11 Plus Exams Forum

Dear All,

Please excuse my ignorance, but is there a kind member out there who can explain how one applies for WGB? Does the school form part of the Herts Consortium?

Reason for asking is that I met a friend today, whose nephew is hoping to go to the school. Unfortunately his mother is not well and he is often cared for by his grandparents who think that, because he is an extremely bright boy, he will get into the school. He has received no extra tutoring outside of school.

So that my friend can advise her family, could you please explain what the process is, what exams are involved (Grandpa seems to think there is an interview?) and any recommendations for exam papers etc. He will be going into Year 6 in September so there isn't a great deal of time for pre-prep.

Many thanks,

I am afraid the time for form submission of the entrance test has passed. Please do correct me if I am wrong. I don't want to be bearer of bad news.

If you look at their website, you will probably find most of the answers to your questions. Sorry, I tried to add a link but it was a bit difficult with my phone.
.

You can check ;

http://www.watfordboys.org/index.php?op ... &Itemid=10" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Or if they are not really on the internet a lot, just give them this contact no to call ;

School office & general enquiries
A: Rickmansworth Road, Watford, Hertfordshire, WD18 7JF
T: 01923 208900

E: office@watfordboys.herts.sch.uk

Admissions & administration
E: office@watfordboys.herts.sch.uk

The exam is in six weeks time. There is no interview. State schools are not allowed to interrview. It is a first past the post system. Those who get the highest marks get the places. He is unlikely to be able to do the 100 in 45 minutes VR paper unless he prepares. But all this is academic as they have missed the application deadline. I think you need to have an urgent chat with the grandparents. Nobody has a right to the places, you have to prepare and apply. DG

I don't know about the boys' school , but at the girls' school, there IS an interview once they have got a place. It is not part of the selection process though, just an opportunity to get to know the pupils better. Maybe that's where the interview came from?
Anyhow, it would be worth contacting Watford Boys ASAP when school goes back and seeing if there is any chance of your friend's son sitting the exam. I'm sure I have heard of people being allowed to after the registration date, so it's worth familiarising him with some papers just in case.

Admin staff don't necessarily get the same holidays as the teaching staff, so it's worth trying the school now and at intervals - there will definitely be people around coming up to the A2 / AS results day - August 14th - and GCSE results day, August 21st. They will obviously be busy with these events but may be kind enough to advise, at least. Given that people do give up school places for whatever reason, even at this late date, and have to be replaced with waiting list applicants, you may even strike lucky and get the right person to speak to.

I am assuming that the boy in question doesn't live close enough to the school to get a community place?

There are several ways of getting a place:
Be (or have been) in care.
Have a sibling already at the school.
Score in the top 45 in the test (it's slightly more complicated than this in reality as there are different cut-offs for inner and outer area).
Score well in the music test and play reasonably well in the subsequent audition.
Have a sister at the girls' school.
Live within 250m of a specified point within the school grounds.

The first two are fairly guaranteed ways of getting a place.
The next two can be a bit hit-or-miss.
The last two should work but can't be guaranteed.

The deadline for registering for the tests has already passed.

And yes, the tests are administered by the S.W.Herts consortium. Website:
http://www.swhertsschools.org.uk/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

If he has been registered for the test, the following preparation worked for my sons:

Verbal reasoning: Susan Daughtrey's books on technique and practice.
Plus vocabulary work.
Then Athey papers under exam conditions, to practise speed.

Maths: How to do 11+Maths (published by Bond) to check for areas of weakness.
Then Bond workbooks: 10-11+ then 11-12+
Then GL assessment papers under exam conditions, to practise accuracy and checking.

With a quick learner, this could be done in less than 50 hours.