How is Dartford Grammar school for Girls?

Eleven Plus (11+) in Kent

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lazyPapa
Posts: 7
Joined: Tue Jan 25, 2022 5:19 pm

How is Dartford Grammar school for Girls?

Post by lazyPapa »

Hi,
I couldn't find much discussion on Dartford Grammer School for Girls. My DD will be giving 11+plus exam 2022-Sep.
So wanted to know view on DGSG.
How does it compare to Townly and Newsteadwood ?
deeps
Posts: 6
Joined: Thu Sep 28, 2023 11:12 am

Re: How is Dartford Grammar school for Girls?

Post by deeps »

Hi, sorry to see no one replied to your post but we are in the same situation now. Our DD just sat her 11 plus in Dartford, Bexley and Newstead. Just curious to know which school did you choose?
osprey
Posts: 77
Joined: Sun Oct 16, 2022 11:04 am

Re: How is Dartford Grammar school for Girls?

Post by osprey »

DGSG is a good school. However, many girls are from the immediate area and provided you have passed the Kent test pupil premium are prioritised within the catchment area. There is no set quota. So, the % of children on free school meals is quite high at 18%. Some would say this is good as it encourages much more social diversification compared to places like TOGs which have only 2% on free school meals. It is something to be aware of though.
deeps
Posts: 6
Joined: Thu Sep 28, 2023 11:12 am

Re: How is Dartford Grammar school for Girls?

Post by deeps »

My DD scored 405 in Kent test today but we live out of the catchment area. Do you think if that is a safe score?

She has scored 242 in Newstead which I believe will be enough to secure a place there. Newstead is a bit far from where we live(1hr 20 minutes by bus/coach) but within the 9 mile radius. Dartford is fairly close(55minutes).

Which school do you think we should put her for number 1 in the CAF form?
PettswoodFiona
Posts: 2130
Joined: Mon Mar 03, 2014 11:24 pm
Location: Petts Wood, Bromley, Kent

Re: How is Dartford Grammar school for Girls?

Post by PettswoodFiona »

What was your daughter’s preference when she visited the schools? My daughter had 7 lovely years at Newstead but it was really close to where we live. A lot who get the coach end up getting the train as it is far speedier for many.
deeps
Posts: 6
Joined: Thu Sep 28, 2023 11:12 am

Re: How is Dartford Grammar school for Girls?

Post by deeps »

We didn't get a chance to see Newstead school. Open day was held during the summer before the entrance test. We got to see Townley and DGSG. We liked Townley very much but my DD liked both. She liked Newstead very much in the beginning but we had to convince her it will be really hard for her to commute to school everyday for 7 years. Coach is an option but she will have to leave home at 6:45am in the morning. There is a direct bus from outside our house that goes all the way to Orpington but it is about 1hr5mins bus ride plus 15 mins walk to the school. There isn't a direct train from where we live to the school.

We are a bit disappointed to give up Newstead with a score of 242 that would secure her a place there and relying on DGSG with a score of 405 for OOCA which doesn' even look like a safe score this year. Dartford grammar for boys is undoubtedly one of the best grammar schools but I can't seem to find any informations regarding the ranking of DGSG. It doesn't appear anywhere in the league of top grammar schools in the UK. Do you have any idea how it compares with other schools like Newstead and Townley?

We still have a week to edit our preferences and choose Newstead at number 1. We can move close to Orpington if DGSG isn't as reputable schools compared to others. Thank you.
PettswoodFiona
Posts: 2130
Joined: Mon Mar 03, 2014 11:24 pm
Location: Petts Wood, Bromley, Kent

Re: How is Dartford Grammar school for Girls?

Post by PettswoodFiona »

Dartford Girls Grammar is a great school, if you really want it put it top. You can find data about any school using the government compare tool, here is DGGS https://www.compare-school-performance. ... /secondary - it has a great progress 8 score for example. 0.94 compared to Newstead 1.05 so not much difference.


If you put DGGS top it won’t stop you getting into other schools further down your CAF if the required score for DGGS is higher than 405. Email admissions for information on past scores. The general Kent thread does have some information but it has exploded with lots of people asking questions so you may need to trawl through it a bit to find what you want if you don’t want to wait for the admissions team.
deeps
Posts: 6
Joined: Thu Sep 28, 2023 11:12 am

Re: How is Dartford Grammar school for Girls?

Post by deeps »

Thank you so much for such a detailed information. I really appreciate your help in clearing our confusion. I will leave DGSG at number 1 in the CAF. I have put Newstead at number 2 and Townley at number 3 in the CAF. Based on the past data, scores above 400 has always been safe for DGSG. Thank you once again.
ayanm
Posts: 1
Joined: Fri Oct 27, 2023 4:07 pm

Re: How is Dartford Grammar school for Girls?

Post by ayanm »

deeps wrote: Tue Oct 24, 2023 8:31 am We didn't get a chance to see Newstead school. Open day was held during the summer before the entrance test. We got to see Townley and DGSG. We liked Townley very much but my DD liked both. She liked Newstead very much in the beginning but we had to convince her it will be really hard for her to commute to school everyday for 7 years. Coach is an option but she will have to leave home at 6:45am in the morning. There is a direct bus from outside our house that goes all the way to Orpington but it is about 1hr5mins bus ride plus 15 mins walk to the school. There isn't a direct train from where we live to the school.

We are a bit disappointed to give up Newstead with a score of 242 that would secure her a place there and relying on DGSG with a score of 405 for OOCA which doesn' even look like a safe score this year. Dartford grammar for boys is undoubtedly one of the best grammar schools but I can't seem to find any informations regarding the ranking of DGSG. It doesn't appear anywhere in the league of top grammar schools in the UK. Do you have any idea how it compares with other schools like Newstead and Townley?

We still have a week to edit our preferences and choose Newstead at number 1. We can move close to Orpington if DGSG isn't as reputable schools compared to others. Thank you.
We do have the same dilemma with Newstead wood, Townley and Dartford grammar schools. We are thinking of not going ahead with Newstead wood mainly due to transportation issue. We found Townley and Dartford almost equally good, DGSG seems to be academically producing better result, but we liked the open evening presentation of Townley more than DGSG.
deeps
Posts: 6
Joined: Thu Sep 28, 2023 11:12 am

Re: How is Dartford Grammar school for Girls?

Post by deeps »

Have you decided the school for your daughter yet?
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