If your child does not get into a grammar school please read

[Wolves mum]

Thanks for clearing that up UmSusu, I am a worrier and had heard children who struggled were asked to leave and had therefore been worrying about DS.

[um]

Thank you so much for your encouraging post, AK, and your help and support to the forum parents.

Just a quick note about waiting list movement - it does depend on which school you're talking about.
Some have relatively high movement in their waiting list and others have less. Schools tend to over-offer from their published admission number, anticipating some movement, for example toward the Independent Schools.
I'm aware that for CHB there has not been a great deal of movement on the waiting list in recent years.

[AK loving Dad]

Thank you so much for your encouraging post, AK, and your help and support to the forum parents.

Just a quick note about waiting list movement - it does depend on which school you're talking about.
Some have relatively high movement in their waiting list and others have less. Schools tend to over-offer from their published admission number, anticipating some movement, for example toward the Independent Schools.
I'm aware that for CHB there has not been a great deal of movement on the waiting list in recent years.

Thanks um for the clarification and kind words..

[Scooby73]

Thanks so much more for the information regarding KEFW and the 13+ entry. My main reason for reluctance is the travelling to KEFW as DS would need to get the green bus at such an early time from where we live and also if it's not an always reliable service, I'd have no means of getting him to and from school at the last minute.
Re KES- I was hoping that there may be a waiting list for this year's entry after the final movement in March as surely some people may not accept an offer in favour of a grammar school place. However, the bursar told me that this isn't the case apparently. I'm not sure whether my DS did well enough to stand a chance anyway if he were to try at 13+ as it doesn't seem a clear cut process to me. How did he not do well enough for an AP but well enough for a FP place? Confused.com!

[kenyancowgirl]

"How did he not do well enough for an AP but well enough for a FP place? Confused.com!"

...he passed the exam in the top x number of children (with x representing the number of places in the school or offers made to get bums on seats) but didn't pass the exam in the top y number of places (with y representing the number of children who applied/amount of money available for bursaries).

Put simply: y gets offered to the kids (who have applied and qualified for bursaries) who score highest in the exams as the school wants to make the most effort to secure them. It means that other bursary applicants scored higher than him and there wasn't money left in the pot when they got down to him. But that doesn't take away from the fact that he did well enough to pass the exam! (And I am sure there will be some movement after the gs announce places, but the bursar and school probably don't want to admit it too loudly as indies get very protective over their "brand" and don't want people to know that there are some families who have the audacity to reject their offers!!!!)

[UmSusu]

Scooby73, put simply, he did well on the exam and achieved a high enough score to secure a place. However, with around half the people applying also wanting an AP, from the ones who passed, they can only pick out the highest scoring applicants (30-40 in previous years) to offer the AP to as that is how far the funding stretches to.

They do have people rejecting their offers as there have been posters on here who have chosen grammar places but I think they bear that in mind in the number of offers they make. Last year they were taken by surprise in the number of acceptances though and had to put in an extra class for shells to fulfill their offers.

He has done well nevertheless - it is just a shame that the lack of AP might mean you can't take up the offer.

[moseleymum]

Yes last year Mr Claughton said they were surprised at the number of acceptances (bearing in mind it was the first year that Consortium scores were revealed prior to March 1st). The six form entry last year was huge, it's normally five. However, as the school was able to meet the capacity I thought the six form entry might continue if there were enough acceptances?

[UmSusu]

mm, I am not sure what the plans are this year, but last year he said it would only be done for the current shells and revert back to five form entry after that. Although with the school's increasing capacity I wouldn't be all that surprised if they made it permanent.

[reeyah]

Now, let's get back to leaving this thread for the ones who don't make it to Grammar

[moseleymum]

Now, let's get back to leaving this thread for the ones who don't make it to Grammar

Sorry, thought that Independents such as Priory, St Georges (and KES at 13+) were one of the options for those that don't make it to Grammar and the increase in the intake was an important part of this.