tiffin and he is already enjoying the school. Our elder son has also progressed very well at Tiffin.

Our boys take public transport to school. Depending on your location in Ewell, you can take either 418 or 406 to Kingston. There is a bus at every 15 minutes. I know few children get the bus from the Ruxley Lane junction with A240 so that they can catch either 418 or 406.

If you need more info then please PM me as I don't visit the forum often these days.

Regards
SunlampVexesEel
Posts: 1245
Joined: Fri Jul 06, 2007 9:31 pm

Re: Tiffin v. Sutton Grammar

Post by SunlampVexesEel »

CecilGee wrote:now that we are 100% sure he is capable of passing the GS exams for all the three schools?
You are being optimistic (which isn't a bad thing); the exams are different for WCGS/Sutton/Tiffin. In particular Tiffin has no English or Maths. And I truely believe that performance on the day and luck has a significant effect for these exams!
Ensuring you list them in the true order of preference on your CAF is vital.
Regards
SVE
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