anyone familiar with manchester/bolton gs...plz reply

[tanner]

hi!dh is considering relocation from london to manchester/bolton . he is currently in manchester looking at job prospects and viewing properties. having sat for essex exams, my dd is also sitting for redbridge in a week's time.i always wanted a single gender school for my dd.my BIGGEST worry therefore is,if we move to manchester/bolton in summer,how do we try for gs in that area? as per my understanding,the entrance test and allocations would already have taken place.
dh has already visited the council and has been advised to ring the 11+ dept. on monday.i have got no clues as which girls schools to go for and how to try for them.
could any of the members with slightest bit of information ,reply to this query?as i am tearing my hair apart with worry.
many thnx as always!

[TraffordMum]

The grammar schools in the Manchester region are in Trafford which is one of the southern boroughs of Greater Manchester. There are 7 in total, the relevant ones for you being Altrincham Grammar School for Girls (AGGS), Loreto Gramar School (Catholic and girls only), Sale Grammar School (mixed), Urmston Grammar School (mixed) and Stretford Grammar School (mixed).

There are no grammar schools in the Bolton or North Manchester area. North of Manchester your nearest grammar would be Bacup or Clitheroe (both mixed) in Lancashire, I think, with which I am not familiar.

In terms of AGGS and Loreto, being the all girls' grammars in Trafford, you are right that the exams and results have been and gone. Both schools manage their own admissions so you would need to call both schools to ask for information about a late test and also about what the school would require in terms of evidence of address. Look carefully at how places are allotted at the schools. eg AGGS has an 8 mile inner catchment area. If you move outside that area then your chances of getting a place even if you jump through all the other hoops will be small.

Please feel free to PM me if you want any advice on areas to move to that you may not want to appear on the open forum.

[tanner]

Thnx a tonne TraffordMum for your detailed reply.will check Aggs and Loreto gs website to find out about their admission criteria.wil get back 2 u with further queries.

[TraffordMum]

Loreto's info is very basic on their website. If you aren't Catholic then your chances of getting in whenever you take the exam are slim to non-existent.

AGGS goes into much more detail on their website - basically it's distance that matters for them.

If your husband is planning on working in Bolton I should at this point warn you that the travelling from south Trafford (for AGGS) to Bolton will be a nightmare, even though we are very well equipped with motorways.

If it's central Manchester then note that there is the Metrolink tram system that runs from Altrincham, through Sale, Stretford and north Trafford into the city centre (and then on to other places) very frequently and is very popular with commuters.

I have 2 daughters at AGGS so I know that school well.

[tanner]

thnx again!had a look @ aggs website.seems to lay a lot of emphasis on` 8 mile radius ` as their catchment area.dh is returning tomorrow .will then know which areas he has found attractive.emailed me last night pictures of couple of houses he has visited.can i just say the houses in manchester are MASSIVE.waiting for dh's return to start looking into the possibility of requesting a late test in aggs if we choose to reside within the catchment.

[mystery]

Some fantastic independents, you should be able to make some arrangement to sit their tests at slightly the wrong time this Spring? Hop up there on the train?

[TraffordMum]

It sounds very exciting!

[mystery]

Yes it does. I used to live in the north. The happiest people there were the relocated southerners. Wish I was re-re-locating!!

[tanner]

thnx mystery and traffordmum for lifting my spirits up!!!!!i was otherwise in the doldrums lately!

[mystery]

Oh it will be fabulous. Given the choice, north or south, it's a no-brainer!! (Apologies to those who think my new homeland in the south-east is superior - I don't agree!!!) It's not grim up north.